Pale Shelter - Releases

Releases

Shortly after signing a contract with Mercury Records, a Mike Howlett-produced version of the song became the band's second single release, appearing in 1982. While it gained some club play, the single was ultimately a failure in the UK charts.

The song was completely re-recorded for the band's debut album The Hurting, in a new version produced by Chris Hughes and Ross Cullum. In 1983, after the success of singles "Mad World" and "Change", "Pale Shelter" was given another shot as a single, albeit this time using the new Hughes/Cullum recording. To provide a chart push the second time around, Mercury took full advantage of the picture disc and coloured vinyl gimmicks that were popular throughout the 1970s and early 1980s. In all, eleven different variations of the reissued single were available for purchase. Aided by this and the duo's coinciding British concerts (at many of which the song was played twice), the single finally became a chart success.

In 1985, following up on the massive success of the band's second LP Songs from the Big Chair, Mercury reissued the original Howlett-produced version of "Pale Shelter" as a single, complete with a new picture sleeve. The release was a modest success, denting the UK Top 75.

The original UK single release from 1982 erroneously credits both Orzabal and Smith as co-writers of the A-side and the B-side ("The Prisoner") although this was not the case. All of the tracks that appear on The Hurting were written solely by Orzabal, as stated in the album's credits, and the 1983 release of "Pale Shelter" also credits him alone.