In a week that The Farm released news of a new album for 2025, one of the main songs that started it all, All Together Now turns 34. I say one of the songs as they also had the mighty album Spartacus to back it up with a track list that did not require a skip at any point in it on CD or cassette player, remember the tape ‘seek’ function on a car stereo!
Released in 1990 it was their seventh single release and I their third from ‘Spartacus‘, preceded by the ‘Stepping Stone / Family of Man‘. Stepping Stone was written by Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart, an American duo of singer-songwriters. First recorded by the Liverpool Five in 1966 and American band Paul Revere & the Raiders recorded the song in May 1966. Also recorded by The Monkees in November 1966 and released with ‘I’m a Believer’. I personally think in a fair and unbiased opinion that The Farm’s version is the best recording, accompanied by the inspired artwork/sleeve featuring a sheep in bucket hat, jeans and kickers. ‘Family of Man‘ holds up as well, a fantastic tune and one that deserved higher that the chart position of 58.
‘Groovy Train‘ followed and enough said on that one, what a song, a true anthem that still turns heads with that hollow guitar intro before the drums kick in. After these two releases it is no surprise that All Together Now impacted like it did. It’s almost like it said, “you set them up, I’ll knock them down!”. Groovy Train peaked at Number 6 with ‘All Together Now‘, released on 26 November 1990 reaching No. 4 in the UK, it spent 6 weeks in the Top 10 and 10 weeks in the Top 40 Singles Chart, No. 1 on the NME Independent chart and No.7 on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. The three songs above their No.4 spot were Saviour’s Day by Cliff Richard at No.3, Justify my Love by Madonna at No.2 and Ice Ice Baby by Vanilla Ice at No.1.
A search online says, ‘The song was first recorded under the title “No Man’s Land” for a John Peel session in 1983. In 1990, Hooton wrote the chorus after Steve Grimes suggested putting the lyrics of “No Man’s Land” to the chord progression of ‘Pachelbel’s Canon‘. To shorten the song for radio, the producer Suggs from Madness cut the song to three verses from its original six.’ Wikipedia These were some genius suggestions that led to what we finally got. An Anthem not just for football but one of hope and remembrance, not your normal chart fare, it is way more than that. It is a timeless classis that I have been witness to many times live thankfully in big and small venues both indoors and outside at festivals. The reaction is the same wherever you hear it or see it live, It’s uniting, it’s poignant, it’s smiles, it’s elation, it’s a bloody good singalong.
The name says it all. It is a song that brings people together and has done now for 34 years. To add and i’m sure I have said before, one of my favourite sleeve design ever. The Subutteo Soldier, you’ll be hard pushed to find a more poignant graphic!
There is a great article in the Guardian from 2021 titled: ‘How we made: All Together Now by the Farm‘ that is well worth a read: The Guardian
