365 Days of Song Recommendations: July 13

Always On My Mind — The Pet Shop Boys

I recently read that there are over 300 recorded covers of Wayne Carson’s Always On My Mind. For whatever reason, I thought Willie wrote it. Little did I know — I guess I missed the Elvis version for all those years. There have been a few recent versions that I like, particularly from Bahamas and Ane Brun, but still, after all these years, I still think Pet Shop Boys recorded it best. A perfect ’80s pop song you can dance to, even if it wakes you up in the middle of the night feeling pure shame.

I’m a fairly big Pet Shop Boys fan, so I could easily write reviews for days, but there’s just something so great about this cover. The agro cowbells, the melodrama, the stark contrast between the dance club and the gooey lyrical heartbreak. The tension is so nice, and my mood doesn’t know what to do with the song.

Next year, we should do 365 Covers and Remixes. Until then, I’m happy if this is the last cover I write about in 2021.

Maybe I didn’t love you
Quite as often as I could have
And maybe I didn’t treat you
Quite as good as I should have
If I made you feel second best
Girl I’m sorry I was blind
You were always on my mind
You were always on my mind
And maybe I didn’t hold you
All those lonely, lonely times
I guess I never told you
I am so happy that you’re mine
Little things I should have said and done
I just never took the time
You were always on my mind
You were always on my mind
Tell me
Tell me that your sweet love hasn’t died
And gi-ve me
Give me one more chance to keep you satisfied
I’ll keep you satisfied
Little things I should have said and done
I just never took the time
You were always on my mind (you were always on my mind)
You were always on my mind
You were always on my mind (you were always on my mind)
You were always on my mind

This delightful track is the 194th song on the exclusive #365Songs playlist!