Jessye DeSilva brings their special brand of arena rock melancholy to the Don Henley classic “Boys of Summer.” It’s a fighting time of year to put this one out, as school is underway and autumn (in theory) begins to unfurl. But it’s hot out, and if you need to rev yourself up to punch the sun in the face, DeSilva is here for you with “Boys of Summer”
“Ever since I was a kid, I’ve felt there was a beautiful sort of melancholy about late summer that goes beyond the ‘back to school scaries.’ There’s the double-whammy of the days beginning to shorten as the evening chill just begins to creep in, but I also feel like some of the most magnificent sunsets happen at this time of year.”
DeSilva took some notes from The Ataris to punch up the lyrics and tempo for their version — though they genderbent the original lyrics a bit.
“I grew up with The Ataris’ cover, and I remember buying a compilation CD (yes a CD!) of Punk and Ska covers of 80s pop songs at a little record store that no longer exists on the Ocean City, NJ boardwalk. The fact that this CD became the soundtrack of my summer that year only added to the twinge of pain I felt listening to it when I went back to school.”
Indeed, DeSilva’s version feels a lot like standing on a windswept beach.
“I really wanted to try to capture the chilly feeling on a deserted beach in the sonic palette of this version, and I think producer Joe Dunn (who co-wrote my song “Jeannie Frances”) did a magnificent job of this with his use of heavy reverb and dreamy, sparse guitars. This song is amazing to me because the song itself captures a dreamy nostalgia in its lyrical storytelling, while both the original and the Atari’s cover now offer musical nostalgia of times long-gone… I hope y’all like it!”
I heard Don Henley and the Eagles sing this song last night. Jessye DeSilva’s version is a beautiful strong rendition. Great talent.
Your voice is getting stronger! Love it.