Dealing with stress is something we all have to do, but when you add personal stress to the everyday pressures on the job, it can be overwhelming. With this in mind, the Song of the Week is Peter Gabriel’s inspiring “Don’t Give Up.”
A duet with English singer Kate Bush, the song was included on Gabriel’s 1986 album So. The song was inspired by the Depression-era photographs of Dorothea Lange, which depicted poverty-stricken Americans in the Dust Bowl. Gabriel saw the photos and wrote a song about the economic struggles in the U.K. at the time.
The song was the third single off the album, which was a huge success for Gabriel, who had spent the early 1970s as the lead singer of Genesis before going solo. So was Gabriel’s fifth solo album and went to #2 in the U.S. and #1 in several countries, including the U.K., Canada, Spain and Italy.
Gabriel initially approached Dolly Parton to duet with him on “Don’t Give Up,” but she turned it down and asked Bush to take her place. Many have found the song helpful, including Elton John, who said it helped him become sober. It wasn’t a big hit in the U.S., only reaching #72, but it hit the top 10 in a number of countries.