‘Dawn Chorus’: the rejected Radiohead song that leaves Thom Yorke in “floods of tears”
Radiohead is a band that constantly looks for different ways to push themselves musically. When you listen to their discography, it’s clear that they have never worried about putting together albums that dance around various genres. Having a consistent sound has never been important for the band, as they are mostly implored to make something they enjoy, which doesn’t restrict them creatively.
When Jack Black talked about his favourite albums of all time, he referenced Radiohead and highlighted how much range the band have throughout their discography. “If you want concept,” he said, “You go OK Computer. But if you wanna rock — if you want straight-up fuckin’ songs — you go The Bends. The first few listens, I was like, ‘I don’t understand…. My brain’s not computing….’ Then it clicked in: ‘Ohhhh, I see! It’s the best band in the history of rock!’”
As the band pursued this sound, they were relentless in their perfectionism. When incorporating various instruments, styles, and time signatures into a piece, they would occasionally come up with songs that presented obstacles too big to overcome.
One of these happened when the band were recording In Rainbows, as during an interview, when asked what his favourite song was, Thom Yorke replied, “Whatever I’m finishing at the moment. There’s one called ‘Dawn Chorus’ I’m trying to finish at the moment,” said Yorke, “That’s really great… I think.”
While Yorke knew there was something in the song, it was a track he couldn’t get over the hill. There was too much to develop with the song that stopped him from getting it to a point where he was completely happy. As a result, the track was shelved, and In Rainbows was released without it.
“I was trying to develop how ‘Dawn Chorus’ was going to work, and find the right combinations on the synthesizers I was using. Couldn’t find it, tried it again and again and again,” said Yorke, discussing the difficulties with the song, “But I knew when I found it I would have my way into the song. Things like that matter to me – they are sort of obsessive, but there is an emotional connection. I was deliberately trying to find something as cold as possible to go with it, like I sing essentially one note all the way through.”
Fans were left wondering how the song might have sounded, and it wasn’t until 2019 and his solo record Anima that he was able to get the song to a place where he was happy to release it. The end result was well worth the wait, as it remains one of Yorke’s most emotional offerings to date, so much so that he admitted even he breaks down when he listens to it.
During an interview with Zane Lowe, Lowe reflected on the first time he heard ‘Dawn Chorus’ and shared his emotional reaction to the track. “Floods of tears in the car the first time I heard that,” recalled Lowe, “Tapped into whatever else was going on in my life, personal stuff, thought I had it all under control, that song comes on, forget about it.”
Thom Yorke didn’t say anything at first and instead leaned over to give Lowe a high five, one that celebrated what his music can do but also felt like the equivalent of a pat on the back. When Lowe asked how it made him feel in return, the response was simple and honest, “Same,” he said, “That’s the fucking point.”
