The Story and Meaning Behind “Always Something There To Remind Me,” a ’60s Classic Naked Eyes Turned into an ’80s Anthem

A good song can withstand the test of time, and it can make an impact even when approached in a style that might seem wildly foreign from the original version. “Always Something There To Remind Me” proved that quite well, scoring big in both the 1960s, via versions by several artists, and in the 1980s, when it was covered by Naked Eyes.

What is the song about? Who wrote it? And how did Naked Eyes transform it into an era-appropriate smash? Here’s the story of “Always Something There To Remind Me,” a touching portrait of someone who can’t quite escape a former lover in any version.

Dionne and On

The ’60s being a big time for parenthetical titles, it was originally called “(There’s) Always Something There To Remind Me.” It was written by the legendary team of composer Burt Bacharach and Hal David. And if you know anything about the Bacharach/David songbook, you can probably guess Dionne Warwick was involved somehow.

Warwick essentially had right of first refusal for anything written by Bacharach and David, considering how wonderfully she always interpreted their material. She did a demo of “(There’s) Always Something There To Remind Me,” but originally left it at that.

Pianist/singer Lou Johnson released a version that barely cracked the Top 50 on the U.S. charts. More successful, at least in her native Great Britain, was Sandie Shaw, whose version topped the charts in the UK in 1966. Warwick released her own official take on the song as an album cut and B-side a few years later.

Eyes on a Hit

None of the ’60s versions of “Always Something There To Remind Me” managed to do much damage on the U.S. charts, meaning the song possessed untapped potential for American audiences. Perhaps it wasn’t surprising then that it was a British duo familiar with Shaw’s early version that unleashed that potential.

Naked Eyes consisted of singer Pete Byrne and keyboardist/synthesizer player Rob Fisher. The duo wrote all but one of the songs on their 1983 debut album Burning Bridges, including the future hit “Promises, Promises.” But they chose a cover as the first single.

Although they kept the original’s melody and lyrics, they came up with an arrangement heavy on Fisher’s array of synth effects. He imbued the song with an unexpected rhythmic punch, while Byrne captured the sorrowful emotions in his vocal. Naked Eyes took “Always Something There To Remind Me” went to No. 8 in the U.S., finally breaking the song wide in America two decades after it was created.

What is the Meaning of “Always Something There to Remind Me”?

The title says it all, really: The narrator of “Always Something There To Remind Me” would love to get over his ex, but the memory of her pretty much dominates his surroundings. I walk along the city streets you used to walk along with me, he begins. And every step I take reminds me of just how we used to be.

The song continues in that vein, with a local cafe also bringing her back to mind. Agonized by it all, he wonders, Oh, how can I forget you, girl? I was born to love you, he confesses. And I will never be free / You’ll always be a part of me. In the final verse, he admits he’s been loitering in these former haunts: If you should find you miss the sweet and tender love we used to share / Just go back to the places where we used to go, and I’ll be there.

It’s likely a vast majority of the young U.S. music fans who heard Naked Eyes’ version of “Always Something There To Remind Me” assumed the band had written it as well. Nonetheless, the duo deserves credit for impeccable taste and undeniable ingenuity, as they effortlessly brought the song out of the mists of the past into their shiny new era.

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