Better Be Home Soon
Encyclopedia
"Better Be Home Soon" is a 1988 song written by Neil Finn
Neil Finn
Neil Mullane Finn, OBE is a New Zealand Pop recording artist. Along with his brother Tim Finn, he was the co-frontman for Split Enz and is now frontman for Crowded House...

 and performed by New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

/Australian band Crowded House
Crowded House
Crowded House are a rock band, formed in Melbourne, Australia and led by New Zealand singer-songwriter Neil Finn. Finn is the primary songwriter and creative director of the band, having led it through several incarnations, drawing members from New Zealand , Australia and the United States...

. The song was released as a single in July 1988 by Capitol Records
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...

. It performed modestly on both the American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 and British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 charts, but managed to peak at number two on the Australian charts. The song appeared on the album Temple of Low Men
Temple of Low Men
Temple of Low Men is Crowded House's second studio album, released in 1988. The album had five singles, Sister Madly, I Feel Possessed, Into Temptation, When You Come and Better Be Home Soon.-Album:...

, which was also released in July 1988. In 2005, following drummer Paul Hester
Paul Hester
Paul Newell Hester was an Australian musician and television personality; he was the drummer for the related bands Split Enz and Crowded House.-The early years:...

's death, Neil Finn
Neil Finn
Neil Mullane Finn, OBE is a New Zealand Pop recording artist. Along with his brother Tim Finn, he was the co-frontman for Split Enz and is now frontman for Crowded House...

 performed the song solo at the ARIA Awards while a montage of Hester's life was played in the background.

Notable performances

"Better Be Home Soon" was performed by Crowded House in their 1996 charity performance Farewell to the World
Farewell to the World
Farewell to the World is a 1996 concert by rock group Crowded House. The concert was recorded on the outside footsteps of the famed Sydney Opera House as a charity event to raise funds for the Sydney Children's Hospital. The event was originally scheduled to occur on the night of the 23 November...

. As a song commonly performed by the band, this was to be expected, however the end of this version featured a country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...

 or polka
Polka
The polka is a Central European dance and also a genre of dance music familiar throughout Europe and the Americas. It originated in the middle of the 19th century in Bohemia...

 style double-time feeling at the end, possibly in joking retort to some criticisms of the song when initially released that it was a bit "country-ish". They also performed it as an encore at the Sydney Live Earth concert
Live Earth concert, Sydney
The Live Earth concert in Australia was held at Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney on 7 July 2007, in front of around 45,000 people. It was the first of the Live Earth concerts to kick-off the day-long event & promoted by Michael Chugg, Amanda Pelman of Chugg Entertainment, Joe Segreto of IMC /...

. At the 2005 ARIA Awards program, Neil Finn performed the song as a memorial to Paul Hester.

Cover versions

  • Tim Minchin
    Tim Minchin
    Timothy David "Tim" Minchin is a British-Australian comedian, actor, and musician.Tim Minchin is best known for his musical comedy, which has featured in six CDs, three DVDs and a number of live comedy shows which he has performed internationally. He has also appeared on television in Australia,...

  • Kasey Chambers
    Kasey Chambers
    Kasey Chambers is an Australian country singer-songwriter. She is the daughter of steel guitar player Bill Chambers, and the sister of musician and producer Nash Chambers.-Solo success:...

  • Donny Osmond
    Donny Osmond
    Donald Clark "Donny" Osmond is an American singer, musician, actor, dancer, radio personality, and former teen idol. Osmond has also been a talk and game show host, record producer and author. In the mid 1960s, he and four of his elder brothers gained fame as the Osmond Brothers on the long...

  • The McCarters
    The McCarters
    The McCarters was an American country music trio composed of Jennifer McCarter and her sisters Lisa and Teresa , who are twins. The trio was signed to Warner Bros...

     (peaked at number 73 on the Billboard
    Billboard (magazine)
    Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...

    Hot Country Singles & Tracks
    Hot Country Songs
    Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales...

     chart in 1990)
  • George Canyon
    George Canyon
    George Canyon is a Canadian country music singer. He was runner up Nashville Star 2 in 2004. He grew up in Fox Brook, Pictou County, Nova Scotia and later lived in Hopewell, Nova Scotia before he moved west. He currently lives in High River, Alberta...

     (peaked at number 87 on the Billboard Canadian Hot 100
    Canadian Hot 100
    The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007...

     in January 2011)
  • The Sleepy Jackson
    The Sleepy Jackson
    The Sleepy Jackson are an Australian alternative rock band formed in Perth, Western Australia. The band's name was inspired by a former drummer who was narcoleptic. The band revolves around the distinctive vocal style of multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Luke Steele...


Track listings

All songs written by Neil Finn
Neil Finn
Neil Mullane Finn, OBE is a New Zealand Pop recording artist. Along with his brother Tim Finn, he was the co-frontman for Split Enz and is now frontman for Crowded House...

. "Don't Dream It's Over
Don't Dream It's Over
-12": Capitol / 12CL 438 United Kingdom :* also available on CD and MC-Personnel:*Neil Finn: Vocals and guitar*Nick Seymour: Bass guitar*Paul Hester: Drums and backing vocals*Mitchell Froom: Keyboards-Release history:- Charts :...

" live performance from King Biscuit Flower Hour, The Trocadero, Philadelphia, 24 March 1987.

Single release

Released in UK as 7" vinyl and in US as cassette.
  1. "Better Be Home Soon"
  2. "Kill Eye"

EP release

Released in UK as CD and 12" vinyl.
  1. "Better Be Home Soon"
  2. "Don't Dream It's Over" (live)
  3. "Kill Eye"

Promotional release

Released as CD in US. Released as 12" vinyl in Brazil (33⅓ rpm one side, 45 rpm on other).
  1. "Better Be Home Soon"

Charts

Chart (1988) Peak
position
Australian Singles Chart 2
Dutch Singles Chart 31
German Singles Chart 59
Canadian RPM Top Singles 8
New Zealand Singles Chart 2
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 42
U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks 29
U.S. Billboard Album Rock Tracks 18
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