Forty years after it first lit up dance floors and topped charts around the world, The Communards‘ iconic version of ‘Don’t Leave Me This Way’ is being celebrated with a special anniversary reissue.
Originally released in August 1986, the group’s electrifying reimagining of the Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes’ 1975 classic (which also became a disco hit for Thelma Houston) was one of the defining records of the ’80s.
Merging the soaring counter-tenor vocals of Jimmy Somerville, the bluesy tones of guest vocalist Sarah Jane Morris and ecstatic piano work from Richard Coles, the single spent four weeks at No.1 in the UK and went on to become the UK’s biggest-selling single of 1986, as well as topping the US Billboard Dance Chart.
Available on CD and limited to just 1,000 copies worldwide, the new London Records release brings together 10 mixes of the track, including the specially-commissioned Horse Meat Disco Rework, which is out now. Also on the release are the 2021 7th Heaven versions, the classic 1986 single and extended versions, and the long-lost 13’41” ‘Full Length Mix’ of the Son of Gotham City Mix.
It’s the first time all three 1986 Gotham City remixes (created by producer Mike Thorne with Somerville and Coles) have been presented in full length and in the correct sequence on a CD. The CD also features a previously-unreleased live version of the track, recorded at The Hammersmith Odeon in December 1987 as part of the ‘Red Tour’.
“The version of ‘Don’t Leave Me This Way’ by The Communards has always been an amazing updated version of such a classic from the 70s, and that was 1986… The power and the energy they create on the dance floor, that break, is amazing, so we needed to keep it in our new 2026 version from Horse Meat Disco.” says Severino Panzetta of Horse Meat Disco.
“It’s definitely such a classic for the queer community, for the gay community, but also for everybody… We are very pleased that we were asked and honoured to do a new version in 2026 of such a classic.”
‘Don’t Leave Me This Way’ is out October 9 and available to pre-order from The Communard’s online store. Listen to ‘Don’t Leave Me This Way (Horse Meat Disco Rework)’ below.
Tracklist: The Communards with Sarah Jane Morris – ‘Don’t Leave Me This Way’
1. Horse Meat Disco Rework *
2. 7th Heaven Radio Edit
3. Single Version
4. Horse Meat Disco Extended Rework *
5. 7th Heaven Club Mix
6. Extended Version
7. Live from the Hammersmith Odeon 1987 *
8. Gotham City Mix Pt.1
9. Gotham City Mix Pt.2
10. Son of Gotham City Mix (Full Length Mix)
*Previously unreleased
