Songfacts®:

• Yazoo was the duo of Alison Moyet and Vince Clarke, formed soon after Clarke left Depeche Mode. "Midnight" was written by Moyet when she was about 18 years old, before Yazoo was formed. She said it was influenced by Janis Joplin and other female singers of that era who often sang about relationship troubles and heartbreak. As a teenager who hadn't yet experienced reciprocated love, Moyet found comfort in these sad love songs and their portrayal of men as "right idiots."
  
  The lyrics express a cynical view of love, with Moyet suggesting it's better to avoid love altogether and just complain about it instead.
• This is the song Moyet played to Vince Clarke when he auditioned her for Yazoo. Clarke needed a singer to record the song "Only You," which Depeche Mode turned down. He found Moyet through an ad she placed in Melody Maker and contacted her; after recording "Only You," they decided to make an album, which became Upstairs at Eric's. Moyet and Clarke both wrote songs but worked separately.
• Before teaming with Clarke, Moyet was a blues singer. She wrote "Midnight" on guitar, which is how she envisioned it, but Clarke's instrument is synthesizer, so it became an electopop song.
  
  When they were recording their first album, Upstairs at Eric's, Moyet sang "Midnight" in the studio just as she had originally performed it with guitar. Vince Clarke then arranged the synthesizer backing tracks around her vocals, creating the final version, which showcases Moyet's bluesy, soulful voice and Clarke's electronic wizardry.
• Yazoo made another album in 1983 but split up soon after. Moyet went solo and did very well in the UK, where he debut album, Alf, went to #1. Clarke moved on to another duo, teaming with Andy Bell to form Erasure.