The song was inspired by the Save Soho campaign that song writer Tim Arnold created with Stephen Fry in 2015…

Pop icons Boy George, Marc Almond and Chrisse Hynde have joined forces with songwriter Tim Arnold for a new track celebrating Soho’s rich musical history. Don’t Go Changing Soho, written and produced by Arnold, also features 1950’s British rock’n’roll pioneer Marty Wilde, Sex Pistols’ Glen Matlock, Spandau Ballet’s Gary Kemp, jazz singer Mari Wilson and rising star Emily Capell. Ivor Novello award winner and long-time Robbie Williams collaborator Guy Chambers plays piano on the song, with drums by Buzzcocks’ Danny Farrant.

Soho is not what it used to be. Years of rich music history are being wiped from the streets of London. On 1 December 2014 singer-songwriter Tim Arnold and actor Stephen Fry decided to take action, creating the Save Soho campaign to stop the closure and repossession of world renowned club Madame Jojo’s. Since the success of that original campaign, a coalition of performers, residents and politicians have united in an effort to preserve, protect and nurture the future of performing arts venues in Soho.

On his connection to Soho, Tim Arnold said: “It was a great privilege to begin my journey in music, living in Soho and walking every day in the footsteps of creative giants who passed through Soho over the last half a century. The song is a thank you message to Soho for 20 years of inspiration. Soho is the ultimate gift for anyone whose life is driven by music.”

Each singer on the song represents a different decade and era of Soho from the 1950’s to the 2010’s. “Many of Save Soho’s supporters became friends through a mutual love for this unique creative square mile, so it was natural to want to create something together in its honour.”

The song was recorded over a period of four years, with sessions at Guy Chambers’ Sleeper Sounds studios, Soho Radio founder Adrian Meehan’s Toolshed Studio on Great Windmill Street and Tim’s home studios in Frith Street and North London.

Tim said: “Since we began working on this song, so much has changed in the UK and all over the world. Between the fantasy of fake news and the indigestible reality of climate change, we’re yearning for big changes and new stories. If there’s one thing that needs to survive through the challenging times ahead, it’s Soho’s historical ability to bring people together to recreate, reimagine and transform the future. Don’t go changing that spirit. But let’s try to change everything else. Whatever happens across the world, Soho is a symbol of survival.”

Don’t Go Changing Soho is released today (3 December) as a free download as well as streaming sites. The artwork for the single was created by David Bowie mentor and legendary dancer, the late Lindsay Kemp, who began his career in the clubs of Soho.