‘Up All Night’ by James Bay, Noah Kahan & The Lumineers - Lyrics & Meaning

After teasing a big-name collaboration across his socials, it felt like James Bay was treating us to a mini folk-themed Christmas when he announced that he'd be releasing a star-studded new track, ‘Up All Night’, alongside Noah Kahan and The Lumineers.

It marks the first time the formidable trio have hit the studio together, with James Bay joining Noah Kahan on-stage at Madison Square Garden shortly after unveiling the collaboration.

The uplifting, uptempo offering serves as the lead single from James Bay's keenly anticipated new album, Changes All The Time, which arrives on September 20, 2024.

‘Up All Night’ perfectly encapsulates the shared ability of James Bay, Noah Kahan and The Lumineers to wrap raw, vulnerable emotionality in an infectious, jubilant melody.

At its heart, ‘Up All Night’ pivots around the artists’ insomnia-inducing anxieties and worries, yet the rhythmic, toe-tapping beat, the choral ‘Up All Night’ refrain and the swaggering, caffeinated guitar riff ensure the mood remains refreshingly light throughout.

“Start again get up get out get around

Call me out but don’t leave the room

Coz what I want and what I’m worried about

Came true.

Hold the mirror a little nearer let me see the way I’ve been looking at you

Coz what I want and what I worried about

Came true.”

Although euphoric and playful in mood, lyrically, ‘Up All Night’ carries darker undertones about the challenges and concerns that keep us from getting our full eight hours at night. The three artists maintain a welcome sense of levity, nonetheless, as they reflect on the catharsis and healing of expressing your worries to a loved one.

James Bay touches on the idea that he's been manifesting both what he's been yearning for and what he's been most fearful of - a double-edged sword arising from him devoting equal attention to both. Noah Kahan then asks his lover to ‘hold the mirror’ so he can see how he's been looking at and treating her amidst his struggles.

“Let’s talk about dreams

Let’s talk about lies

Let’s talk about all the things that keep us

Up all night.

Let’s talk about who

Gotta talk about why

Let’s talk about all the things that keep us

Up all night”

The artists express their desire to lay everything out on the table, in an attempt to stop this cacophony of thoughts from swirling mercilessly around their heads when they try to sleep. From their aspirations to their feelings of guilt, they want to dive into it all.

“Always had an automatic kinda panic

That I can't stop burying down

Talking circles til I eat myself alive

I forgot what, what I wanted

And the sun went down

I forgot what, what I wanted

Can I turn this round?”

Through the satisfying internal rhyme of ‘automatic kinda panic’, James Bay further highlights how he's always contended with an inherent sense of anxiety, which he in turn attempts to ‘bury down’ so nobody can tell. Now, though, he's trying a different approach, as he inspiringly seeks to talk candidly about his mental health with his partner. The Lumineers’ Wesley Schultz chimes in here to admit that he lost sight of the original destination he was aiming for, with the sun's descent then being accompanied by the intensification of his worries, fears and self-doubt.

Ahead of its release, James Bay delved into the inspiration behind the song, ‘Up All Night’ is all about navigating the great weight of all the stuff that plays on our minds and keeps us awake at night. I have some great history with Noah and The Lumineers. We manifested this collaboration for a while, and I feel proud we could make it happen!”

Noah Kahan explained what a pleasure it was to join forces, “It was an absolute honor to be asked to join this amazing song. James and The Lumineers are some of my biggest inspirations and getting a chance to jam out with them on this one is a total joy!”

Wesley Schultz of The Lumineers expanded, “James is a powerful singer and musician - we saw his talent each night on tour together last year. Honored he asked us to guest on his song”.

When announcing the blockbuster collaboration via his socials, James Bay shared a video of him painting himself alongside Noah Kahan and The Lumineers, underlining that he “Couldn't be more excited for this one”. In a later post confirming the song would be featured on his new album, Changes All The Time, Bay again emphasised his excitement at getting to work with two of his favourite artists, “Very grateful to all those guys for joining me on this one. I love this song and I’m so glad it’s finally out in the world”. Noah Kahan took to his favoured means of communication, TikTok, to echo Bay's sentiments, sharing a clip of him lip-syncing to ‘Up All Night’ with the caption, “DREAM COLLAB ALERT”.

“Start again get up get out get around

Call me out but don’t leave the room

Coz what I want and what I’m worried about

Came true.

Hold the mirror a little nearer let me see the way I’ve been looking at you

Coz what I want and what I worried about

Came true.

-

Let’s talk about dreams

Let’s talk about lies

Let’s talk about all the things that keep us

Up all night.

Let’s talk about who

Gotta talk about why

Let’s talk about all the things that keep us

Up all night

-

All night, up all night

All night, up all night

-

Always had an automatic kinda panic

That I can't stop burying down

Talking circles til I eat myself alive

I forgot what, what I wanted

And the sun went down

I forgot what, what I wanted

Can I turn this round?

-

Let’s talk about dreams

Let’s talk about lies

Let’s talk about all the things that keep us

Up all night.

Let’s talk about who

Gotta talk about why

Let’s talk about all the things that keep us

Up all night

-

All night, up all night

All night, up all night

-

Let’s talk about dreams

Let’s talk about lies

Gotta talk about all the things that keep us

Up all night.

Let’s talk about who

Gotta talk about why

Let’s talk about all the things that keep us

Up all night

-

All night, up all night

All night, up all night

All night, up all night”