The first time I heard Book of Love’s “Boy” was on the dance floor of the Stark Club in Dallas in the mid-’80s. I couldn’t get enough of its propulsive beat, languid vocals, spare instrumentation (those tubular bells!), and suggestive lyrics: “I wanna be where the boys are,” lamented lead singer Susan Ottaviano, “but I’m not allowed.” Songwriter Ted Ottaviano (no relation, believe it or not) later remarked he was making a reference to Boy Bar, a gay venue that had just opened in his East Village neighborhood that wasn’t particularly welcoming to women.

In the ensuing years, the song—which I always interpreted as an elegy about not belonging—never lost its hold on me. As I was working on my first album, I listened again, and the song’s lyrics struck me as more timely and relevant than ever. I decided to cover it with the goal of bringing the poignancy of those words front and center.