As he rode desperately from Charlestown one spring night in 1775, warning nearly every house of a British invasion, Paul Revere did not yell “The British are coming” indiscriminately on his path. Such a cry would have given him away in a region crawling with loyalists, and his mission depended on secrecy. Instead, Revere whispered a warning sotto voce, house by house, and more to the effect of “The Regulars are coming out,” referring to the mainstream British army.By the time he had arrived in Lexington around midnight, entire towns both knew of the advance and sent dozens of their horsemen to warn others.Another icon known for midnights made her call known Friday night, equally sotto voce. She brought tidings less of war and more of peace, love, and at least one rendition of “I Wanna Hold