"A Boy Like That/I Have A Love" is a song from the 1957 Broadway musical ''

West Side Story ''West Side Story'' is a musical conceived by Jerome Robbins with music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. Inspired by William Shakespeare's play '' Romeo and Juliet'', the story is set in the mid ...

'', with music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. In the musical, the song is sung by the characters Anita and Maria. For the original Broadway cast recording, the song was performed by

Chita Rivera Chita Rivera (born Dolores Conchita Figueroa del Rivero Anderson; January 23, 1933), is an American actress, singer and dancer best known for originating roles in Broadway musicals including Anita in ''West Side Story'', Velma Kelly in ''Chic ...

(Anita) and

Carol Lawrence Carol Lawrence (born Carolina Maria Laraia; September 5, 1932) is an American actress, appearing in musical theatre and on television. She is known for creating the role of Maria on Broadway in the musical '' West Side Story'' (1957), receivin ...

(Maria). In the 1961 film version the roles were played by Rita Moreno and

Natalie Wood Natalie Wood ( Zacharenko; July 20, 1938 – November 29, 1981) was an American actress who began her career in film as a child and successfully transitioned to young adult roles. Wood started acting at age four and was given a co-starring r ...

, but the songs were dubbed by

Betty Wand Betty Wand was an American singer and author, best known as the singing voice dubbed in for various actresses in musical films, including Leslie Caron in '' Gigi'' and some of Rita Moreno's part in ''West Side Story''.Crosby Day. "Showtime will a ...

and

Marni Nixon Margaret Nixon McEathron (February 22, 1930 – July 24, 2016), known professionally as Marni Nixon, was an American soprano and ghost singer for featured actresses in musical films. She is now recognized as the singing voice of leading a ...

(as both Anita and Maria). However, the repeat of the two stanzas, sung by Anita, along with Maria's counterpoint of her defense, was omitted because of the complexity of the song, as well as to avoid the repetition, which would have slowed down the pace of the film. In the 2021 film, the roles were played by Ariana DeBose and

Rachel Zegler Rachel Anne Zegler (; born May 3, 2001) is an American actress and singer. She made her film debut playing Maria Vasquez in the 2021 musical drama ''West Side Story'', for which she won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Pictu ...

. In 2010,

Lin-Manuel Miranda Lin-Manuel Miranda (; born January 16, 1980) is an American songwriter, actor, playwright and filmmaker. He is known for creating the Broadway musicals ''Hamilton'' (2015) and '' In the Heights'' (2005), and the soundtracks for the Disney animat ...

and

Raúl Esparza Raúl Eduardo Esparza (born October 24, 1970) is an American stage, screen, and voice actor. Considered one of Broadway's leading men since the 2000s, he is best known for his Tony Award-nominated performance as Bobby in the 2006 Broadway reviva ...

performed the song at Broadway Backwards, an annual

Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS (BC/EFA) is an American nonprofit organization that raises funds for AIDS-related causes across the United States, headquartered in New York City. It is the theatre community's response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic. ...

showcase of show tunes sung by different genders. Miranda played Anita, while Esparza played Maria.

Selena version

In 1995

Selena Selena Quintanilla Pérez (; April 16, 1971 – March 31, 1995), known mononymously as Selena, was an American Tejano singer. Called the " Queen of Tejano music", her contributions to music and fashion made her one of the most celebrated Mex ...

recorded "A Boy Like That" for the various-artists compilation album ''The Songs of West Side Story'', which was a benefit for

AIDS Project Los Angeles APLA Health is a non-profit organization that is focused on building health equity and promoting wellbeing for the LGBT and people living with HIV." APLA Health is one of the largest non-profit HIV service organizations in the United States. Its ...

. Her version of the song was released posthumously as a single in 1996 by RCA Victor, with the

maxi-single A maxi single or maxi-single (sometimes abbreviated to MCD or CDM) is a music single release with more than the usual two tracks of an A-side song and a B-side song. The first maxi singles Mungo Jerry's first single, "In the Summertime" was the ...

including four remixes by

Tony Moran Anthony "Tony" Moran is a DJ, record producer, remixer, singer and songwriter known for remixing popular songs. In 2007, he hit number one on the U.S. '' Billboard'' Hot Dance Club Play chart twice with " Walk Away" featuring Kristine W and " K ...

. The song was also included on the soundtrack album ''

''. David Pack produced the track and Sheila E. performed percussion. Additional vocals were provided by Michelle Weeks, Godwin, and

Nikki Richards Nicholas Richards (born 1960) is a British singer-songwriter and record producer, best known as frontman of 1980s synthpop/ new wave band Boys Don't Cry. As a solo artist, Nikki Richards, aged 18, released the singles "If I Could Tell the Worl ...

Track listing

US remixes # "A Boy Like That" (radio edit 1) - 4:06 # "A Boy Like That" (radio edit 2) - 4:06 # "A Boy Like That" (original edit) - 3:28 # "A Boy Like That" (extended remix) - 8:14 # "A Boy Like That" (guitar mix) - 4:54 # "A Boy Like That" (dub mix) - 8:40 # "A Boy Like That" (tribal mix) - 7:13 # "A Boy Like That" (original full version) - 5:51

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boy Like That 1957 songs 1997 singles EMI Records singles Selena songs Songs from West Side Story Songs with music by Leonard Bernstein Songs released posthumously Songs written by Stephen Sondheim