"Spirit of a Boy, Wisdom of a Man" is a song written by

Trey Bruce Trey Edwin Bruce is an American songwriter. Bruce has written ten Number One singles on the ''Billboard''. "Look Heart, No Hands", "Spirit of a Boy, Wisdom of a Man" and "Whisper My Name" by Randy Travis, and "How Your Love Makes Me Feel" by Dia ...

and

Glen Burtnik Glen Burtnik (born Glenn Burtnick; April 8, 1955) is a singer, songwriter, entertainer and multi-instrumentalist, best known as a former member of Styx. Burtnik is originally from North Brunswick, New Jersey, in the Middlesex County part of t ...

. First recorded by

Mark Collie George Mark Collie (born January 18, 1956) is an American country music singer, songwriter, musician, actor, record producer, and fundraiser for Type 1 diabetes study. He has won awards and acclaim for his music, his acting, and his philanthrop ...

on his 1995 album ''

Tennessee Plates ''Tennessee Plates'' is the fifth studio album by American country music singer-songwriter Mark Collie. It was his only album for Giant Records. It featured 3 singles. "Three Words, Two Hearts, One Night" charted at number 25, while "Steady as S ...

'', it was later recorded by

Randy Travis Randy Bruce Traywick (born May 4, 1959), known professionally as Randy Travis, is an American country music and gospel music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and actor. Active from 1978 until being incapacitated by a stroke in 2013, he has recor ...

. Released in October 1998 as the third single from his 1998 CD, '' You and You Alone'', it peaked at number 2 on the

Hot Country Singles & Tracks Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

(now

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

) chart, behind " Stand Beside Me" by

Jo Dee Messina Jo Dee Marie Messina (born August 25, 1970) is an American country music artist. She has charted six number-one singles on the ''Billboard'' country music charts. She has been honored by the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country ...

Content

The song is a mid-tempo backed primarily by

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

. Its lyrics tell the story of decisions a boy must make in his life and whether he should follow his whims ("spirit of a boy") or act with integrity and good faith ("wisdom of a man") when his high school sweetheart tells him that she is pregnant, and when he is faced with the temptations of life on the road after being married with a child at home.

Music video

The music video debuted as CMT's sneak peek video on October 7, 1998. It was filmed at the ''

Los Angeles Herald Examiner The ''Los Angeles Herald Examiner'' was a major Los Angeles daily newspaper, published in the afternoon from Monday to Friday and in the morning on Saturdays and Sundays. It was part of the Hearst syndicate. It was formed when the afternoon ' ...

'' office.Archived page of Randy-Travis.com
from January 1999. Retrieved September 19, 2009

Chart performance

"Spirit of a Boy, Wisdom of a Man" debuted at number 53 on the U.S. ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

for the week of October 10, 1998.

Year-end charts

References

1999 singles 1995 songs Mark Collie songs Randy Travis songs Songs written by Trey Bruce Songs written by Glen Burtnik Song recordings produced by Byron Gallimore Song recordings produced by James Stroud Song recordings produced by Randy Travis DreamWorks Records singles {{1998-country-song-stub