"My Boy" is a popular song from the early 1970s. The music was composed by
Jean-Pierre Bourtayre
Jean-Pierre Bourtayre (31 January 1942 – 4 March 2024) was a French composer. He worked for numerous performers, such as Jacques Dutronc, Michel Sardou, and Claude François.
Biography
Born in Paris on 31 January 1942, Bourtayre was the son of ...
and
Claude François
Claude Antoine Marie François (; 1 February 1939 – 11 March 1978), also known by the nickname Cloclo, was a French pop singer, composer, songwriter, record producer, drummer and dancer. François co-wrote the lyrics of " Comme d'habitude" ( ...
, and the lyrics were translated from the original version "Parce que je t'aime, mon enfant" (Because I Love You My Child) into
English by
Phil Coulter
Philip Coulter (born 19 February 1942) is an Irish musician, songwriter and record producer from Derry, Northern Ireland. He was awarded the Gold Badge from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors in October 2009.
Coulter ha ...
and
Bill Martin.
Song meaning
A
sentimental ballad
A sentimental ballad is an emotional style of music that often deals with romantic and intimate relationships, and to a lesser extent, loneliness, death, war, drug abuse, politics and religion, usually in a poignant but solemn manner. Balla ...
, the song is sung in a first-person narrative from the point of view of a father to his young son under the presumption that the child is asleep and can’t hear what his father is trying to tell him. The father tells his son the truth of the strained relationship between the child's parents, and that all the father has left is the love of his son. Rather than risk losing that through a painful divorce, the father makes the decision to stay in a loveless marriage for the sake of his child.
Richard Harris version
Actor
Richard Harris
Richard St John Francis Harris (1 October 1930 – 25 October 2002) was an Irish actor and singer. Having studied at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, he rose to prominence as an icon of the British New Wave. He received numerous a ...
performed the song "My Boy" at a music contest sponsored by
Radio Luxembourg
Radio Luxembourg was a multilingual commercial broadcaster in Luxembourg. It is known in most non-English languages as RTL (for Radio Television Luxembourg).
The English-language service of Radio Luxembourg began in 1933 as one of the earlies ...
in 1971. Despite not winning the contest, Harris recorded the song and released it as a
single later that year. Appearing on Harris'
album of the same name, the song reached #41 on the ''
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 advertis ...
''
pop chart
A record chart, in the music industry, also called a music chart, is a ranking of recorded music according to certain criteria during a given period. Many different criteria are used in worldwide charts, often in combination. These include re ...
and peaked at #13 on the ''Billboard''
adult contemporary chart
The Adult Contemporary chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary radio stations in the United States. The chart is compiled based on airplay data submitted to ''Billboard'' by stati ...
.
Elvis Presley version
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...
recorded a
cover version
In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...
of "My Boy" in late 1973 that was included on his 1974 album ''
Good Times
''Good Times'' is an American television sitcom that aired for six seasons on CBS, from February 8, 1974, to August 1, 1979. Created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans (actor), Mike Evans and developed by executive producer Norman Lear, it was televis ...
''. Presley's version of the song reached #20 on the ''Billboard'' pop chart and #17 on ''Cash Box''. In the UK, where Presley's career had had something of a resurgence in the previous few years, it made the top 10 peaking at number 5 in the first week of January 1975. It was a bigger adult contemporary hit, spending one week atop the U.S.
and Canadian charts in April 1975. "My Boy also peaked at #14 on the ''Billboard''
country chart.
Charts
Richard Harris version
Elvis Presley version
Year-end charts
See also
*
List of number-one adult contemporary singles of 1975 (U.S.)
References
External links
*
{{authority control
1971 singles
1974 singles
1975 singles
Richard Harris songs
Elvis Presley songs
Songs written by Bill Martin (songwriter)
Songs written by Phil Coulter
Songs with music by Claude François
Songs written by Jean-Pierre Bourtayre
1971 songs
Pop ballads
RCA Records singles
Songs about fathers
Songs about children