Lonely Boy (Andrew Gold song)

"Lonely Boy" is an international hit song from 1977, written and recorded by Andrew Gold in 1976 for his album What's Wrong with This Picture? It spent five months on the American charts, peaking at number seven in both Canada[4] and the United States,[5] and number 11 in the United Kingdom. While "Lonely Boy" would be Gold's biggest U.S. hit, his "Never Let Her Slip Away" achieved greater success in the U.K.

"Lonely Boy"
Single by Andrew Gold
from the album What's Wrong with This Picture?
B-side"Must Be Crazy"
Released11 February 1977 (UK)[1]
March 1977 (US)
Recorded1976
Genre
Length4:24
LabelAsylum
Songwriter(s)Andrew Gold
Producer(s)Peter Asher
Andrew Gold singles chronology
"That's Why I Love You"
(1976)		 "Lonely Boy"
(1977)		 "Go Back Home Again"
(1978)

Overview

The song follows the life of a child who feels neglected by his parents after the birth of a younger sister. Many assume this song to be autobiographical, yet Gold denied the implication, despite great similarities between the lyrics and his life. Regarding the verses' first lines: "He was born on a summer day in 1951" matches Andrew's August 2, 1951 birthday, "In the summer of '53 his mother/Brought him a sister" matches his sister Martha's July 22, 1953 birthday, and "He left home on a winter day, 1969" may well match the formation of Bryndle, of which Andrew was a member, in 1969.[6]

The second verse of the song features backing vocals provided by Linda Ronstadt. Gold had previously worked with Ronstadt as a producer and backing musician.[7]

The song was also released as an edited single, eliminating the vocal bridge and shortening the instrumental finale.

Uses in media and cover versions

The song was featured in a number of films including Boogie Nights (1997), The Waterboy (1998), and The Nice Guys (2016). It was the final video to be played on the MTV cable channel's first day of broadcast in the United States, on August 1, 1981.[8]. It was also used in "The Pool," an episode of the TV series This Is Us, first broadcast on October 18, 2016,[9] and "Into the Black," an episode of the TV series Animal Kingdom, first broadcast on July 2, 2019.[10] The song's use in Boogie Nights was designated as one of "The 30 Greatest Rock & Roll Movie Moments" by Rolling Stone magazine.[11]

In 1982 Italian singer Ron covered the song adding Italian language lyrics, releasing it as Cosa farò (What I will do) in his album Guarda chi si vede (Look who you see).

In 1997 country music band Blackhawk recorded a cover for their third studio album Love & Gravity.

In February 2000, the Foo Fighters recorded a cover of the song to be used as a B-side for an upcoming single off their 1999 album There Is Nothing Left to Lose; however, it wasn't used as a B-side as planned. On Marc Maron's January 17, 2013 WTF podcast, Foo Fighters leader Dave Grohl said that the band's cover of "Lonely Boy" would eventually be released as the A-side of a special "Solid Gold" 45 rpm single with a Foo Fighters version of Gold's "Never Let Her Slip Away" as the B-side.[12]

In 2007, the song was covered separately by the bands Farrah and Lazlo Bane.[13]

In 2013, rock band The Almost covered this song for their album Fear Inside Our Bones.

British-American band The Hoosiers often cover this song when they perform live.[14]

British singer Petula Clark who covered "Lonely Boy" in French ("Poor Lonesome Play Boy") on her Paris, Orleans, Paris album.

Chart performance

Personnel
gollark: It's an attempt to wrest prizes from those who aren't stupidly rich.
gollark: ```Hoop Snake can fly and crawl fine, but he would much rather move by grasping his tail in his jaws and rolling around like a wheel. He looks extremely silly but can also move terrifyingly fast, but that is only because he manipulates time so viewers think he's wheeling faster and more gracefully than he really is. He's really a strange dragon with a head full of tall tales. His greatest adversaries are trees, which he tends to clumsily impale while rolling around the forest.```
gollark: https://dragcave.net/view/75cUc
gollark: Ah, yes, I have a child from that.
gollark: *goes to Bad Ideas, where TJ09 gets all suggestions from*

References
  1. http://www.45cat.com/record/k13076
  2. "Explore: Soft Rock | Top Songs | AllMusic". Web.archive.org. 2011-12-13. Archived from the original on December 13, 2011. Retrieved 2014-03-24.CS1 maint: unfit url (link)
  3. "VH1's 40 Most Softsational Soft-Rock Songs". Stereogum. SpinMedia. May 31, 2007. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  4. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2016-10-12.
  5. Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
  6. After 25 Years, MusicMasters Brings Bryndle Debut. Billboard. 1995-08-12. Retrieved 2012-08-11.
  7. "Bio". Andrewgold.com. Retrieved July 2, 2012.
  8. Nasatasi, Alison, 25 Things You Didn’t Know About MTV’s First Broadcast, retrieved 2018-03-04
  9. Tunefind, This Is Us, S1-E4 · "The Pool"
  10. Tunefind, Animal Kingdom, S4-E6 · "Into the Black"
  11. Sheffield, Rob "The 30 Greatest Rock & Roll Movie Moments," Rolling Stone, February 21, 2013
  12. "Episode 353 - Dave Grohl". WTF with Marc Maron Podcast.
  13. "Lazlo Bane's Guilty Pleasures". cdbaby.com. Retrieved 2017-01-10.
  14. Alex Norton (2007-11-15), The Hoosiers - Lonely Boy (Andrew Gold cover), retrieved 2016-11-04
  15. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970-1992. St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  16. "Song title 460 - Lonely Boy". Tsort.info. Retrieved 2016-10-12.
  17. "NZ Top 40 Singles Chart | The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Nztop40.co.nz. 1977-07-10. Retrieved 2016-10-12.
  18. Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 98.
  19. "Top 100 1977-07-02". Cashbox Magazine. Retrieved 2015-09-18.
  20. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2016-10-12.
  21. "Top 100 Hits of 1977/Top 100 Songs of 1977". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-10-12.
  22. "Top 100 Year End Charts: 1977". Cashbox Magazine. Retrieved 2015-07-16.
  23. Andrew Gold- What's Wrong With this Picture? vinyl album liner notes. Accessed 12-16-2011.
  24. Andrew Gold- What's Wrong With this Picture? LP @Discogs.com (fails to list Andrew Gold as having played piano and cowbell on the track, although he is listed as such on the album credits) Retrieved 6-11-2011.
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