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Smalltown Boy

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Wikipedia article




{{Infobox song

| name = Smalltown Boy

| cover = Small Town Boy (Bronski Beat) single coverart.jpg

| alt =

| type = single

| artist = Bronski Beat

| album = The Age of Consent

| B-side =

| released = 25 May 1984 (UK)

| recorded =

| studio = The Garden (London, England)

| genre =

*Synth-pop

*hi-NRG

| length = *5:02 (album version)

*3:58 (single version)

*9:00 (12" version)

| label = London

| writer = *Steve Bronski

*Jimmy Somerville

*Larry Steinbachek

| producer = Mike Thorne

| prev_title =

| prev_year =

| next_title = Why?

| next_year = 1984

| misc =

}}

"'Smalltown Boy'" is the debut single by British synth-pop band Bronski Beat, released in May 1984. It is from their debut album, 'The Age of Consent', released in December 1984.

The song was a big commercial success, reaching number 3 in the band's native UK. It was also a number one hit in the Netherlands and Belgium, and hit the top 10 in Australia, Canada, France, Ireland, Italy, Switzerland and West Germany. The track reached number 48 in the US pop chart and was a number one US dance hit.

A remix of the song by Stephen Hague was released as a single on 24 December 1990. The song was released again in December 2013 after featuring in a Christmas advertising campaign for Boots UK. "Smalltown Boy" was also re-recorded by Jimmy Somerville and released as "Smalltown Boy Reprise" (2014) for the 30th anniversary of its initial release.

Music video



An official music video made by Bernard Rose was shot and released later in 1984. The narrative video features band member Jimmy Somerville as the boy who has experienced the issues described in the lyrics. Seen on a train, he is contemplating his childhood through flashbacks and the events that have caused him to leave his parents' home.

At a swimming pool, his friends (played by band members Larry Steinbachek and Steve Bronski) dare him to approach a boy that he is attracted to, for which he is later attacked in an alley by an anti-homosexual gang led by the young man he had approached at the swimming pool. A police officer takes him back to his home. It is implied that the boy's parents learn of his homosexuality for the first time through this incident and are shocked, but only the father seems unsupportive. The boy is then shown hugging his mother goodbye and getting some travel money from the father. The boy reaches his hand out to shake his father's but his father does not return it. After, the boy catches a train to London, on which he is reunited with his friends.

Impact and legacy



'Time Out' ranked "Smalltown Boy" number 12 in their list of 'The 50 Best Gay Songs to Celebrate Pride All Year Long' in 2022. They added,

Track listings and formats



* '7" single BITE 1'

#"Smalltown Boy" 3:58

#"Memories" 2:55

* '7" single 820 091-7'

#"Smalltown Boy" 3:58

#"Memories" 3:00

* '12" single BITEX 1 / 820 996-1 / 9-29 017 / LDSPX 215'

#"Smalltown Boy" 9:00

#"Infatuation/Memories" 7:38

* '12" single MCA-23521'

#"Smalltown Boy" 9:00

#"Infatuation/Memories" 7:42

Charts and certifications



Weekly charts



Year-end charts



Sales and certifications



Borrowed riff



*In 1993, German band Real McCoy sampled the riff from "Smalltown Boy" in their song "Automatic Lover (Call for Love)".

*In 2006, Swedish DJs Steve Angello and Axwell under the alias Supermode produced "Tell Me Why" using samples from the song.

*In 2006, Daft Punk sampled the riff during a section of their Alive 2006/2007 tour during the song Too Long/Steam Machine.

*

*In 2012, German industrial metal band Oomph! paid homage to "Smalltown Boy" in their song "Kleinstadtboy".

*In 2015, Brandon Flowers sampled the riff from "Smalltown Boy" in his song "I Can Change".

Cover versions



*In 2002, British gothic metal band Paradise Lost released a cover of the song on the limited edition of the album Symbol of Life.

*In 2013, Austrian AOR band Cornerstone (de) covered "Smalltown Boy" as a charity single for the "Room to Breathe" campaign to support cystic fibrosis research at Nottingham City Hospital. Their version reached number 50 in the Austria Top 75 on 20 December 2013.

*In 2015 UK band Heavyball covered the song, firstly as a Youtube video in April 2015, and then as a track on the band's first album "Black Eye Diaries" in October 2015.

*In 2020, South African country singer Orville Peck covered the song for the 2020 Pride edition of the Spotify Singles series.

*In 2021, Kele released a cover of the song as the first single from his album 'The Waves Pt. 1'.

See also



*List of Dutch Top 40 number-one singles of 1984

*List of number-one dance singles of 1985 (U.S.)

References



Category:1984 songs

Category:1984 debut singles

Category:1991 singles

Category:Bronski Beat songs

Category:Dutch Top 40 number-one singles

Category:LGBT-related songs

Category:London Records singles

Category:Ultratop 50 Singles (Flanders) number-one singles

Category:Songs written by Jimmy Somerville

Category:Song recordings produced by Mike Thorne

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