Smalltown Boy

"Smalltown Boy" is a song by British synth-pop band Bronski Beat, released in May 1984 as the first single from their debut album, The Age of Consent (1984). The song was a big commercial success, reaching number three in the band's native UK.[7] It was also a number one hit in the Netherlands and Belgium,[8][9] 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.[10] A remix by Stephen Hague was released as a single on 24 December 1990.[11] 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.[12]

This article is about the Bronski Beat song. For the Dustin Lynch song, see Small Town Boy (song). For other uses, see Small Town Boy (disambiguation).

"Smalltown Boy"
Single by Bronski Beat
from the album The Age of Consent
B-side
  • "Memories"
  • "Infatuation" (12")
Released25 May 1984 (UK)[1]
StudioThe Garden (London, England)
Genre
Length
  • 5:02 (album version)
  • 3:58 (single version)
  • 9:00 (12" version)
LabelLondon
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Mike Thorne
Bronski Beat singles chronology
"Smalltown Boy"
(1984)		 "Why?"
(1984)
Music video
"Smalltown Boy" on YouTube

Music video

An official music video made by Bernard Rose[13] 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, the boy and his friends (played by band members Larry Steinbachek and Steve Bronski) admire another boy in Speedos on the diving board. Seeing them watch, he smiles back. Encouraged, the boy is dared by his friends to approach him, but this results in public rejection. The boy is later attacked in an alley by a homophobic 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 sexuality 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.

Reception

Spin said the band had, "fashioned a young man's bitter memories of being driven away from home, alienated from his family, and persecuted by his friends, into a sweetly moving pop song."[14]

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,

By incorporating unapologetic LGBTQ themes into their sleek synth-pop hits, Bronski Beat were true pioneers – and this 1984 classic is their most transcendent moment. Frontman Jimmy Somerville, in a sensitive falsetto, sings about a lad who flees hometown bullying — 'Run away, turn away' is the recurring refrain — against a steady, reassuringly numb background of rhythm and synthesiser. This song takes the pain of rejection and makes it danceable.[15]

Same year, Rolling Stone ranked it number 163 in their list of 200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time.[16]

Track listings and formats

Personnel

Credits sourced from Electronic Soundmaker and Sound On Sound.[17][18]

Charts

Weekly charts

Sales and certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[52] Gold 50,000^
France — 300,000[45]
Italy (FIMI)[53] Gold 25,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[54] Platinum 600,000‡

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Sampling and interpolations

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 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 on the Austria Top 75 on 20 December 2013.[59]
  • In 2015, Belgian singer Kate Ryan covered the song retitled as "Runaway (Smalltown Boy)". It reached No. 23 on the Belgian (Flanders) chart.[60]
  • Also in 2015, UK band Heavyball covered the song, firstly as a YouTube video in April 2015,[61] 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.[62]
  • In 2021, Kele released a cover of the song as the first single from his album The Waves Pt. 1.[63]
  • In 2021, DJ Jack Smith (https://jacksmithdj.com/) released a cover of the song featuring Georgian vocalist Sevda B with over 3 million views.[64][65]

See also

References
  1. "New Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 19 May 1984. p. 14. Retrieved 16 June 2022.
  2. Vivinetto, Gina (9 March 2015). "Pop Icon Jimmy Somerville: A Career Overview". The Advocate. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  3. MarkWilson (18 May 2011). "Emilie Simon Releases "Smalltown Boy"". AltSounds. Archived from the original on 30 August 2011. Retrieved 10 May 2015.
  4. Walters, Barry (20 June 2000). "His beat goes on". The Advocate. p. 115. ISSN 0001-8996. As Bronski Beat's falsetto leader, Somerville made gay politics a hot pop topic with such hi-NRG dance floor staples as "Why?" and "Smalltown Boy"
  5. Adam Block (9 December 1986). "A Clarion Call from England's Communards: Syl's New "Attraction"" (PDF). The Advocate. Retrieved 23 December 2022. The trio had met as friends and performed as a hoot, but their first single, "Smalltown Boy" (an autobiographical tale of a gay youth fleeing homophobia for the tolerance of the big city), became a Hi-NRG disco fave on both sides of the Atlantic.
  6. "Smalltown Boy by Bronski Beat". BBC. Retrieved 23 December 2022.
  7. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  8. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 34, 1984" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  9. "Bronski Beat – Smalltown Boy" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  10. "Bronski Beat – Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  11. Smith, Robin (15 December 1990). "This Week - The Next Seven Days in View: Releases". Record Mirror. p. 28. ISSN 0144-5804.
  12. "Watch Jimmy Somerville Re Record Small Town Boy". Slicing Up Eyeballs. 22 June 2014. Retrieved 6 June 2015.
  13. Parker, Lyndsey (26 June 2019). "How '80s LGBTQ band Bronski Beat's haunting 'Smalltown Boy' made a difference: 'It was very bold'". Yahoo! Music. Retrieved 17 October 2019.
  14. James Truman (May 1985). "Spins". Spin. No. 1. p. 33.
  15. Kryza, Andy (21 January 2022). "The 50 best gay songs to celebrate Pride all year long". Time Out. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  16. Dolan, Jon; Lopez, Julyssa; Matos, Michaelangelo; Shaffer, Claire (22 July 2022). "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
  17. Reed, Tony (December 1984). "Consenting Adults". Electronic Soundmaker (Dec 1984): 26–27.
  18. Jenkins, Mark (February 1986). "Perfect Beat". Sound on Sound (Feb 1986): 40–45.
  19. "Top 3 in Europe" (PDF).
  20. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (Illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 46. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  21. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 9533." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  22. "Europarade" (PDF).
  23. "Eurochart" (PDF).
  24. "Bronski Beat – Smalltown Boy" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  25. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Smalltown Boy". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  26. "Classifiche". Musica e dischi (in Italian). Set "Tipo" on "Singoli". Then, in the "Artista" field, search "Bronski Beat".
  27. Inc, Nielsen Business Media (24 November 1984). "Billboard". Nielsen Business Media, Inc. – via Google Books. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  28. "Bronski Beat – Smalltown Boy" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  29. "Bronski Beat – Smalltown Boy". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  30. "Bronski Beat – Smalltown Boy". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  31. "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending MARCH 16, 1985". Cash Box. Archived from the original on 1 October 2012.
  32. "Offiziellecharts.de – Bronski Beat – Smalltown Boy" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  33. "Music & Media: Europe's Music Radio Newsweekly. Volume 8. Issue 8" (PDF). Music & Media. BPI Communications. 23 February 1991. worldradiohistory.com. Retrieved 9 June 2023. (see section 'European Hot 100 Singles', p. 31)
  34. "Jimmy Somerville with Bronski Beat – Smalltown Boy (1991 Remix)" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts.
  35. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Small Town Boy". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  36. "Jimmy Somerville with Bronski Beat – Smalltown Boy (1991 Remix)" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  37. "National Airplay" (PDF).
  38. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  39. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 10 May 2015.
  40. "irishcharts.com - Discography Bronski Beat". www.irish-charts.com.
  41. "irishcharts.com - Discography Jimmy Somerville". www.irish-charts.com.
  42. "National Top 100 Singles for 1984". Kent Music Report. 31 December 1984. Retrieved 8 January 2022 – via Imgur.
  43. "Jaaroverzichten 1984" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 July 2014.
  44. "Europarade '84" (PDF).
  45. "TOP – 1984". Top-france.fr (in French). Retrieved 4 July 2014.
  46. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1984" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 4 July 2014.
  47. "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1984" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 July 2014.
  48. "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1984" (in German). Hitparade.ch. Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 July 2014.
  49. "Top 100 Singles". Music Week. London, England: Morgan-Grampian plc: 37. 26 January 1985.
  50. "Jahrescharts – 1984". Offiziellecharts.de (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Archived from the original on 9 May 2015.
  51. "RPM's Top 100 Singles of 1985". RPM. Vol. 43, no. 16. Library and Archives Canada. 28 December 1985. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  52. "Canadian single certifications – Bronski Beat – Smalltown Boy". Music Canada.
  53. "Italian single certifications – Bronski Beat – Smalltown Boy" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Select "2019" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "Smalltown Boy" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli" under "Sezione".
  54. "British single certifications – Bronski Beat – Smalltown Boy". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  55. "Kate Ryan delivers a new take on 'Smalltown Boy'". OutInPerth. 26 July 2015. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
  56. Adams, Cameron (13 May 2015). "Brandon Flowers says new solo album The Desired Effect is eighties pop rock". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 1 September 2016.
  57. "Oomph! – Des Wahnsinns fette Beute : Review". Burn Your Ears Webzine (in German). 2 June 2012. Retrieved 21 April 2018.
  58. Corner, Lewis (1 May 2015). "Brandon Flowers samples '80s hit on new song". Digital Spy. Retrieved 29 August 2018.
  59. "Cornerstone – Smalltown Boy" (in German). Austriancharts.at. Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 April 2015.
  60. "Kate Ryan - Runaway (Smalltown Boy) - Ultratop.be". Ultratop.be.
  61. "Creating Animated Animals for Heavyball Smalltown Boy Music Video". Fettle Animation. 17 May 2022. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
  62. Marotta, Michael (29 June 2020). "Listen to Orville Peck cover Bronski Beat's '80s anthem 'Smalltown Boy'". Vanyaland. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
  63. Astley-Brown, Michael (2021). "Kele Okereke unveils hypnotic new single, Smalltown Boy, announces fifth solo album". Guitar World. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
  64. "Smalltown Boy (feat. Sevda B)[Radio Edit] DJ Jack Smith". AppleMusic. 19 March 2021.
  65. "Smalltown Boy (feat. Sevda B) (Radio Edit)". Youtube. 19 March 2021.
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