Clair (song)

"Clair"
"Clair"
Single by Gilbert O'Sullivan
from the album Back to Front
B-side	"What Could Be Nicer (Mum, The Kettle's Boiling)" (UK release), "Ooh-Wakka-Doo-Wakka-Day" (U.S. release)
Released	October 1972
Genre	Pop; soft rock;
Length	3:03
Label	MAM
Songwriter(s)	Raymond O'Sullivan
Producer(s)	Gordon Mills
Gilbert O'Sullivan singles chronology

"Clair" is a song by Gilbert O'Sullivan, released in 1972 as the first single from his second album Back to Front. It was written by O'Sullivan and produced by Gordon Mills, and is one of O'Sullivan's biggest-selling singles.

On many versions of the album Back to Front, the song has been replaced by "Alone Again (Naturally)".

Song details

The song is a love song from the point of view of a close family friend who babysits a young girl (actually the artist's manager's daughter), though for the first part of the song, the ambiguous words lead one to think that it is a romantic song from one adult to another. The brief instrumental introduction is the sound of O'Sullivan whistling before he begins his vocal. The real Clair was the three-year-old daughter of O'Sullivan's producer-manager, Gordon Mills,^[1] and his wife, the model Jo Waring. The little girl's giggling is heard at the end of this song. The "Uncle Ray" mentioned in the song is O'Sullivan himself, a reference to his real name of Raymond O'Sullivan.

The harmonica solo in the song, played by Mills, modulates up a semitone, from A to B-Flat, before going back to A.^[2]

Chart performance

"Clair" was the number one single on the UK Singles Chart for two weeks in November 1972,^[3] and number one in Canada on the RPM 100 singles chart. In late December, it peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US, behind both "Me and Mrs. Jones" by Billy Paul and "You're So Vain" by Carly Simon.^[4] "Clair" was also O'Sullivan's second and last number one hit on the U.S. Easy Listening chart, after "Alone Again (Naturally)".^[5]

Weekly singles charts

Chart (1972–1973)	Peak position
Argentina^[6]	8
Australia (KMR) ^[7]	12
Canada RPM Top Singles^[8]	1
Canada RPM Adult Contemporary ^[9]	1
France (IFOP)^[10]	3
Ireland (IRMA)^[11]	1
New Zealand ^[12]	2
Netherlands	4
Norway	1
South Africa (Springbok)^[13]	6
Sweden (Kvällstoppen)^[14]	6
UK Singles (OCC)^[15]	1
US Billboard Hot 100^[16]	2
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)^[17]	1
US Cash Box Top 100	3

Year-end charts

Chart (1972)	Rank
UK ^[18]	17

Chart (1973)	Rank
Australia ^[19]^{[failed verification]}	87
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 ^[20]	73
U.S. Cash Box ^[21]	13

Cover versions

An Italian rendition in 1973 by the crooner Johnny Dorelli.
A version by Singers Unlimited was sampled by producer J Dilla for the Slum Village song "Players". This version was also sampled by Logic (rapper) on the song "Upgraded".
Another cover (in English) was recorded in 2006 by French singer Laurent Voulzy on his album La Septième Vague.
Another cover was recorded in 2006 by Space Kelly on his album My Favourite Songbook.

References

^ Byrne, Andrea (18 April 2010). "When all is far from Clair, Gilbert goes to court". Sunday Independent. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
^ "Who Played That?". Harp Surgery. Retrieved 2021-03-23.
^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 279–280. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
^ "The Hot 100 Chart". Billboard.
^ Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 187.
^ "Billboard - Hits Of The World" (PDF). worldradiohistory.com. Billboard. 24 February 1973. p. 45. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-01-21.
^ Steffen Hung. "Forum - 1970 (ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts)". Australian-charts.com. Archived from the original on 2016-06-02. Retrieved 2016-10-06.
^ RPM 100 Singles, January 13, 1973
^ "Item: 7336 - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 2016-10-06.
^ "Toutes les Chansons N° 1 des Années 70" (in French). InfoDisc. Retrieved 22 December 2019.
^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Clair". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
^ "flavour of new zealand - search listener". Flavourofnz.co.nz. Archived from the original on 2017-01-11. Retrieved 2016-10-06.
^ "SA Charts 1965–March 1989". Retrieved 5 September 2018.
^ Hallberg, Eric (1993). Eric Hallberg presenterar Kvällstoppen i P3. Drift. p. 165. ISBN 9-789-16-302-14-04.
^ "Gilbert O'Sullivan: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 4, 2018.
^ "Gilbert OSullivan Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2018.
^ "Gilbert OSullivan Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2018.
^ "Top 100 1972 - UK Music Charts". Uk-charts.top-source.info. Retrieved 2016-10-06.
^ David Kent's "Australian Chart Book 1970-1992" Archived March 5, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
^ "Top 100 Hits of 1973/Top 100 Songs of 1973". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-10-06.
^ "Top 100 Year End Charts: 1973". Cashbox Magazine. Archived from the original on 2019-12-16. Retrieved 2016-06-25.

[1] Byrne, Andrea (18 April 2010). "When all is far from Clair, Gilbert goes to court". Sunday Independent. Retrieved 15 January 2018.

[2] "Who Played That?". Harp Surgery. Retrieved 2021-03-23.

[British_Hit_Singles_&_Albums-3] Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 279–280. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.

[4] "The Hot 100 Chart". Billboard.

[5] Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 187.

[6] "Billboard - Hits Of The World" (PDF). worldradiohistory.com. Billboard. 24 February 1973. p. 45. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-01-21.

[7] Steffen Hung. "Forum - 1970 (ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts)". Australian-charts.com. Archived from the original on 2016-06-02. Retrieved 2016-10-06.

[8] RPM 100 Singles, January 13, 1973

[9] "Item: 7336 - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 2016-10-06.

[10] "Toutes les Chansons N° 1 des Années 70" (in French). InfoDisc. Retrieved 22 December 2019.

[sc_Ireland2_-11] "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Clair". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved July 11, 2017.

[12] "flavour of new zealand - search listener". Flavourofnz.co.nz. Archived from the original on 2017-01-11. Retrieved 2016-10-06.

[13] "SA Charts 1965–March 1989". Retrieved 5 September 2018.

[14] Hallberg, Eric (1993). Eric Hallberg presenterar Kvällstoppen i P3. Drift. p. 165. ISBN 9-789-16-302-14-04.

[sc_UKsinglesbyname_Gilbert_O'Sullivan-15] "Gilbert O'Sullivan: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 4, 2018.

[sc_Billboardhot100_Gilbert_OSullivan-16] "Gilbert OSullivan Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2018.

[sc_Billboardadultcontemporary_Gilbert_OSullivan-17] "Gilbert OSullivan Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2018.

[18] "Top 100 1972 - UK Music Charts". Uk-charts.top-source.info. Retrieved 2016-10-06.

[19] David Kent's "Australian Chart Book 1970-1992" Archived March 5, 2016, at the Wayback Machine

[20] "Top 100 Hits of 1973/Top 100 Songs of 1973". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-10-06.

[21] "Top 100 Year End Charts: 1973". Cashbox Magazine. Archived from the original on 2019-12-16. Retrieved 2016-06-25.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[19]

[20]

[21]

v t e Gilbert O'Sullivan
Studio albums	Himself Back to Front I'm a Writer, Not a Fighter A Stranger in My Own Back Yard Southpaw Off Centre Life & Rhymes In the Key of G Sounds of the Loop
Compilations	The Berry Vest of Gilbert O'Sullivan
Singles	"Nothing Rhymed" "We Will" "Alone Again (Naturally)" "Ooh-Wakka-Doo-Wakka-Day" "Clair" "Out of the Question" "Get Down"
Related articles	Discography Grand Upright Music, Ltd. v. Warner Bros. Records, Inc.