"Clair" is a song by

Gilbert O'Sullivan Raymond Edward "Gilbert" O'Sullivan (born 1 December 1946) is an Irish singer-songwriter who achieved his most significant success during the early 1970s, with hits including " Alone Again (Naturally)", " Clair" and "Get Down". His songs are of ...

, 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 Gordon William Mills (15 May 1935 – 29 July 1986) was a successful London-based music industry manager and songwriter. He was born in Madras, British India and grew up in Trealaw in the Rhondda Valley, South Wales. During the 1960s and 1970s, ...

, 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 On many versions of the album ''Back to Front'', the song has been replaced by "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) "Alone Again (Naturally)" is a song by Irish singer-songwriter Gilbert O'Sullivan. Recorded in 1971, it became a worldwide hit. The song did not originally appear on his 1972 studio album '' Back to Front'', but has been included in reissues ...

Song details

The song is a

love song A love song is a song about love, falling in love, heartbreak after a breakup, and the feelings that these experiences bring. Love songs can be found in a variety of different music genres. They can come in various formats, from sad and emotion ...

from the point of view of a close family friend who babysits a young girl, 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 who inspired the song was the three-year-old daughter of O'Sullivan's producer-manager,

, 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 A semitone, also called a minor second, half step, or a half tone, is the smallest musical interval commonly used in Western tonal music, and it is considered the most dissonant when sounded harmonically. It is defined as the interval between ...

, from A to B-Flat, before going back to A.

Chart performance

"Clair" was the number one single on the UK Singles Chart for two weeks in November 1972, 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 Paul Williams (December 1, 1934 – April 24, 2016), known professionally as Billy Paul, was an American soul music, soul singer, known for his 1972 Record chart, No. 1 single "Me and Mrs. Jones". His 1973 album and single ''War of the Gods (alb ...

and "

You're So Vain "You're So Vain" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Carly Simon, released as a single in November 1972. The lyrics describe a self-absorbed lover, whose identity has long been a matter of speculation. Simon said the song refers to three ...

" by

Carly Simon Carly Elisabeth Simon (born June 25, 1943) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and author. She rose to fame in the 1970s with a string of hit records; her 13 Billboard Hot 100, top 40 U.S. hits include "Anticipation (song), Anticipatio ...

. "Clair" was also O'Sullivan's second and last number one hit on the U.S.

Easy Listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to the 1970s. It is related to middle of the road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit s ...

chart, after "

Weekly singles charts

Year-end charts

Cover versions

*An Italian rendition in 1973 by the crooner

Johnny Dorelli Giorgio Guidi (born 20 February 1937), known professionally as Johnny Dorelli, is an Italian actor, singer and television host. Early life Giorgio Guidi was born in Meda, Lombardy, Italy. In 1946, he moved with his family to New York City, ...

. *A version by Singers Unlimited was sampled by producer

J Dilla James Dewitt Yancey (February 7, 1974 – February 10, 2006), better known by the stage names J Dilla and Jay Dee, was an American record producer, composer and rapper. He emerged from the mid-1990s underground hip hop scene in Detroit, Michiga ...

for the

Slum Village Slum Village is an American hip hop group from Detroit, Michigan. The group was formerly composed of the rappers Baatin (1974–2009), T3, and rapper / producer J Dilla (1974–2006). J Dilla left in 2001 to pursue a solo career with MCA Record ...

song "Players". This version was also sampled by

Logic (rapper) Sir Robert Bryson Hall II (born January 22, 1990), known professionally as Logic, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer from Gaithersburg, Maryland. He released his debut mixtape, ''Psychological: The Mixtape'' in Decem ...

on the song "Upgraded". *Another cover (in English) was recorded in 2006 by French singer

Laurent Voulzy Lucien Voulzy (, born 18 December 1948), better known as Laurent Voulzy (), is a French singer-songwriter, composer, and musician. Life and career Voulzy was born in Paris, France. He originally led the English-pop-influenced Le Temple de Vénu ...

on his album ''La Septième Vague''. *Another cover was recorded in 2006 by Space Kelly on his album ''My Favourite Songbook''.

References