GILBERTO O'SULLIVAN - CLAIR

CLAIR

GILBERTO O’ SULLIVAN

SONGWRITER: GILBERTO O’ SULLIVAN

COUNTRY: IRELAND

ALBUM: BACK TO FRONT

LABEL: MAM RECORDS

GENRE: POP

YEAR: 1972

"Clair" is a popular song by Irish singer-songwriter Gilbert O'Sullivan and is one of his biggest-selling singles. Written by O'Sullivan and produced by Gordon Mills, it was the number one single in the UK Singles Chart for two weeks in November 1972, number one in Canada on the RPM 100 national singles chart the following January, and peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US. It was also O'Sullivan's second and last number one hit on the U.S. Easy Listening chart, after "Alone Again (Naturally)".

The song is the love song 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 text leads one to think that it is from one adult to another. The brief instrumental introduction is the sound of O'Sullivan whistling, before he comes in. The real Clair was the three-year-old daughter of O'Sullivan's producer-manager, Gordon Mills, 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 instrumental break in the middle section is done half a step up from A to B-Flat, before going back to A.

"Clair" was included in O'Sullivan's álbum Back to Front (1972). An Italian version was performed in 1973 by the crooner Johnny Dorelli. A cover by Singers Unlimited was sampled by producer J Dilla for the Slum Village song "Players".

Clair

The moment I met you, I swear.

I felt as if something, somewhere,

Had happened to me,

which I couldn't see.

And then, the moment I met you, again.

I knew in my heart

that we were friends.

It had to be so,

it couldn't be no.

But try as hard as I might do,

I don't know why.

You get to me in a way

I can't describe.

Words mean so little

when you look up and smile.

I don't care what people say,

to me you're more than a child

Oh, Clair.

Clair

Clair

If ever a moment so rare

Was captured for all to compare.

That moment is you

in all that you do.

But why in spite of our

age difference do I cry.

Each time I leave you

I feel I could die.

Nothing means more to me

than hearing you say,

"I'm going to marry you.

Will you marry me?

Oh hurray!"

Oh, Clair.

Clair

Clair

I've told you before

"Don't you dare!"

"Get back into bed."

"Can't you see that it's late."

"No you can't have a drink."

"Oh all right then,

but wait just a minute."

While I, in an effort to babysit,

catch up on my breath,

What there is left of it.

You can be murder

at this hour of the day.

But in the morning the sun

will see my lifetime away.

Oh, Clair

Clair

Oh, Clair.