ln Waterford, O'Sullivan's father worked in a meat factory while his mother ran a sweet shop. In 1958, at the age of 11, he moved with his family to Swindon in England in search of a better life. He attended St. Joseph's Comprehensive school in Swindon. While there he developed an interest in both music and amateur boxing. Musically he began with the guitar and progressed to the piano. In the boxing ring he had nearly 50 bouts. Meanwhile his painting and drawing had won him a place at Swindon Art College. He started there in September 1963. His aim was to be a graphic designer. He played drums in his first group The Doodles and left them to join The Prefects while attending Swindon Art College. It was while at college that he met Rick Davies, who was later a member of Supertramp. While at college he began writing songs and sending out demo tapes, alas they were always returned unopened. The first song he remembers writing was Ready Miss Steady.
After finishing college, O'Sullivan moved to London in 1967 to try and further his musical career. He took a part-time job as a salesman at the C & A department store in Oxford Street. Mike Ward who also worked at C & A, had a contract with CBS and Gilbert went with him one day and played his tapes for some of the CBS executives. Gilbert signed a five year publishing contract with CBS which called for one single a year, and released two singles Disappear/You in 1967 and What Can I Do/You in 1968. Gilbert was disappointed that he was not allowed any input into the arranging or production of the singles. Neither single did well. Disillusioned with CBS, O'Sullivan signed with the Major Minor label and released I Wish I Could Cry/Mr. Moody's Garden in 1969.
O'Sullivan came to the attention of BBC Radio 1 disc jockey, John Peel, who gave him a slot on his radio show Top Gear, little of note resulted, and O'Sullivan spent part of 1969 applying to other record labels and management companies. It was at this time that O'Sullivan formulated his 'Bisto Kid' image; grey flannel suit, flat cap, school boy tie, football socks and hobnail boots. In search of a manager he sent some demo tapes to Gordon Mills, an ex-pop singer and himself a songwriter of repute, who had successfully guided the careers of Tom Jones and Engelbert Humperdinck. Gordon Mills recognised something unique in the young Irishman and signed him for management as well as to a songwriting contract.
O'Sullivan made an irresistible impression with Nothing Rhymed, his first Top 10 hit and an introduction to his witty lyrics and original approach as a singer/songwriter. Signed to MAM Records, the label launched by Gordon Mills, who was also his record producer, great friend and surrogate older brother, O'Sullivan enjoyed four years of major success, incorporating a dozen more hit singles, ten of which reached the UK Top 10, and four Top 5 albums: Himself (1971), Back To Front (1972), I'm A Writer Not A Fighter (1973) and A Stranger In My Own Back Yard (1974).
Both Clair (written about Mills's infant daughter for whom Gilbert occasionally babysat) and Get Down were number one hit singles in Britain, and additionally, Back To Front topped the UK LP chart in 1972, emulating the success of the two million seller Alone Again (Naturally), a six week US chart-topper in 1972. O'Sullivan made his live debut in The National Stadium in Dublin in October of '72. Around this time, the singer jettisoned his so-called "Bisto Kid" image in favour of an endless series of collegiate-styled sweaters embossed with the letter "G". As quickly as O'Sullivan ascended to fame, however, his star began to fall , although singles like Ooh Baby and Happiness Is Me and You continued to chart, they sold increasingly fewer copies, and after 1973 his overseas popularity essentially ceased altogether. At home, he notched his final Top 20 hit with 1975's I Don't Love You But I Think I Like You. After a Greatest Hits album in 1976, and Southpaw in 1977, by which time the hit singles had dried up, disagreements over future direction led to a bitter split between O'Sullivan and Mills, which effectively sidelined the former as a recording artist for five years. The gruelling court case between O'Sullivan and his erstwhile manager, producer, music publisher and record company boss finally gave him control of his own recordings and the copyright in his songs, although it exacted an inevitable toll on his energy and his creativity during it's precedent-setting course.
Gilbert returned to CBS in 1980 and released Off Centre (1980) and Life & Rhymes (1982) but maintained a low profile during much of the 1980s, recharging his batteries and moving to Jersey, where he still lives with his wife and two children. Off Centre provided his 13th UK Top 20 single, What's In A Kiss?, after which legal proceedings monopolised his time. However, he continued writing songs, performing what he called "concepts within four walls" rather than starting back on the road before it was appropriate. He later recalled that the lyrics he wrote during that period were too heavily influenced by his personal emotions - having been extremely close to Mills before their disagreement, he was highly distressed to discover that his dear friend had been guilty of considerable financial greed at Gilbert's expense. Even so, he applied himself to his lonely creativity, working from 9 to 5 each day "just like Goffin & King and people like Neil Sedaka & Howard Greenfield at the Brill Building in New York used to do", although he later confessed "Really, the words were no good, because my mind was cluttered with all the problems". Lyrics have always been O'Sullivan's most unique facet, reflecting what's going on in his mind, and the strain under which he found himself was hardly conducive to much positive artistic or commercial creativity.
The first release for five years was Frobisher Drive and was only available in Germany. The same album with a slightly different track listing was released in the UK in 1989 under the title In The Key Of G, and included So What, his first chart single in almost a decade. Since the low-key comeback, the pace has increased, with five more albums. Gilbert also made a return to live performances in the early nineties, playing regularly in both Europe and Japan. In 1991, Gilbert was again in court, this time he sued American rapper Biz Markie and won the decision after Markie's unauthorized sample of "Alone Again (Naturally)" on his 1991 album I Need a Haircut. A 1992 single, Tomorrow Today had topped the Japanese charts for nine weeks, and this success led to a tour of Japan in early 1993 with his newly formed backing group, during which he recorded and filmed his first ever live album Tomorrow Today. Gilbert's newfound success in Japan led to the Japanese only release of The Little Album (1992) and Rare Tracks (1992). 1993's critical acclaimed Sounds Of The Loop (Daily Telegraph's Record Of The Week) included a duet with the legendary Peggy Lee on Can't Think Straight and even a solo version of the same song in Japanese. This album was recorded almost entirely at his home in Jersey in the Channel Islands.
By Larry (with a similar track listing to the Japanese released The Little Album) was released in 1994. Larry is a famous English cartoonist, much admired by Gilbert. Larry provided original cartoons for the album sleeve and booklet. Every Song Has It's Play was released the following year and was the soundtrack of the semi-autobiographical stage show that Gilbert had acted and sang in, in 1991. Singer Sowing Machine was released in 1997. The title is a humorous reaction by Gilbert to being constantly referred to as a singer/ songwriter. Irlish was released in 2000 and yielded three singles, Have It, Say Goodbye and Two's Company (Three Is Allowed). The album title Irlish, combination of the words Irish and English, appropriate for someone born in Ireland and raised in England. Gilbert's family was part of this migration. In 2001 The Official Gilbert O'Sullivan Website was launched as well as his own record label ByGum Records.
Gilbert continued to tour and he played a series of concerts in Ireland in 2001 and in the UK in 2002 to promote the Irlish album. A new studio album Piano Foreplay followed in 2003. In 2004 Rhino Handmade Records released a 3 CD anthology in the USA of Gilbert's music entitled Caricature: The Box. It contains 73 tracks which span the years 1967-2001. This is the first in-depth survey of Gilbert's lengthy career. It contains numerous singles and B-sides, tracks from 16 of his albums, and five previously unreleased tracks. A b-side collection entitled The Other Sides of Gilbert O'Sullivan was released in Japan in 2004 and contained many tracks available on CD for the first time. A series of concerts followed in Japan in June 2004 followed by a 20 date European Tour of the UK, Ireland, Norway and Denmark in November and December. In February 2005 a DVD/CD set of the 2004 Japanese show was released in Japan. Gilbert returned to Japan in June 2005 for a series of 13 shows. Gilbert spent the end of 2005 and the beginning of 2006 recording his next studio album "A Scruff At Heart" which was released in Japan on 25 October 2006.
Clair
Gilbert O'Sullivan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
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 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, Uncle Ray?"
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 alright then, but wait just a minute"
While I, in an effort to babysit
Catch of 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
Gilbert O'Sullivan's "Clair" is a beautiful and somewhat complicated song about love and friendship with a young girl named Clair. The song narrates the singer's experiences upon meeting Clair, his unbelievable connection with her, and the impact she has had on his life. The lyrics reveal that the singer met Clair for the first time and felt as if something had happened to him that he couldn't comprehend. In their second meeting, he describes the strong friendship that grew between the two of them.
However, the love between the singer and Clair is not romantic. Instead, it is characterized by innocent infatuation, with a significant age gap between them. Whenever the singer leaves Clair, he feels like his world has fallen apart, and he bursts into tears. The most heartwarming and emotional part of the song comes when Clair says she's going to marry the singer, calling him Uncle Ray, just as he often calls her "clair."
The lyrics of "Clair" are kept simple yet poetic to convey the emotions and significance of Clair in the singer's life. Gilbert O'Sullivan's song effectively captures the indescribable inexplicable feelings of love and admiration he has for Clair despite their age difference.
Line by Line Meaning
The moment I met you, I swear
When I first met you, I felt it was unusual or remarkable.
I felt as if something, somewhere
I sensed as though something intangible and mystical had happened.
Had happened to me,
It felt like something exclusive or important had occurred within me.
Which I couldn't see
I did not comprehend what it was that occurred, but could merely feel it.
And then
Immediately after that moment
The moment I met you, again
When I met you again, I was certain that we are close associates.
I knew in my heart that we were friends
I sensed deep in my heart that our relationship was founded on trust and mutual interest.
It had to be so
It was inevitable that we would connect in such a way.
It couldn't be no
There was no way that our companionship wouldn't take this form.
But try
Despite my best efforts
As hard as I might do, I don't know why
I don't know why our association has such power over me.
You get to me in a way I can't describe
You have an impact on me that I cannot express with words.
Words mean so little when you look up and smile
When you communicate without speaking, all my hesitation or uncertainty is meaningless.
I don't care what people say
I am not concerned what others feel about our relationship.
To me you're more than a child
I view you as older or wiser than you appear.
If ever a moment so rare
If one could capture a one-of-a-kind moment
Was captured for all to compare
If it was possible to record it for the entire world to see
That moment is you
Then that moment is none other than you.
In all that you do
In everything you accomplish or attempt.
But why
However, why is it the case that even though we have different ages and roles, I find myself plagued with emotion associated with being a caretaker?
In spite of our age difference do I cry?
Why do I continue to cry despite the disparity between our ages?
Each time I leave you I feel I could die
Every instance I must part from you, I perceive myself as slipping away.
Nothing means more to me than hearing you say
Nothing is more valuable to me than hearing you tell me
"I'm going to marry you. Will you marry me, Uncle Ray?"
"I have plans to marry you. Uncle Ray, will you marry me?"
I've told you before "Don't you dare!"
I have previously cautioned and stopped you from doing something undesirable.
"Get back into bed"
"Return to bed to rest."
"Can't you see that it's late"
"Can't you realize that it is night time."
"No you can't have a drink"
"No, you can not have anything to drink."
"Oh alright then, but wait just a minute"
"Oh okay then, but just hold on for a moment."
While I, in an effort to babysit
Meanwhile, in an attempt to oversee and care for you
Catch up on my breath, what there is left of it
I try to breathe deeply and get some rest afterward.
You can be murder at this hour of the day
You can be extremely tough at this time of the day.
But in the morning the sun
However, in the morning sunlight
Will see my lifetime away
Will keep me alive and healthy for the rest of my life.
Oh Clair
Oh Clair
Clair
Clair
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Gilbert O'Sullivan
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@williamphillips6049
This is a song written, performed and sung beautifully, playfully and innocently by a singer almost totally forgotten . .
at least by me . .
The song's about a guy admiring a child, right?
It was made in 1972 long, long before all the Bundys, Dahmers and school shootings that have sickened and killed us all inside.
Gilbert O'Sullivan brings our hearts back to life and he's awesome.
Where has he been??
His music stirs up so many emotions: Sadness, laughter, anguish, admiration and a few I can't even think of.
It's an amazing and weird talent; haunting yet enjoyable.
I can't stop listening to it.
It's the closest thing to literally going back in time to your childhood and reliving the best parts of it all over again.
Please Mr O'Sullivan come out of retirement.
We need you.
@sarahelizabethjones3838
I love this song. I named my daughter claire.. sadly she passed away in 1998. Through cystic fibrosis. This song makes me remember the good times. Bless you all for your comments.
@afterlate8866
I am so sorry for your loss. I pray that you will be reunited one day.
@juancarlosdiaz2857
bless you Sarah Elizabeth Jones , YOUR CLAIRE GETS YOU FROM A STAR !!!!!!
@sarahelizabethjones3838
@@juancarlosdiaz2857 y thanks very much made my day. Bless you
@yvonnehenry1582
Omgoodness so sad 😔
I feel your pain
Beautiful song for a beautiful young lady 💔
@stenandersen4836
Condolence..
@andyrichards9169
Music in the 70s was great. Much better than today’s music.
@bagarap1302
And we were much younger.
@joycemanning1254
True
@michaelvarone3550
Definitely