Cochrane was born in Lynn Lake, Manitoba to Violet and Tuck Cochrane, a bush pilot. The family relocated to Etobicoke, Ontario in the West Deane Park area when Tom was four years old. He purchased his first guitar at age 11 by selling a toy train set. He attended Martingrove Collegiate Institute in the 1960's. In the early 1970s, he was performing in coffee houses across Canada. He eventually made his way to Los Angeles where he found a job writing theme music for My Pleasure is My Business, a Xaviera Hollander movie. Unable to find steady income from music, Cochrane returned to Toronto where he drove a taxi cab and later took a job on a Caribbean cruise liner to help pay the bills. Cochrane went back to Los Angeles in 1976, trying to sell his songs to publishers but without success, and returned to Toronto in 1977. Cochrane walked into the El Mocambo club one night in Toronto and came across a band of locals calling themselves Red Rider. After an audition, they agreed to Cochrane joining the band as lead singer and songwriter, a decision that would change their musical careers.
After the Red Rider era, Cochrane set off on his soloist path again. In 1990, Cochrane took his family to West Africa where he helped to raise awareness and money for the World Vision famine relief organization. That experience shaped his next album Mad Mad World which contained the internationally acclaimed hit single "Life is a Highway".
The three-CD box set Ashes to Diamonds, including material by both Red Rider and Cochrane as a solo artist, was released in 1993.
In 1995, he released Ragged Ass Road and followed that with a Canadian tour in 1996. The tour resulted in Songs of a Circling Spirit, a live CD and multi-media package of previously released material.
In June 1999, Cochrane was involved in a light plane crash in Montreal, after his plane's engine stalled just after take-off. Fortunately, no one was injured.
At the 2003 Juno Awards, Tom Cochrane was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. The special award ceremony took place April 5, 2003 at Casino du Lac-Leamy in Gatineau, Quebec. According to the Life Is a Highway Songfacts, his other honors include seven Juno Awards, being an Honorary Colonel in the Canadian Air Force, and having been inducted onto the Canadian Walk of Fame. They take their rock stars seriously in Canada.
In December 2003 he was one of the musical guests on a CBC special called, Rick Mercer's Christmas in Kabul.
He currently lives with his family in Oakville, Ontario.
On July 2, 2005, Cochrane took part in the Live 8 concert series.
Cochrane's new album "No Stranger" recorded in rural Ontario was released in October 2006.
"Life Is A Highway" was re-made in 2006 by the country band Rascal Flatts for the motion picture "Cars" and became a successful country single.
Boy Inside the Man
Tom Cochrane Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
So long, so long, so long, he's back again
When I turned seventeen
We had passion, we had dreams
Thought the love we were fighting for
Was something holy, something more
We were outside on the run
When I walked out with my girl, hey
We went halfway around the world, around the world and that
I dreamed that I saw her standing there
They're running for the boy inside the man
I was hit hard by the light so bright it burned
And all at once I knew she'd understand (understand, understand)
Boy inside the man
The boy inside the man
When I turned twenty-five
We were hungry, we had drive
When I turned much older then
Ah 'cause the boy was lost in pride
Now I just turned thirty-one
And I have lost and I have won
Still I've kept my dreams alive
Ah 'cause the boy will never die, never die
And that I dreamed that I saw her standing there
They're running for the boy inside the man
I was hit hard by the light so bright it burned
And all at once I knew she'd understand (understand, understand)
The boy inside the man
The boy inside the man
Ah do you understand?
And that I dreamed that I saw her standing there
They're running for the boy inside the man
I was hit hard by the light so bright, it burned
And all at once I knew she'd understand (understand, understand)
And that I dreamed that I saw her standing there
They're running for the boy inside the man
I was hit hard by the light so bright, it burned
And all at once I knew she'd understand (understand, understand)
Boy inside the man (hit hard by the light so bright)
The boy inside the man (hit hard by the light so bright)
The boy inside the man (hit hard by the light so bright)
Boy inside the man yeah (hit hard by the light so bright)
The boy inside the man (hit hard by the light so bright)
So long, so long, so long, he's been away
So long, so long, so long, he's back again
So long, so long, so long, he's been away
So long, so long, so long, he's back again
Hey, let it, let it, hey
Hey, let it, let it be, let it be
Boy inside the man
Ah let it be, let it be
So long, so long, so long, you been away
So long, back again
So long, so long, so long, you been away
So long, so long, so long, you're back again
Sister cool this face
As if it's carved in stone
Don't leave me in this place
Like a boy without a home
Like a boy without a home (with a)
The song "Boy Inside the Man" by Tom Cochrane & Red Rider is a touching ballad about the journey from adolescence to adulthood. The song's opening lines set the tone for the rest of the track: "So long, so long, so long, he's been away/ So long, so long, so long, he's back again." The singer of the song is introduced as someone who has been gone for a long time and has now returned home. As the track progresses, the listener learns about the singer's life journey, from his teenage years filled with passion and dreams to his current age of 31.
The song's chorus repeats the phrase "the boy inside the man," and this refrain becomes the emotional core of the song. It represents the idea that no matter how much one grows up and moves on, they'll always be the same person they were as a child. The track's second verse explores the idea that as the singer got older, he became more ambitious and less willing to compromise. However, in the chorus, he admits that there's still a part of him that remains youthful and idealistic.
Overall, "Boy Inside the Man" is a song about the journey from naive teenager to seasoned adult, and the idea that no matter how much we change, there will always be a part of us that remains the same.
Line by Line Meaning
So long, so long, so long, he's been away
He has been gone for a very long time
So long, so long, so long, he's back again
He has returned after being gone for a very long time
When I turned seventeen
At the age of seventeen
We had passion, we had dreams
We were full of passion and had dreams for the future
Thought the love we were fighting for
Believed that the love we were fighting for
Was something holy, something more
Was sacred and meant more than just a normal love
When I turned twenty-one
At the age of twenty-one
We were outside on the run
We were running away from something
When I walked out with my girl, hey
When I left with my girlfriend
We went halfway around the world, around the world and that
We traveled a long distance around the world together
I dreamed that I saw her standing there
I had a dream where I saw her standing there
They're running for the boy inside the man
They are chasing the boy inside the man
I was hit hard by the light so bright it burned
I was struck deeply by a very bright light
And all at once I knew she'd understand (understand, understand)
And suddenly I realized that she would understand me
Boy inside the man
The young and innocent part of the man
When I turned twenty-five
At the age of twenty-five
We were hungry, we had drive
We were ambitious and motivated
When I turned much older then
When I got much older
Ah 'cause the boy was lost in pride
Because the young and innocent part of me was lost in pride
Now I just turned thirty-one
I recently turned thirty-one
And I have lost and I have won
I have experienced both triumph and failure
Still I've kept my dreams alive
I have maintained my aspirations
Ah 'cause the boy will never die, never die
Because the young and innocent part of me will never truly die
Ah do you understand?
Do you understand what I mean?
Boy inside the man (hit hard by the light so bright)
The young and innocent part of me was deeply affected by the bright light
The boy inside the man yeah (hit hard by the light so bright)
The young and innocent part of me was very deeply affected by the bright light
Sister cool this face
Please calm down
As if it's carved in stone
Like it is an unchangeable fact
Don't leave me in this place
Don't abandon me here
Like a boy without a home
Like a kid who doesn't have a place of his own
Like a boy without a home (with a)
Like a kid who doesn't have a home (but has a)
Hey, let it, let it be, let it be
Just let things be as they are
Ah let it be, let it be
Just let things be as they are
So long, so long, so long, you been away
You have been gone for a very long time
So long, back again
You have returned after being gone for a very long time
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Thomas William Cochrane
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
James Morse
Boy Inside the Man
Tom Cochrane, Red Rider
When I turned seventeen
We had passion, we had dreams
Thought the love we were fighting for
Was something holy, something more
When I turned twenty-one
We were outside on the run
When I walked out with my girl
We went halfway around the world
I dreamed that I saw her standing there
They're running for the boy inside the man
I was hit hard by the light so bright it burned
And all at once I knew she'd understand
Boy inside the man
Boy inside the man
When I turned twenty-five
We were hungry, we had drive
When I turned much older then
'Cause the boy was lost in pride
Now I just turned thirty-one
And I've lost and I have won
Still I've kept my dreams alive
'Cause the boy will never die
I dreamed that I saw her standing there
They're running for the boy inside the man
I was hit hard by the light so bright it burned
And all at once I knew she'd understand
Boy inside the man
Boy inside the man
I dreamed that I saw her standing there
They're running for the boy inside the man
I was hit hard by the light so bright, it burned
And all at once I knew she'd understand
Boy inside the man
Boy inside the man
Boy inside the man
Boy inside the man
Alex Mustata
This song is about growing up and not wanting to lose the boy and youth inside you... Man i can relate, we are all victims of time..
kevin heatcoat
This Song is Better Than Ed Sheeran's castle on the hill
JIM MORTIMORE
@kevin heatcoat hahahaha!!! Who’s that??
Ralph Jackson
It's funny at he mentions when he was 31 years old at one stage. I don't know what it is about being 32 and 33 but the number of people I've known who have gone through a year or two of total crisis and breakdown,turbulence and change at that exact point in their lives is surprising. It happened to me,it happened to a couple of guys a bit older than me who I worked for,it's happened to friends a bit younger than me who've needed support and understanding to help them through. I believe even Jesus was that age when he went through his betrayal,trial,crucifixion and resurrection!
However,just take it from me,as a 50-something who's been through a few ups and downs on life's rollercoaster,than even though you may be down in the dumps and no longer see any much of a future,at least none comparable to the life you had and were enjoying before you took the hit,if this happens to you that you just have to hang in there until it turns and sooner or later it will,and bountiful times will return.
TwoWheelWarrior
As a man in the deep end of middle age on the verge of exiting to the next phase. This song almost always brings a tear to my eye.
DrRxDoomsday
Me too man
TheWayBack
Me too
Terry Maher
I absolutely adore this song I only heard it today wow. Tom Cochran is one the most amazing song writers so underrated.
solana zko
I agree ,every song I really like I look who it is and I'm like of damn of course Tom Cochrane or red rider LOL
steelgunner2
This song just makes you feel happy to be alive. Thanks Tom you rock buddy.