- Included among the Record Descriptions of Favorite Albums (Part 1).
- Just a Boy includes Leo Sayer’s breakthrough American hit “Long Tall Glasses (I Can Dance)”, a Top Ten hit internationally, hitting #9 in the U.S.
The Greatest Music
Ever Recorded!
Leo Sayer – Just a Boy (1974): Hearing Leo Sayer on the radio back in the day, I expected him to be a one- or two-hit-wonder; but he kept his R&B-flavored pop hits coming for an extended period of time, and his albums were good enough as well for me to buy a couple of them. Leo Sayer began his musical career in the late 1960’s as the leader of the London-based Terraplane Blues Band (named for a Robert Johnson song, “Terraplane Blues”). In the early 1970’s, Leo Sayer began making some solo records, teaming up with drummer Dave Courtney who was in their prior band called Patches. The Who’s lead singer Roger Daltrey recorded several of their songs, with “Giving it All Away” becoming Daltrey’s debut solo single in 1973 and reaching #5 on the U.K. singles chart.
Leo Sayer’s own 1973 single “The Show Must Go On” was a #1 hit in the U.K.; Three Dog Night released a cover of “The Show Must Go On”, so Sayer’s version did not chart in the U.S. Just a Boy is Leo Sayer’s second album, with all songs being co-written by Leo Sayer and Dave Courtney. Just a Boy includes Leo Sayer’s breakthrough American hit “Long Tall Glasses (I Can Dance)”, a Top Ten hit internationally, hitting #4 in the U.K., #9 in the U.S., and #18 in Canada, despite competing with a cover called “I Can Dance” that was released concurrently by the Canadian band Shooter (their version made it to #22). “One Man Band” – which had also been recorded previously by Roger Daltrey; both songs are on his 1973 album Daltrey – was a hit for Leo Sayer in the U.K. and around the world; “The Show Must Go On” is also included on Just a Boy.