Lawrence John Project - Georgie Boy - George Best tribute song

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Written and produced by Lawrence John. Click Show More for story.

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www.vibedeck.com/LawrenecJohnProject

A Nashville production, of a song I first produced in Belfast.

I wrote this the night after George Best died in November 2005.
I was walking my dog, around midnight and found myself singing oh "Georgie Boy", to the tune of "Danny Boy".
I'm not sure if I was actually singing it out loud, or just hearing it in my head, but remembering that Danny Boy, had been played at some Northern Ireland International football matches, I thought this might be an appropriate melody for a tribute song to George and so rushed home and put pen to paper.
What followed was a heartfelt tribute to George, written through a constant stream of tears. (we're a sentimental lot us Irish)
I was surprised though, how quickly the whole song came together, It only took about 20 minutes, as I decided after just a verse and chorus that nothing further need be said.
I thought at that point, I had managed to sum up quite succinctly, what I and countless other fans the world over, must have been feeling and saying about George on hearing the sad news of his death.

George had been a guest on a chat show I had hosted 10 years earlier and I never forgot, that after he missed his plane to Belfast on the day of the show, he caught a later flight and paid for the ticket out of his own pocket, refusing reimbursement, saying it was HIS fault he missed the plane.
(he was probably chatting up another Miss World at the time)

Before Georgie Boy, I had only toyed with songwriting, but had been producing records for a couple of years and had a recording studio booked for just a couple of days after George's death, coincidently to produce an uptempo dance remix of "You Raise Me Up", a song which was not only based around the uplifting part of "Danny Boy", but which would be sung at George's funeral.

Georgie Boy, was played by a number of local radio stations in the run up to George's funeral, but it was naturally eclipsed by the beautiful and hugely successful tribute songs, by Brian Kennedy and Peter Corry, You Raise Me Up and Bring Him Home.
I didn't write the song for monetary gain, I wrote it simply as a personal tribute to a great sportsman, but I liked the finished song so much, I decided to release it for the benefit of the newly founded charity, The George Best Foundation.
Despite being totally eclipsed by the aforementioned tributes, the song still managed to make £1,000 profit, which I donated to the Foundation.

My original production, sung by Thomas Gillespie and featuring some string players from the Ulster Orchestra, seemed to capture the sombre mood in the days after George's death and leading up to his state funeral, but over the following few years, I began to feel it was a little too sombre.
So, as I have always been proud of the song, I thought I would rearrange it in a lighter more wistful mood and bring it into the main catalogue of songs I have written and produced in Nashville in the last few years.
While still sad and emotional, it's just a little brighter than my original production.

I hope you like it and if so, you can purchase the song on download from all major download sites.

This one's for you George !

Lawrence John
Deejay/ Songwriter/ Producer
Belfast and Nashville

p.s.
I hope at some point to make available the chat show I mentioned earlier,
featuring George Best and Alex Higgins.
If you're a fan of George or Alex, I think you'll find it really entertaining.