Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)

"Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)" is a song written and performed by John Lennon. It was released on the 1980 album Double Fantasy, the last album by Lennon and Ono released before his death.

Paul McCartney has stated this is one of his favourite songs composed by Lennon, and when he appeared on Desert Island Discs in 1982 included it as his favourite in his selection, as did Yoko Ono as the only John Lennon song in 2007.

Originally, the song was released as the B-side of the third and final single from Double Fantasy, "Watching the Wheels", in March 1981, on its US reissue. Subsequently, it was used as the B-side of "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" to promote the compilation album The John Lennon Collection in November 1982.

Lyrics

The song was for Lennon's son, Sean, his only child with Yoko Ono. It begins with John comforting his son from what is presumably a nightmare and develops into John passionately describing the love he has for his son and the joy Sean gave him.

At the end of the song, John Lennon whispers, "Good night, Sean. See you in the morning. Bright and early."

The lyrics of "Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)" contain the famous Allen Saunders 1957 Reader's Digest quote "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans".

Personnel

John Lennon – vocals, acoustic guitar, vocoder
Earl Slick – acoustic guitar
Hugh McCracken – lead guitar
Tony Levin – bass guitar
George Small – keyboards
Robert Greenidge – steelpan
Arthur Jenkins – percussion
Randy Stein – English concertina

Celine Dion version

"Beautiful Boy"

Promotional single by Celine Dion
from the album Miracle
Released	4 October 2004 (2004-10-04)
Recorded	2004 Digital Insights Recording, Chartmarker Studios, Sony Studios
Genre	Pop
Length	3:53
Label	Columbia Epic
Songwriter(s)	John Lennon
Producer(s)	David Foster

Audio video
"Beautiful Boy" on YouTube

"Beautiful Boy" was recorded by Celine Dion for her album, Miracle (2004). It was released on 4 October 2004, in North America and parts of Europe as the first promotional single.

The song reached number two on the Quebec Airplay Chart. "Beautiful Boy" was also popular on adult contemporary charts, peaking at number 18 in the US and number 23 in Canada. It also reached number 30 on the Hungarian Airplay Chart.

Dion performed this song on a few US TV shows, including Live with Regis and Kelly.

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2004–2005)	Peak position
Canada AC (Radio & Records)	23
Hungary (Rádiós Top 40)	30
Quebec (ADISQ)	2
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)	18

Year-end charts

Chart (2004)	Position
US Adult Contemporary (Radio & Records)	88

Chart (2005)	Position
US Adult Contemporary (Radio & Records)	75

References

"Paul McCartney: Desert Island Discs". BBC. Archived from the original on 6 January 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
"Yoko Ono: Desert Island Discs". BBC. Archived from the original on 21 September 2015. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
"Life is What Happens To You While You're Busy Making Other Plans". Quote Investigator. 6 May 2012. Retrieved 21 February 2015.
"Did John Lennon Create the Phrase, 'Life Is What Happens When You're Busy Making Other Plans'?". Snopes. 9 July 2023. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
"R&R Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. 1 October 2004. p. 20. Archived (PDF) from the original on 11 January 2021. Retrieved 2 September 2019.
^ "Celine Dion Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
^ "R&R Canada AC Top 30" (PDF). Radio & Records. 3 December 2004. p. 48. Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 July 2023. Retrieved 2 September 2019.
"Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Rádiós Top 40 játszási lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
"Le Palmarès". ADISQ. Archived from the original on 18 October 2014. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
"R&R Most Played 2004 - Adult Contemporary" (PDF). Radio & Records. 10 December 2004. p. 62. Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 July 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
"AC: R&R Most Played" (PDF). Radio & Records. 9 December 2005. p. 68. Retrieved 22 May 2023.

External links

John Lennon singles discography

Lifetime

1969	"Give Peace a Chance" / "Remember Love" (Ono) "Cold Turkey" / "Don't Worry Kyoko (Mummy's Only Looking for a Hand in the Snow)" (Ono)
1970	"Instant Karma!" / "Who Has Seen the Wind?" (Ono) "Mother" / "Why" (Ono)
1971	"Power to the People" / "Open Your Box" (Ono) (UK) "Power to the People" / "Touch Me" (Ono) (US) "Imagine" / "It's So Hard" (US) "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" / "Listen, the Snow Is Falling" (Ono)
1972	"Woman Is the Nigger of the World" / "Sisters O Sisters" (Ono)
1973	"Mind Games" / "Meat City"
1974	"Whatever Gets You thru the Night" / "Beef Jerky" "#9 Dream" / "What You Got" "Ya Ya" / "Be-Bop-a-Lula" (Germany only)
1975	"Stand by Me" / "Move Over Ms. L" "Imagine" / "Working Class Hero" (UK)
1977	"Stand by Me" / "Woman Is the Nigger of the World" (reissue) (US)
1980	"(Just Like) Starting Over" / "Kiss Kiss Kiss" (Ono)

Posthumous

1981	"Woman" / "Beautiful Boys" (Ono) "Watching the Wheels" / "Yes, I'm Your Angel" (Ono) (UK) "Watching the Wheels" / "Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)" (US)
1982	"Love" / "Give Me Some Truth"
1984	"Nobody Told Me" / "O' Sanity" (Ono) "Borrowed Time" / "Your Hands" (Ono) "I'm Stepping Out" / "Sleepless Night" (Ono) "Every Man Has a Woman Who Loves Him" / "It's Alright" (Ono)
1985	"Jealous Guy" / "Going Down on Love"
1986	"Rock and Roll People" (promo)
1998	"I'm Losing You" (promo)

v t e Celine Dion songs
Singles discography
1980s singles	"Ce n'était qu'un rêve" "La voix du bon Dieu" "Tellement j'ai d'amour pour toi" "D'amour ou d'amitié" "Mon ami m'a quittée" "Ne me plaignez pas" "Une colombe" "Mon rêve de toujours" "Un amour pour moi" "Vois comme c'est beau" "C'est pour toi" "C'est pour vivre" "Dans la main d'un magicien" "La ballade de Michel" "L'univers a besoin d'amour" "Fais ce que tu voudras" "On traverse un miroir" "Incognito" "Je ne veux pas" "Lolita (trop jeune pour aimer)" "Comme un cœur froid" "La religieuse" "Ne partez pas sans moi" "Délivre-moi" "Jours de fièvre" "D'abord, c'est quoi l'amour" "Can't Live with You, Can't Live Without You"
1990s singles	"(If There Was) Any Other Way" "Unison" "Where Does My Heart Beat Now" "The Last to Know" "Beauty and the Beast" "Je danse dans ma tête" "If You Asked Me To" "Nothing Broken but My Heart" "Love Can Move Mountains" "Water from the Moon" "Un garçon pas comme les autres (Ziggy)" "When I Fall in Love" "The Power of Love" "L'amour existe encore" "Misled" "Think Twice" "Only One Road" "Calling You" "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" "Je sais pas" "Next Plane Out" "To Love You More" "Falling into You" "Because You Loved Me" "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" "The Power of the Dream" "All by Myself" "Call the Man" "J'attendais" "Tell Him" "Be the Man" "The Reason" "My Heart Will Go On" "Immortality" "Zora sourit" "I'm Your Angel" "S'il suffisait d'aimer" "On ne change pas" "Treat Her Like a Lady" "That's the Way It Is"
2000s singles	"Live (for the One I Love)" "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" "I Want You to Need Me" "Sous le vent" "A New Day Has Come" "I'm Alive" "Goodbye's (The Saddest Word)" "I Drove All Night" "One Heart" "Tout l'or des hommes" "Have You Ever Been in Love" "Et je t'aime encore" "Je ne vous oublie pas" "Tous les secrets" "Tout près du bonheur" "I Believe in You (Je crois en toi)" "Et s'il n'en restait qu'une (je serais celle-là)" "Immensité" "Taking Chances" "Eyes on Me" "A World to Believe In" "The Prayer" "Alone" "My Love"
2010s singles	"Parler à mon père" "Le miracle" "Qui peut vivre sans amour?" "Loved Me Back to Life" "Incredible" "The Show Must Go On" "Encore un soir" "Recovering" "L'étoile" "Si c'était à refaire" "Je nous veux" "Les yeux au ciel" "Ashes" "Imperfections" "Lying Down" "Courage"
2020s singles	"Set My Heart on Fire"
Promotional singles	"Have a Heart" "Des mots qui sonnent" "Quelqu'un que j'aime, quelqu'un qui m'aime" "Did You Give Enough Love" "Plus haut que moi" "(You Make Me Feel Like A) Natural Woman" "Le ballet" "Les derniers seront les premiers" "You've Got a Friend" "It's Hard to Say Goodbye" "En attendant ses pas" "God Bless America" "At Last" "Stand by Your Side" "Faith" "Contre nature" "You and I" "Beautiful Boy" "Je lui dirai" "Ma Nouvelle-France" "In Some Small Way" "Voler" "Breakaway" "Water and a Flame" "Celle qui m'a tout appris" "L'hymne" "Flying on My Own" "Love Again" "I'll Be"
Other songs	"Destin" "J'irai où tu iras" "Send Me a Lover" "Miles to Go (Before I Sleep)" "Dans un autre monde" "O Holy Night" "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" "On s'est aimé à cause" "How Does a Moment Last Forever" "The Gift"
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