"Boys (Summertime Love)" is a song by Italian singer Sabrina, released in May 1987 as the third single from her self-titled debut studio album (1987). The song topped the charts in France (where it became the first number-one single by an Italian singer since 1984[2]) and Switzerland, while peaking within the top five in Austria, Belgium, Finland, West Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, and Sweden.
It was Sabrina's first single to be released in the United Kingdom, reaching number three on the UK Singles Chart in June 1988. Outside Europe, "Boys (Summertime Love)" peaked at number 11 in Australia and number six in South Africa. The song was re-released as a remixed version twice: in France in 1995, retitled as "Boys '95", and in 2003 as "Boys Boys Boys (The Dance Remixes)".
Critical receptionedit
William Shaw from Smash Hits wrote that Sabrina "sings a rather nicely inane tune about boys which jigs about infectiously enough as eurodisco tunes invariably do, but which is somewhat marred by the fact that it's all about hanging around on the beach in the summertime, which is rather inappropriate in January."[3] Another editor, Richard Lowe, said, "Well, it's another brilliantly tragic disco record and if it's not a hit this summer after spurring millions of people to make buffoons of themselves in discos while on "vacation" I'll eat my hat."[4] In his review published in Record Mirror, James Hamilton described the song as a "plaintively squawked simple sing-song 120bpm Eurobeat canterer from Italy".[5]
Music videoedit
The accompanying music video for "Boys (Summertime Love)" was filmed at the Florida hotel in Jesolo, Italy. In it, Sabrina splashes about in a swimming pool, while her bikini top keeps sliding down, thus repeatedly revealing varying amounts of her nipples.[6] As a result, the BBC added black bars around the image when the video was aired on Top of the Pops in June 1988, effectively cropping it into widescreen. It remains one of the most downloaded video clips on the Internet.[7]
During an interview with Nino Firetto on the Music Box program on Super Channel in late 1988, Sabrina explained that the video for "Boys" was originally created to be a segment in a magazine show. This was Sabrina's explanation of why its style more closely matched that of Italian magazine shows of the time (more overtly sexualised) than that of the traditional music video of the time.
Track listingsedit
7-inch single
A. "Boys (Summertime Love)" – 3:56
B. "Get Ready (Holiday Rock)" – 3:20
Dutch 7-inch single
A. "Boys (Summertime Love)" – 3:30
B. "Get Ready (Holiday Rock)" – 3:30
12-inch single
A. "Boys (Summertime Love)" – 5:30
B. "Boys (Summertime Love)" (dub version) – 5:35
German 12-inch single – Remixed
A. "Boys (Summertime Love)" (remix by Wally Brill) – 8:43
B. "Boys (Summertime Love)" (dub version) – 5:40
UK and Australian 12-inch single
A. "Boys (Summertime Love)" – 5:40
B1. "Boys (Summertime Love)" (dub version) – 5:40
B2. "Get Ready (Holiday Rock)" – 3:30
French CD single
"Boys (Summertime Love)" – 3:50
"Boys (Summertime Love)" (remix) – 5:40
"Hot Girl" – 3:22
12-inch single – Remix by Pete Hammond
A. "Boys (Summertime Love)" (remix by Pete Hammond) – 7:01
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
Other versionsedit
In 2006 song was covered by Aylar Lie.[45] European band Bearforce 1 made a cover of the song in 2008, including the chorus of "Boys (Summertime Love)". Its music video features four men dancing to the song and lipsyncing. [46]
^"The complete story of Italo disco". Far Out Magazine. 1 December 2020.
^Pessis, Jacques (2005). 20 ans de tubes (in French). Editions Pascal. p. 123. ISBN 978-2-3501-9009-9.
^Shaw, William (27 January 1988). "Singles". Smash Hits. p. 41. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
^Lowe, Richard (18 May 1988). "Singles". Smash Hits. p. 63. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
^Hamilton, James (19 December 1987). "BPM by James Hamilton" (PDF). Record Mirror. London: Spotlight Publications Ltd. p. 20. ISSN 0144-5804. Retrieved 6 November 2023 – via World Radio History.
^"La Discothèque du 20è siècle". Polygram Direct. 1988. p. 15.
^Lemonier, Marc (2008). Nos années Top, clips et 45 tours: 1984–1991. p. 75. ISBN 978-2-258-07648-8.
^"RPM 20 Dance Singles". RPM. Vol. 49, no. 8. 10 December 1988. p. 14. ISSN 0033-7064.
^"European Hot 100 Singles". Music & Media. Vol. 5, no. 10. 5 March 1988. p. 16. OCLC 29800226.
^Pennanen, Timo (2021). "Sabrina". Sisältää hitin – Levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla 1.1.1960–30.6.2021(PDF) (in Finnish) (2nd ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 223. ISBN 978-952-7460-01-6.
^"Classifiche". Musica e dischi (in Italian). Retrieved 30 May 2022. Select "Singoli" in the "Tipo" field, type "Sabrina" in the "Artista" field, type "Boys" in the "Titolo" field and press "cerca".
^"Nederlandse Top 40 – Sabrina" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
^"Sabrina – Boys" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
^"Top 3 Singles in Europe". Music & Media. Vol. 5, no. 4. 23 January 1988. p. 22. OCLC 29800226.
^"SA Charts 1965–1989 (As presented on Springbok Radio/Radio Orion) – Acts S". The South African Rock Encyclopedia. Archived from the original on 17 May 2018. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
^Salaverrie, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Madrid: Fundación Autor/SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
^"Top 3 Singles in Europe". Music & Media. Vol. 5, no. 5. 30 January 1988. p. 30. OCLC 29800226.
^"British single certifications – Sabrina – Boys". British Phonographic Industry. 1 August 1988. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
^Vibeke Johnsen (12 December 2006). "Aylar Lie skal ha takket ja til å spille i Aune Sands nye film". Nettavisen (in Norwegian). Retrieved 22 October 2023.
^"Bearforce1 videoclip". YouTube. Archived from the original on 12 December 2021.
External linksedit
"Boys (Summertime Love)" at Discogs (list of releases)