See It in a Boy's Eyes

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"See It in a Boy's Eyes"
Single by Jamelia
from the album Thank You
B-side
  • "Taxi"
  • "Numb" (live acoustic)
Released12 July 2004 (2004-07-12)
Length3:40
LabelParlophone
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Jamelia singles chronology
"Thank You"
(2004) 		"See It in a Boy's Eyes"
(2004) 		"Universal Prayer"
(2004)

"See It in a Boy's Eyes" is a song by English singer Jamelia. It was written by Jamelia and Coldplay frontman Chris Martin for the reissue of Jamelia's second studio album, Thank You (2003). Production was helmed by Cameron McVey and Matt Kent. Released in the United Kingdom on 12 July 2004, the song became Jamelia's third consecutive top-five hit in the UK, peaking at number five and spending 11 weeks on the UK Singles Chart. It also peaked at number 11 on the Irish Singles Chart.

Composition[edit]

The song was written in the studio by Jamelia and Chris Martin in London at the end of 2003 for Jamelia's second album, Thank You. Martin created a piano loop and wrote the chorus lyrics. Jamelia said the song is "about a relationship where someone doesn't speak about having a problem and you can see that they're upset but they're just not talking".[1]

Release and chart performance[edit]

"See It in a Boy's Eyes" was released on 12 July 2004 in the United Kingdom under two CD single formats.[2][3] The first CD contains "Taxi" from Thank You and the second CD contains the acoustic version of "Thank You" from Jo Whiley's Live Lounge, an acoustic cover of "Numb" by "Linkin Park", and the enhanced music video.[4][5] The song debuted and peaked at number five on the UK Singles Chart on 24 July 2004. A week later, it slipped to number six and the following week, it fell four places to number 10. It spent 11 weeks on the chart, seven of which were in the top 40, and finished as the 101st-best-selling single of 2004.[6][7] The song also reached the top 20 in Flanders and on the Hungarian Dance Chart.[8][9]

Music video[edit]

The music video for "See It in a Boy's Eyes" was directed by W.I.Z. It was filmed in Cuba and features Jamelia as a soldier in the army and throughout the video, there are scenes of Jamelia and another soldier who are in love but it is clear that they are upset with each other and they refuse to speak. In an interview with the BBC, Jamelia said "I just wanted it to be different – it would have been so predictable if it was just me in a short skirt, my legs out – and I'm not a predictable person. I was trying to be fresh so that people stay interested in me."[10] The video won the "Best Video Award" at the 2004 MOBO awards.

Track listings[edit]

UK CD1 and European CD single[4][11]
No.TitleLength
1."See It in a Boy's Eyes" 
2."Taxi" 
UK CD2[5]
No.TitleLength
1."See It in a Boy's Eyes" 
2."Thank You" (Jo Whiley Live Lounge acoustic) 
3."Numb" (Jo Whiley Live Lounge acoustic) 
4."See It in a Boy's Eyes" (enhanced video) 
UK 7-inch picture disc[12]
No.TitleLength
1."See It in a Boy's Eyes" 
2."See It in a Boy's Eyes" (JD rework) 
Australian CD single[13]
No.TitleLength
1."See It in a Boy's Eyes" 
2."Thank You" (Jo Whiley Live Lounge acoustic) 
3."Numb" (Jo Whiley Live Lounge acoustic) 
4."See It in a Boy's Eyes" (JD rework) 

Credits and personnel[edit]

Credits are lifted from the Thank You album booklet.[14]

Studio

  • Mixed at Astoria Studios

Personnel

  • Chris Martin – writing
  • Jamelia – writing (as Jamelia Davis)
  • Cameron McVey – production
  • Matt Kent – production
  • Jonathan Shakhovskoy – recording engineer
  • Steve Fitzmaurice – mixing
  • Damon Iddins – mixing assistance

Charts[edit]

Release history[edit]

Region Date Format Label Ref.
United Kingdom 12 July 2004 CD Parlophone [2]
Australia 9 August 2004 [23]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Webb, Robert (12 November 2021). "Story of the Song: See it in a Boy's Eyes by Jamelia". The Independent. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
  2. ^ a b "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 10 July 2004. p. 27.
  3. ^ "See It in a Boy's Eyes [CD 2]". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
  4. ^ a b See It in a Boy's Eyes (UK CD1 liner notes). Jamelia. Parlophone. 2004. CDR 6635.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  5. ^ a b See It in a Boy's Eyes (UK CD2 liner notes). Jamelia. Parlophone. 2004. CDRS 6635.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  6. ^ a b "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  7. ^ a b "The Official UK Singles Chart 2004" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  8. ^ a b "Jamelia – See It in a Boy's Eyes" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  9. ^ a b "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Dance Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  10. ^ Newsround interview
  11. ^ See It in a Boy's Eyes (European CD single liner notes). Jamelia. Parlophone. 2004. 7243 5 49814 2 5.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  12. ^ See It in a Boy's Eyes (UK 7-inch picture disc). Jamelia. Parlophone. 2004. R 6635.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  13. ^ See It in a Boy's Eyes (Australian CD single liner notes). Jamelia. Parlophone. 2004. 8614902.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  14. ^ Thank You (European CD album booklet). Jamelia. Parlophone. 2004. 5978142.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  15. ^ "Jamelia – See It in a Boy's Eyes". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  16. ^ "Issue 757" ARIA Top 40 Urban Singles. National Library of Australia. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  17. ^ "Jamelia – See It in a Boy's Eyes" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  18. ^ Jamelia — See It in a Boy's Eyes. TopHit. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  19. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – See It in a Boy's Eyes". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  20. ^ "Arhiva romanian top 100 – Editia 2, saptamina 17.01 – 23.01, 2005" (in Romanian). Romanian Top 100. Archived from the original on 22 February 2005. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
  21. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  22. ^ "Official Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  23. ^ "The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 9th August 2004" (PDF). ARIA. 9 August 2004. p. 28. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 August 2004. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
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