Stereophonics’ “Local Boy in the Photograph” is being recognized as one of the standout indie songs of 1997. Ranked No. 10 on Radio X’s list of the year’s 25 best indie songs, the track appears alongside music by Oasis, Radiohead, Blur, and other legendary rock acts.
But behind the song is a heartbreaking real-life story, and the remarkable fact that frontman Kelly Jones wrote it when he was just 18 or 19.
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View this post on InstagramAs the iconic Welsh rockers gear up to release their greatest-hits album spanning 30 years of music, Tune! Ultimate Collection 96–26, next month, take a look back at the song that started it all.
The Tragic True Story Behind ‘Local Boy in the Photograph’
The song was inspired by the death of a young man Jones knew through playing county football. Jones remembered him as someone who seemed to have everything going for him.
Speaking on the television program Songbook in 2011, per Radio X, the frontman recalled, “I used to play kind of county football […], and there was a kid that used to play right back. I got to know him pretty well. He was a really cool, good-looking kid. He was kind of one of those that you looked and thought, ‘He’s got it all.’”
Jones later learned that the young man, identified by the outlet as Paul David Boggis, had died by suicide after jumping in front of a train.
“And then, a few years later, we found out he jumped in front of a train, and we were all a bit shocked by it, and we read about it in the local paper,” Jones said.
He recalled that the newspaper published a photograph of the young man, which helped inspire the song’s title.
Kelly Jones Was Just 18 or 19 When He Wrote the Song
Jones turned the tragedy into a song that explored the shock of losing someone young and the memories left behind. He explained that, at the time, he had little experience processing such a loss.
“I’d never really known anybody our age to do that, to end their life kind of, and nobody really knew why he ended his life,” he said. “And when you’re 18 or 19 you’re quite naive, and you just write everything down.”
Rather than focusing solely on the young man’s death, Jones wanted the song to celebrate his life and the people who remembered him.
“And it was just more about a celebration of his life than it was about his death, really,” he explained, describing the imagery of friends sitting by the riverbank, drinking, and talking about the person they had lost.
Radio X has since described “Local Boy in the Photograph” as one of Stereophonics’ best-loved songs, calling it one of Jones’ most poignant lyrics.
The Stereophonics Song Became a Fan Favorite
“Local Boy in the Photograph” was released as Stereophonics’ debut commercial single on March 17, 1997, before appearing later that year on the band’s debut album, Word Gets Around.
The single initially reached No. 51 on the U.K. singles chart. When it was reissued in 1998, it climbed to No. 14, giving the song a second life as the band’s popularity grew.
Looking back on Word Gets Around, Jones reflected in a recent interview with Louder on the remarkable songwriting he accomplished so young.
“I’m still very, very proud of [it], because I still can’t believe that an 18-year-old kid wrote some of that,” he said.
The song has remained a fan favorite for decades. Jones previously told HMV.com, per Songfacts, that when he wrote it while sitting on his bedroom floor at 18, he never imagined how far it would go.
“When I wrote ‘Local Boy in the Photograph’ sitting on my bedroom floor when I was 18 years old I didn’t imagine I’d have 50,000 people singing it back to me,” he said.
Nearly three decades after its release, the song still connects with listeners, and its place on Radio X’s list reminds of the lasting impact of a story Jones first tried to make sense of as a teenager.
Related: ’90s Rock Icons Announce New Greatest Hits Collection Nearly 30 Years After Debuting With ‘Word Gets Around’
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