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THE STORY BEHIND THE SONG 'He ain't heavy, Father, he's m' brother. Boys Town, near Omaha, Nebraska, is a community for neglected and homeless boys. It was founded in 1917 by Father Edward Joseph Flanagan, who started with five youngsters in an old rented house. Over the years, from humble beginnings, a 1,400-acre community was built that became a village in 1936. Self-governing and non-sectarian, Boys Town is supported in part by voluntary contributions. The Omaha Boys Town cares for over 500 boys and (since 1984) girls, who live in home settings and have available a range of educational facilities and health and counselling services. Boys Town also operates programmes in other states. Boys Town, and the film of the same name starring Spencer Tracey, inspired the writing of The Hollies' classic, He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother by Americans Bobby Scott and Bobby Russell. Tony Hicks says: "Yes, I pulled "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" out of a publishers., simply because it was a good song. I wasn't consciously looking for a different direction for The Hollies. I used to go into music publishers and I'd listen to 20-30 songs and just bring out the ones that appealed to me and play them to Ron Richards. I heard the song and I took it to Ron. There was no great excitement, nobody was saying you've really got a wonderful song there, which is going to be a world-wide smash and it will be played for years to come. They listened and went mm, yes, well it's quite pleasant. The attitude was let's give it a try and we did and it's the most important song we ever recorded" He Aint Heavy, He's My Brother 
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