Songfacts®:

• This single from Joan Armatrading's 14th studio album is about the courage to go on living in the face of adversity. The singer was inspired by a man she once met who had AIDS.
  
  She explained to Daniel Rachel (The Art of Noise: Conversations with Great Songwriters): "He was telling me about his boyfriend's mother who didn't like him because she thought her son was going to die as well. But he was so kind about her, it was incredible. In the song I talk about him going to the mirror and looking at his hair and fixing himself, just his positiveness. Just watching and listening to him I could write all those words in my head, so when I got home I immediately wrote them down. Because it was so strong how he was, it allowed me to remember those words."
• "Everyday Boy" is a heartfelt tribute to courage in adversity. "The chap had AIDS," Armatrading told Mojo magazine of the song's real-life inspiration. "His partner's mother thought her son was going to die as well. He was so compassionate towards her and her worries."
• Joan Armatrading plays the guitar on the song. The other musicians are:
  
  Tony Levin: bass
  Darryl Jones: bass
  Benmont Tench: keyboards
  Manu Katché: drums
  The London Metropolitan Orchestra – strings
  
  Tony Levin is Peter Gabriel's and King Crimson's bass player, and has played on over 500 albums as a session musician.
  
  Darryl Jones took over as Rolling Stones' bassist in 1994 after Bill Wyman quit. Jones has also played with Miles Davis and Sting.
  
  Benmont Tench was the longtime keyboard player in Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. A renowned session musician, he's played on records by the likes of Bob Dylan, Stevie Nicks, Don Henley.
  
  French drummer Manu Katché has worked extensively as a session musician, notably with Sting and Peter Gabriel.