He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" is a ballad written by Bobby Scott and Bob Russell. Originally recorded by Kelly Gordon in 1969, the song became a worldwide hit for The Hollies later that year and again for Neil Diamond in 1970. It has been recorded by many artists in subsequent years. The Hollies' and Rufus Wainwright's versions of the song were featured in the film "Zoolander". Scott and Russell had been introduced to each other by Johnny Mercer, at a California nightclub. Although Russell was dying of lymphoma and the pair met in
He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother person only three times, they managed to collaborate on the song. In 1884, James Wells, Moderator of the United Free Church of Scotland, in his book "The Parables of Jesus" tells the story of a little girl carrying a big baby boy. Seeing her struggling, someone asked if she wasn't tired. With surprise she replied: "No, he's not heavy; he's my brother." In a 1918 publication by Ralph Waldo Trine titled "The Higher Powers of Mind and Spirit", he relates the following anecdote: "Do you know that incident in connection with the little Scottish girl? She was trudging along, carrying