"The Living Years" is a popular song written by Mike Rutherford and B. A. Robertson.

It was first released as a single by Mike + The Mechanics, becoming a top ten chart hit around the world. It peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in the USA on March 25, 1989. It also spent four weeks at the top of the U.S. adult contemporary chart. It reached #1 in Canada and Australia and #2 in the UK.

The Mike + The Mechanicsversion was initially promoted to give the impression the lyrics described the disagreements between Rutherford and his father. In an interview with Mike + The Mechanics - (The Sun Online) 2004, Mike Rutherford said:

“The lyrics were written by BA and the song is about something he went through. He lost his Dad and it's about the lack of communication between him and his father before he died. There's also the irony of him having a baby just after losing his father. I had exactly the same thing happen to me at the same time, so it meant a lot to me too.”

There are dozens of known recordings of the song, instrumental as well as vocal, reggae to classical crossover, from artists as diverse as American country rock band Alabama, West End theatre star Michael Ball, Marcia Hines, Engelbert Humperdinck, James Last, The LSO, Christian Artist Russ Lee, John Tesh, Russell Watson, and the London Community Gospel Choir.

There is even a comedic interpretation by Big Daddy, where the song gets recast as the death-rock classic "Leader of the Pack", by The Shangri-Las.

Mike + The Mechanicsband member Paul Carrack who performed the original lead vocal has made a number of solo interpretations. Carrack lost his own father in an industrial accident when he was eleven. It is still a mainstay of Carrack’s live performances today.

The song also enjoys a motley collection of foreign language covers, including the Tokyo Broadcasting System’s (TBS) Drama, “Hotel”, where it was performed, half in English, half in Japanese by one of the show’s stars.

B.A. Robertson finally recorded his own version of the song - in Abbey Road Studios - in 2009, featuring backing vocals from The Gospel Truth Choir.

In an interview with Mojo(1996), Burt Bacharach stated “The Living Years is one of the finest lyrics of the last 10 years”.

In 1990 the song was nominated Song of the Year at the Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. It won the Ivor Novello Award in London for Best Song Musically & Lyrically.

In 2004 it was awarded a 4 Million-Air citation by BMI.