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Without You (Badfinger song)

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"Without You"
Song

"Without You" is a song written by Pete Ham and Tom Evans of British rock group Badfinger, and first released on their 1970 album No Dice. The song has been recorded by over 180 artists,[1] and versions released as singles by Harry Nilsson (1971) and Mariah Carey (1994) became international best-sellers. Paul McCartney once described the ballad as "...the killer song of all time."[2]

In 1972, writers Ham and Evans received the British Academy's Ivor Novello Award for Best Song Musically and Lyrically.[3]

Badfinger origins

First recorded by the rock group Badfinger, the song was composed by two of its members. Two streams, referring to real events in the songwriters' lives flowed together to create the song. Pete Ham had written a song originally titled "If It's Love" but it had lacked a strong chorus. At the time of writing the band shared residence with the Mojos at 7 Park Avenue in Golders Green. One evening, in the midst of the parties, songwriting, touring, in Golders Green, Ham and his girlfriend Beverly Tucker were about to go out for the evening. But just as they were leaving Tom Evans said he had an idea for a song – Ham said, 'Not tonight, I've promised Bev.' But she thought he would be wondering if he had done the right thing later, if he went out, – she told him – 'Go into the studio, I'm fine about it..' He said, " Your mouth is smiling, but your eyes are sad." The song Ham wrote that night was called 'If its Love' and has the verse "Well I can't forget tomorrow, when I think of all my sorrow, I had you there but then I let you go, and now it's only fair that I should let you know..if it's love.." But Pete wasn't happy with the chorus."[4]

Events in Evans' love life would lead to the completion of the track. While Evans was touring in Cologne he had met the woman who would become his future wife, Marianne. She moved to London. It was a sparky relationship. "One evening he went to her friend Karen and told Karen, 'She's left me. I need her back. I can't live without her.' He flew to Bonn to find her – he wrote a song called 'I Can't Live'. Its chorus; "I can't live, if living is without you, I can't live, I can't give any more." And so the merging of the two songs,[5] Ham and Evans created the hit. Ham's verse, 'warm, sweet, sentimental' and Evans' chorus, – 'intense, dramatic, heartbreaking.'"[6] Both Ham and Evans said they did not consider the song to have much potential at the time Badfinger recorded it, and the track was slotted to close Side A of their 1970 No Dice album. Badfinger's recording of the song, which is more brusque than its successors' versions, was not released as a single in Europe or North America. "Without You" was released backed by "We're For The Dark" in The Philippines on Apple Records, Catalogue number APPLE-025, "Without You" was also finally released as a 3" CD single in Japan in March 1993 along with the track "No Matter What".

Both writers of the song, Ham and Evans, later committed suicide due to legal and financial issues. In Evans' case, it was a dispute over songwriting royalties for "Without You" that precipitated his action. The songwriting royalties had became the subject of legal wrangling for Evans, and In 1983, following an acrimonious argument with his bandmate Joey Molland over the royalties for "Without You", Evans hanged himself.[7][8]

Harry Nilsson version

"Without You"
Song
B-side"Gotta Get Up"

Harry Nilsson, at the time was best known for his hit "Everybody's Talkin'" and for composing such hits as Three Dog Night's "One", heard Badfinger's recording of "Without You" at a party,[9] and mistook it for a Beatles song.[10] After realising it was not, he decided to cover the song for his album Nilsson Schmilsson in 1971. The song was released as a single in October 1971, and it stayed at number 1 on the U.S. pop chart for four weeks, from 13 February to 11 March 1972. The song also spent five weeks atop the U.S. adult contemporary chart. Billboard ranked it as the No. 4 song for 1972.[11]

In the UK, the song spent five weeks at number 1 on the British pop chart, beginning on 11 March, and sold almost 800,000 copies.[12] It went to Number One in several other countries, including Australia (for 5 weeks), Ireland (3 weeks) and New Zealand (2 weeks).

The single was produced by Richard Perry, who later explained, "It was a different record for its time. It was a big ballad with a heavy backbeat, and although many artists have cut songs like it since, no one was doing it then."[13] Gary Wright, then known as a member of the British group Spooky Tooth, and later a successful solo artist in his own right, played piano on the recording.[13] Also featured are Klaus Voormann (bass), Jim Keltner (drums) and Tom Plovanic (acoustic guitar). The string and horn arrangements are by Paul Buckmaster. In 1973, Nilsson won the "Best Male Pop Vocal" Grammy award for the song.[14] While Nilsson rarely gave live concerts, he did perform the song with Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas in September 1992.[15]

Harry Nilsson track listing

Worldwide Single

  1. "Without You" – 3:17
  2. "Gotta Get Up" – 2:24

EP (Portugal)

  1. "Without You" – 3:17
  2. "The Moonbeam Song" – 3:18
  3. "Gotta Get Up" – 2:24
  4. "Jump Into The Fire" – 3:32

Chart performance

Personnel

Mariah Carey version

"Without You"
Song
B-side"Never Forget You"

Mariah Carey's version, based on Harry Nilsson's version rather than the Badfinger original, was released as the third single of Music Box in the first quarter of 1994, and in the United States it was released on 24 January 1994,[28] just over a week after Nilsson had died following a heart attack on 15 January 1994. In the U.S. it was promoted as a double A-side with "Never Forget You". Carey said that she decided to cover the song when she heard it in a restaurant (although when performing the song in Tokyo, she said she listened to it when she was a little girl). Her version has been considered very popular on talent shows.[29] "Without You" was later included on some non-U.S. pressings of her compilation album #1's (1998), and her 2001 compilation, Greatest Hits. "Without You" was also included on her 2009 compilation The Ballads.

Critical reception

David Browne of Entertainment Weekly called it a "by-the-numbers remake of Nilsson's melodramatic 1972 hit."[30] Stephen Holden of Rolling Stone called this song "likeliest contender" for ballads like "I Will Always Love You" and he praised "Carey dips into her lower register and is accompanied by backup singers (including herself) magnified to sound like a mighty gospel chorus."[31]

Chart performance

"Without You" reached number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, remaining in the top 40 for 21 weeks and on the chart for 23. It reached number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay and number 3 on the Hot 100 Singles Sales. It was certified gold by the RIAA and sold 600,000 copies domestically.[32][33] It was ranked 16 on the Hot 100 1994 year-end charts.

"Without You" remains Carey's biggest hit across Europe. It became her first UK number 1 single, and was her only number one there until Against All Odds, which was also a cover. It debuted at number 1 on the chart and stayed at number 1 for four weeks.[34] It was also her first chart-topper in Italy, but was most successful in Switzerland (with ten non-consecutive weeks at number 1) and the Netherlands (twelve weeks). It also topped the singles chart in Germany for four weeks and Austria for eight weeks, where Carey's success had previously been limited. It also topped the Swedish Singles Chart for eight weeks, was number 1 in Ireland for five weeks and in New Zealand for one week. It was able to make the top three in Canada, France, Norway and Australia. It was certified platinum in Australia by ARIA and in Germany and Austria by IFPI. It was also certified gold in New Zealand by RIANZ and in France by SNEP. The song is one of only two Carey singles certified Gold in the UK with sales of 470,000 copies.[35]

Mariah Carey track listing

Worldwide CD single

  1. "Without You" – 3:38
  2. "Never Forget You" – 3:45

European maxi-CD single #1

  1. "Without You" – 3:38
  2. "Never Forget You" – 3:45
  3. "Dreamlover (live from Here Is Mariah Carey)" – 4:09

European maxi-CD single #2

  1. "Without You" – 3:38
  2. "Vision of Love" – 3:28
  3. "I'll Be There" (Featuring Trey Lorenz) – 4:28
  4. "Love Takes Time" – 3:48

Charts

Other cover versions

"Without You"
Song
"Without You"
Song

Shirley Bassey covered the song twice, once for the album And I Love You So in 1972, and again in Spanish as "Sin Ti" for the 1989 album La Mujer. This Spanish version of the ballad has also been recorded by Paloma San Basilio. A different Spanish translation, "Desde el dia que te fuiste" ("From the Day You Went Away"), was a #1 hit for Pandora on Billboard's Hot Latin Tracks in 1992.[82]

The song is often covered by TV talent show contestants. In 2001, Kelly Clarkson performed the song on "Top 3" week of season 1 of American Idol. Valentina Hasan, a season two contestant of Music Idol, sang her own version in Engrish. Soon dubbed "Ken Lee" after her mispronunciation of "Can't Live," the video of Hasan's performance became a YouTube hit, parodied and remixed by many fans[83] as featured in Sign of the Times on ABC's Nightline in March 2009.[84]

In films and television

Nilsson's version of "Without You" was used as the opening tune to the 1979 feature film Porridge. In the film Casino, the Nilsson version is playing during one of Ginger's manic episodes. In the film The Rules of Attraction, a college girl commits suicide in a bathtub while this song plays on the soundtrack. In Bridget Jones' Diary, the title character performs a tuneless rendition of this song.

In June 2010 the Harry Nilsson version of the song was used in television advertising for the UK brand Soda Stream.[citation needed]

Nilsson's version was also included in the Apple Productions Movie, "The Son of Dracula".

It was also used in the final scenes of the Inside No. 9 episode A Quiet Night In.

In series two of Peep Show this song was featured in the episode titled 'Wedding'.

Nilsson's version was heard in a 2016 commercial for Heinz ketchup that debuted on CBS' coverage of Super Bowl 50 on February 7, 2016.

ASCAP and Ivor Novello recognition

On 15 May 1995, at ASCAP's twelfth annual Pop Music Awards in Beverly Hills, California, "Without You" was recognised as one of the 50 most-played songs of 1994 (due largely to Mariah Carey's recording). Discrepancies in ASCAP's books, resulting from a lawsuit against the Ham and Evans estates by their former manager, incorrectly attributed the song as being composed not only by Ham and Evans, but also by Badfinger's other bandmembers, Mike Gibbins and Joey Molland, and their former manager, Bill Collins. This designation and a lack of correction by ASCAP prompted the Ham Estate to boycott the ceremony. The song was also nominated for "Song Of The Year" in London at the Ivor Novello Awards.[85]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ According to the ASCAP
  2. ^ Paul McCartney VH1 Behind The Music, Retrieved 10 June 2009
  3. ^ Lister, David, Pop ballads bite back in lyrical fashion, The Independent, 28 May 1994
  4. ^ "BBC Radio 2 - Song Stories, Without You". Bbc.co.uk. 9 February 2011. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
  5. ^ "Badfinger – Without You". BBC Wales. Retrieved 2 May 2011.
  6. ^ Song Stories, Radio 2, 9 February 2011
  7. ^ Nick Clark (26 April 2013). "Badfinger: last act in a rock'n'roll tragedy". Independent.
  8. ^ David K. Frasier. Suicide in the Entertainment Industry: An Encyclopedia of 840 Twentieth Cases. McFarland. p. 20. ISBN 9781476608075.
  9. ^ Matovina 2000, p. 152.
  10. ^ [1] [dead link‍]
  11. ^ Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1972
  12. ^ Dafydd Rees and Luke Crampton, Rock Stars Encyclopedia (New York: DK Publishing, 1999), 714.
  13. ^ a b ""Without You" - Nilsson". Superseventies.com. 19 February 1972. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
  14. ^ Matovina 2000, p. 209.
  15. ^ Chip Madinger and Mark Easter, Eight Arms To Hold You: The Solo Beatles Compendium (Chesterfield, MO: 44.1 Productions, 2000), 543.
  16. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  17. ^ "Nilsson – Without You" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  18. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 7602." RPM. Library and Archives Canada.
  19. ^ "Nilsson – Without You" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  20. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Without You". Irish Singles Chart.
  21. ^ "Nilsson: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
  22. ^ http://www.billboard.com/charts/hot-100/1972-03-04
  23. ^ http://australian-charts.com/forum.asp?todo=viewthread&id=35092
  24. ^ http://www.musicandyears.com/year/1972
  25. ^ http://www.uk-charts.top-source.info/top-100-1972.shtml
  26. ^ http://www.musicoutfitters.com/topsongs/1972.htm
  27. ^ "American single certifications – Nilsson – Without You". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 5 February 2013.
  28. ^ Matovina 2000, p. 395.
  29. ^ "Mariah's "Without you" popular on talent searches – The Mariah Carey Archives". Mcarchives.com. Retrieved 9 April 2012.
  30. ^ Browne, David (27 August 1993). "Music Box Review | Music Reviews and News". Entertainment Weekly. Time Inc. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
  31. ^ "Music Box | Album Reviews". Rolling Stone. Jann Wenner. 28 October 1993. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
  32. ^ a b "American single certifications – Mariah Carey – Without You". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  33. ^ a b "Best-Selling Records of 1994". Billboard. 107 (3). BPI Communications: 57. 21 January 1995. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  34. ^ "Without You on ChartStats". Chartstats.com. Retrieved 9 April 2012.
  35. ^ a b Myers, Justin (14 February 2014). "Official Charts Flashback 1994: Mariah Carey – Without You". Official Charts Company.
  36. ^ "Mariah Carey – Without You". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  37. ^ "Mariah Carey – Without You" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  38. ^ "Mariah Carey – Without You" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  39. ^ "Hits of the World" (PDF). Billboard. 2 April 1994. p. 44. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
  40. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 2428." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  41. ^ "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 2458." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 31, 2015.
  42. ^ "Billboard 25. jun 1994". Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 1994: 75. Retrieved 24 February 2012. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  43. ^ "Hits of the World". Billboard. 11 June 1994. p. 41. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  44. ^ "Mariah Carey – Without You" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  45. ^ "Mariah Carey - Without You" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  46. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Without You". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  47. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 13, 1994" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  48. ^ "Mariah Carey – Without You" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  49. ^ "Mariah Carey – Without You". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  50. ^ "Mariah Carey – Without You". VG-lista. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  51. ^ "Mariah Carey – Without You". Singles Top 100. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  52. ^ "Mariah Carey – Without You". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  53. ^ "Mariah Carey: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  54. ^ "Mariah Carey Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  55. ^ "Mariah Carey Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  56. ^ "Mariah Carey Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  57. ^ "Mariah Carey Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  58. ^ "Mariah Carey Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  59. ^ "Zeitraum für die Auswertung: 07.01.1990 - 26.12.1999" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 May 2015.
  60. ^ "ARIA Charts - End Of Year Charts - Top 50 Singles 1994". ARIA. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  61. ^ "Jahreshitparade Singles 1994" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  62. ^ "Jaaroverzichten 1994" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  63. ^ "RPM Top 100 Hit Tracks of 1994". RPM. 12 December 1994. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  64. ^ "RPM Top 100 AC Tracks of 1994". RPM. 12 December 1994. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  65. ^ "Classement Singles - année 1994" (in French). SNEP. Archived from the original on 24 December 2013. Retrieved 22 May 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  66. ^ "Top 100 Single-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
  67. ^ "Jaarlijsten 1994" (in Dutch). Stichting Nederlandse Top 40. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  68. ^ "Jaaroverzichten - Single 1994" (in Dutch). GfK Dutch Charts. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  69. ^ "Top Selling Singles of 1994". RIANZ. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  70. ^ "Årslista Singlar - År 1994" (in Swedish). GLF. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  71. ^ "Swiss Year-end Charts 1994". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  72. ^ "Chart Archive - 1990s Singles". everyHit.com. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  73. ^ a b c "The Year in Music: 1994" (PDF). Billboard. 24 December 1994. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  74. ^ David Kent (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970-1992. Australia: St Ives, N.S.W. : Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  75. ^ "Austrian single certifications – Mariah Carey – Without You" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved 12 December 2012.
  76. ^ "French single certifications – Mariah Carey – Without You" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved 12 December 2012.
  77. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Mariah Carey; 'Without You')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 12 December 2012.
  78. ^ "Dutch single certifications – Mariah Carey – Without You" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Retrieved 12 December 2012. Enter Without You in the "Artiest of titel" box. Select 1994 in the drop-down menu saying "Alle jaargangen".
  79. ^ "New Zealand single certifications – Mariah Carey – Without You". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 22 May 2015.[dead link‍]
  80. ^ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards ('Without You')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 December 2012.
  81. ^ "British single certifications – Mariah Carey – Without You". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 12 December 2012. Select singles in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type Without You in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  82. ^ "Desde el Dia Que Te Fuista – Pandora". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 27 June 1992. Retrieved 31 October, 20111. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  83. ^ [2] Archived 2008-03-20 at the Wayback Machine
  84. ^ "Gained In Translation | Video - ABC News". Abcnews.go.com. 13 March 2009. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
  85. ^ , page 395, Matovina, Dan. Without You: The Tragic Story of Badfinger, Google Books, 2000. Retrieved 17 June 2009

References

Preceded by Billboard Hot 100 number-one single (Nilsson version)
19 February 1972 (four weeks) 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Billboard Easy Listening Singles number-one single (Nilsson version)
19 February 1972 (five weeks) 		Succeeded by
Preceded by UK Singles Chart number-one single (Nilsson version)
11 March 1972 (5 weeks) 		Succeeded by
Preceded by UK Singles Chart number-one single (Mariah Carey version)
13 February 1994 (4 weeks) 		Succeeded by
"Doop" by Doop
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