The power ballad [1] has been recorded by over artists, [2] and versions released as singles by Harry Nilsson and Mariah Carey became international best-sellers. Paul McCartney once described the ballad as "the killer song of all time". First recorded by the rock group Badfinger , the song was composed by two of its members. Pete Ham wrote a song originally titled "If It's Love", but it had lacked a strong chorus. 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.
He said, "Your mouth is smiling, but your eyes are sad. But Ham wasn't happy with the chorus. I need her back. I can't live without her. Its chorus included "I can't live, if living is without you, I can't live, I can't give any more. 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 the first side of their album No Dice.
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. The two 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.
Songwriting royalties had become the subject of constant legal wrangling for Evans, and in , following an acrimonious argument with his bandmate Joey Molland over the royalties for the song, Evans hanged himself. Harry Nilsson , at the time best known for his hit " Everybody's Talkin' " and for composing " One ", recorded by Three Dog Night , heard Badfinger's recording of "Without You" at a party, [10] and mistook it for a Beatles song.
The single was released by RCA in the autumn of , and first charted on radio stations across the US in early December. Billboard ranked it as the number four single of The record spent five weeks at number one on the UK Singles Chart , beginning on 11 March, eventually selling almost , copies. The single, Grammy-nominated for Record of the Year , 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.
The string and horn arrangements are by Paul Buckmaster. According to the LP credits: [34]. American singer and songwriter Mariah Carey 's version, based on Harry Nilsson's version rather than the Badfinger original, was released as the third single off Music Box in the first quarter of , its U.
In the U. While she had heard Nilsson's version as a very young girl, Carey's decision to remake his hit was based on a chance hearing during the time she was recording Music Box : "I heard that song in a restaurant and just knew it would be a huge international hit" recalls Carey.
It was certified gold by the RIAA and sold , copies domestically. In the British Isles, where Carey had yet to score a number one hit, "Without You" made its UK chart debut at number one where it remained for four weeks in total, while in Ireland the track was number one for five weeks; "Without You" remains Carey's only number one solo hit in both the UK and Ireland although she has since topped both nations' charts with her collaboration with Westlife : " Against All Odds ".
In France "Without You" peaked at number two and in Norway at number three. Aberdeen Press and Journal described the song as "inspirational". I thought the Mariah Carey [cover] was a joke.
She was missing the point. He meant it. She didn't. 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.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources.
Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. This section relies largely or entirely on a single source. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please help improve this article by introducing citations to additional sources. Retrieved 27 March BBC Wales. Retrieved 2 May Australian Chart Book — Australian Chart Book.
Ultratop Library and Archives Canada. Single Top Irish Singles Chart. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 March GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved March 19, Archived from the original on 2 June Retrieved 8 October Archived from the original on 16 September Retrieved 12 July Retrieved 10 December British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 12 June Recording Industry Association of America. Harry Nilsson. BMG Entertainment. Archived from the original on 10 September Retrieved 9 April Retrieved 5 May BPI Communications.
Retrieved 14 November Aberdeen Press and Journal. Retrieved 29 March Entertainment Weekly. The Network Forty. Pop Rescue. Retrieved 14 April Rolling Stone. Jann Wenner. Retrieved 27 July The Guardian. Retrieved 22 May Retrieved 29 April Retrieved 1 June Nielsen Business Media, Inc.
Retrieved 24 February Les classement single. Retrieved April 29, Retrieved 1 February Dutch Top 40 Retrieved 22 May Retrieved May 20, Top 40 Singles. Retrieved May 22, Singles Top Swiss Singles Chart. Archived from the original on 4 February Hung Medien.
Retrieved 28 November Archived from the original on 24 December GfK Entertainment.