[Once again, it's only a Friday post because I'm a week late, gosh darnit!]
Just the two of us, we can make it if we try, just the two of us, you and...I'm late again....
Once again this week, my introduction to our song of the week was primarily just from hearing it on the radio when I was still a young man. I did write a post upon this week's artists death in 2020 in which I delved into how I became a fan of his for any of my three fans that might be interested....
I wrote about the great Bill Withers in Vol. CXVII, and as he more or less retired in the mid-eighties and died in 2020, there really isn't much to add to that post's bio paragraph. However, it was written before I began featuring the weekly artists' discography, and Mr. Withers' can be found here.
"Ain't No Sunshine" was the second single released from Withers' 1971 debut album, the rather proudly entitled Just as I Am. The song reached #3 (with a bullet!) on the Billboard Hot 100, while the album reached #39 on the Billboard 200. Additionally, the song was ranked #285 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, and the album was #304 on their list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
Fun Fact: When Withers repeats "I know" twenty-six times in the song, it was originally intended to just be filler until he could write another verse. But the session musicians he worked with said it was good as is, and being a newbie, Withers took their word for it. Turned out to be great advice as it's one of pop music's most memorable moments in song.
I've written a time or two (or three or four) how amazing it can how much a music artist can say in so little time, and Bill Withers validates that once again by giving us two minutes and six seconds of astonishing and soulful rhythm and blues. Withers said the song was inspired by the movie Days of Wine and Roses (a very good movie about a married pair of alcoholics and the pain they cause themselves and those around them), and how much we can love people that are bad for us. The music is perfectly understated, led by drums and a bass guitar that are as foreboding as the song itself. A lightly strummed acoustic guitar and some haunting strings carry the weight of the song's sorrow. But in the end, it's Withers vocals that take the song from good to great. Singing from the pit of his heart, Withers captures all the love and the doubt of a man far too over his head in love. A stunning and spectacular achievement from a gifted man and his supporting musicians.
Lyric Sheet: "Wonder this time where she's gone/Wonder if she's gonna stay/Ain't no sunshine when she's gone/And this house just ain't no home/Anytime she goes away..."
Enjoy:
Fuck Donald Trump
Peace,
emaycee
