Since I Don't Have You

"Since I Don't Have You" is a song written and composed by Jackie Taylor, James Beaumont, Janet Vogel, Joseph Rock, Joe Verscharen, Lennie Martin, and Wally Lester. It was first a 1958 hit single for the doo-wop group the Skyliners on the Billboard Hot 100. Country music singer Ronnie Milsap had a hit with the song in 1991. American hard rock band Guns N' Roses also had some success in 1994 with their version of the song which reached the top 10 on the UK Singles Chart.

"Since I Don't Have You"
One of pressings of the US single
Single by the Skyliners
B-side"One Night, One Night"
ReleasedDecember 1958
Recorded1958
GenreDoo-wop
Length2:40
LabelCalico
Songwriter(s)
  • Jackie Taylor
  • James Beaumont
  • Janet Vogel
  • Joseph Rock
  • Joe Verscharen
  • Lennie Martin
  • Wally Lester
Producer(s)Joseph Rock
The Skyliners singles chronology
"Since I Don't Have You"
(1958)
"This I Swear"
(1959)

The Skyliners version

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Background

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Taken from their self-titled album and released in late 1958, the single reached number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 7 on the Cash Box Top 100.[1] It was also a top five hit on the 1959 R&B chart.

Charts

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Don McLean version

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"Since I Don't Have You"
 
Single by Don McLean
from the album Chain Lightning
B-side"Your Cheatin' Heart"
ReleasedApril 1981
GenreEasy listening
Length2:32
LabelMillennium
Songwriter(s)
  • Jackie Taylor
  • James Beaumont
  • Janet Vogel
  • Joseph Rock
  • Joe Verscharen
  • Lennie Martin
  • Wally Lester
Producer(s)Larry Butler
Don McLean singles chronology
"Crying"
(1980)
"Since I Don't Have You"
(1981)
"It's Just the Sun"
(1981)

Don McLean's 1981 rendition reached number 23 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 6 on the Adult Contemporary chart.[5] In Canada, it peaked at number two on its AC chart.[6]

Charts

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Chart (1981) Peak
position
Canada Top Singles 45
Canada Adult Contemporary[7] 2
US Billboard Hot 100[8] 23
US Billboard Adult Contemporary 6
US Billboard Country 68
US Cash Box Top 100 28

Ronnie Milsap version

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"Since I Don't Have You"
Single by Ronnie Milsap
from the album Back to the Grindstone
B-side"I Ain't Gonna Cry No More"
ReleasedJuly 13, 1991
GenreCountry
Length4:10
LabelRCA
Songwriter(s)
  • Jackie Taylor
  • James Beaumont
  • Janet Vogel
  • Joseph Rock
  • Joe Verscharen
  • Lennie Martin
  • Wally Lester
Producer(s)
Ronnie Milsap singles chronology
"Are You Lovin' Me Like I'm Lovin' You"
(1991)
"Since I Don't Have You"
(1991)
"Turn That Radio On"
(1991)

Background

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Country music artist Ronnie Milsap's version was a number 6 hit on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart in 1991.[9] The single was taken from his album Back to the Grindstone, released on RCA Nashville. It was produced by Milsap, Rob Galbraith, and Richard Landis.

Charts

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Weekly chart (1991) Peak
position
Canada Country Tracks (RPM)[10] 7
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[11] 25
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[12] 6
Year-end chart (1991) Rank
Canada Country Tracks (RPM)[13] 84
US Country Songs (Billboard)[14] 67

Guns N' Roses version

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"Since I Don't Have You"
 
Standard artwork (commercial US/UK cassette single pictured)
Single by Guns N' Roses
from the album "The Spaghetti Incident?"
B-side"You Can't Put Your Arms Around a Memory" (LP version)
ReleasedMarch 1, 1994
Length4:20
LabelGeffen
Producer(s)Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses singles chronology
"Estranged"
(1993)
"Since I Don't Have You"
(1994)
"Sympathy for the Devil"
(1994)
Music video
"Since I Don't Have You" on YouTube

Background

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The song was covered by rock band Guns N' Roses for their fifth studio album, "The Spaghetti Incident?" (1993). This was Guns N' Roses' 18th single release overall, and the second single released from "The Spaghetti Incident?". The single was released in mid-1994, reaching No. 69 on the Hot 100 and the top ten in the UK. The music video features actor Gary Oldman – then a popular casting choice for Hollywood villains[15] – as a smiling demon who is constantly mocking singer Axl Rose. The video was the last to feature original members Duff McKagan and Slash as well as drummer Matt Sorum and rhythm guitarist Gilby Clarke.

Personnel

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Charts

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Weekly charts

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Chart (1993–1995) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[16] 47
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[17] 20
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[18] 35
France (SNEP)[19] 28
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[20] 1
Ireland (IRMA)[21] 16
Italy Airplay (Music & Media)[22] 7
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[23] 48
Scotland (OCC)[24] 26
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[25] 40
UK Singles (OCC)[26] 10
US Billboard Hot 100[27] 69

Year-end charts

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Chart (1994) Position
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[28] 20

Release history

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Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United States March 1, 1994
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • cassette
Geffen [citation needed]
Japan April 21, 1994 CD [29]
United Kingdom May 23, 1994
  • CD
  • cassette
[30]

Other notable versions

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  • In 1964, Chuck Jackson went to No. 47 on the Hot 100 with his recording.[31]
  • Jay and the Americans remade "Since I Don't Have You" for their April 1969 Sands of Time album release,[32] their rendition serving as B-side for their Top Ten single "This Magic Moment" released November 1968.[33]
  • The Vogues remade "Since I Don't Have You" for their 1968 album release Memories: the track would also being included on the 1970 album release The Vogues Sing the Good Old Songs and Other Hits from which it was issued as a fourth single in December 1970 to reach #8 on the Billboard Easy Listening hit ranking, marking the Vogues last Top Ten appearance on a national chart.[34]
  • Released in 1978, the motion picture American Hot Wax, a biographical picture about one day in the life of legendary Rock and Roll DJ, Alan Freed, has a fictional character, named Teenaged Louise (a thinly veiled teenaged Carole King; played by Laraine Newman) who demonstrates at the piano one of “her” song-writing compositions, Since I Don’t Have You, to the astonishment of her parents.
  • Art Garfunkel reached No. 38 on the UK singles chart in July 1979 with his cover, while peaking at No. 53 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 5 on the adult contemporary chart in the US.[35]
  • Dorothy Moore's 1979 Definitely Dorothy album release included the medley "Since I Don't Have You"/"Since I Fell for You".[36]
  • Peter Weller sang the first part of the song to his future love interest in the movie The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984).
  • Barbra Streisand recorded a version of the song for her 1974 album ButterFly.
  • Taiwanese singer Fong Fei-fei recorded the Chinese version of the song in 1982.
  • In 1965, The British rock group Manfred Mann recorded the song and was placed on their 2nd studio album Mann Made.
  • In 2018 Joe Hawley of Tally Hall recorded the song as a single for his YouTube and Bandcamp pages

References

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  1. ^ "Cash Box Top Singles 5/02/59". Cashboxmagazine.com. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  2. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 532.
  3. ^ "Top 100 Hits of 1959/Top 100 Songs of 1959". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-08-29.
  4. ^ "Cash Box YE Pop Singles - 1959". Tropicalglen.com. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  5. ^ "Archived copy". Billboard. Archived from the original on 2016-11-20. Retrieved 2016-10-16.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. ^ [1][permanent dead link]
  7. ^ "Archived copy". www.bac-lac.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 14 March 2017. Retrieved 15 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  8. ^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-2002
  9. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 233.
  10. ^ "Top RPM Country Tracks: Issue 1640." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. October 5, 1991. Retrieved August 16, 2013.
  11. ^ "Ronnie Milsap Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard.
  12. ^ "Ronnie Milsap Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
  13. ^ "RPM Top 100 Country Tracks of 1991". RPM. December 21, 1991. Retrieved August 16, 2013.
  14. ^ "Best of 1991: Country Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 1991. Retrieved August 16, 2013.
  15. ^ Abrahams, Stephanie (July 20, 2012). "Commissioner Gordon: Gary Oldman on the Secrets and Surprises of Dark Knight". Time. Retrieved June 10, 2017.
  16. ^ "Guns N' Roses – Since I Don't Have You". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
  17. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 2456." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved February 20, 2020.
  18. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 11, no. 25. June 18, 1994. p. 14. Retrieved May 30, 2020.
  19. ^ "Guns N' Roses – Since I Don't Have You" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
  20. ^ "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (23.–29.12. '93)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). December 23, 1993. p. 38. Retrieved February 20, 2020.
  21. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Guns N' Roses". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
  22. ^ "Regional Airplay: South" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 11, no. 5. 29 January 1994. p. 31.
  23. ^ "Guns N' Roses – Since I Don't Have You". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
  24. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 20, 2020.
  25. ^ "Guns N' Roses – Since I Don't Have You". Singles Top 100. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
  26. ^ "Guns N' Roses: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 30, 2020.
  27. ^ "Guns N Roses Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
  28. ^ "Árslistinn 1994". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). January 2, 1995. p. 16. Retrieved May 30, 2020.
  29. ^ "シンス・アイ・ドント・ハブ・ユー | ガンズ・アンド・ローゼズ" [Since I Don't Have You | Guns and Roses] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved September 11, 2023.
  30. ^ "Single Releases". Music Week. May 21, 1994. p. 27.
  31. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2013). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles, 14th Edition: 1955-2012. Record Research. p. 414.
  32. ^ "Jay & the Americans - Sands of Time Album Reviews, Songs & More | AllMusic". AllMusic.
  33. ^ Record World (Vol 23 #1121) November 30 1968 "Single Reviews" p.8
  34. ^ "The Vogues Songs ••• Top Songs / Chart Singles Discography ••• Music VF, US & UK hits charts".
  35. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 94.
  36. ^ "Tracks on Definitely Dorothy - Dorothy Moore (1979) | SecondHandSongs". SecondHandSongs.
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