Ain't No Sunshine

It's Monday and it's a holiday here in the States as the country marks Labor Day. I'm nearing the end of a long weekend and frankly, I'm not very happy about it. Instead of making the most out of this day, especially with the gorgeous weather outside, I'm feeling a bit stressed with the thought that I'll be back at work in less than 24 hours.

I'm feeling a bit exhausted physically and mentally. I need a real long break but except for quitting the job (which is definitely not an option), I am limited by company policy to the number of personal and vacation days per year I'm allowed to take. I wish I could take and lump all those days into one long extended vacation. But it's certainly not possible given the demands at work. Thus, I have to content myself with taking a day off every once in a while not unlike a swimmer who needs to come up for air every few seconds as he swims towards the finish line.

And to add to my blues, I miss being with her. A short two-minute song the words to which I find simple yet personally meaningful are helping me through the moment.

Ain't no sunshine when she's gone.
It's not warm when she's away.
Ain't no sunshine when she's gone
And she's always gone too long
Anytime she goes away.

Wonder this time where she's gone,
Wonder if she's gone to stay;
Ain't no sunshine when she's gone
And this house just ain't no home
Anytime she goes away.

And I know, I know, I know, I know, I know,
I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know,
I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know,
I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know

Hey, I ought to leave the young thing alone,
But ain't no sunshine when she's gone.
Only darkness everyday.

Ain't no sunshine when she's gone,
And this house just ain't no home
Anytime she goes away.

Anytime she goes away.
Anytime she goes away.

And now I write.

This song's called "Ain't No Sunshine" and was written and performed by the great Bill Withers. The song, cut from his debut album "Just As I Am", became the first hit for Mr. Withers when it was released back in 1971. The song peaked at number 3 on the Billboard charts. The above live performance was from 1972 on a music program called "Old Grey Whistle Test", a music show that ran on British television, specifically the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation), from 1971 to 1987.

Bill Withers was a gifted musician and lyricist. From the above video, you could see that he was also a great singer gifted with a rather powerful set of lungs. What caught my attention the first time I heard this song was when he came to the part where he repeatedly sang "I know, I know..." continuously and without pause for a total of 26 times. I've tried singing this part several times but it's always left me gasping for breath. Hehehe

Some of you may have never heard of this guy but I'm pretty sure that a lot of you know of at least one other particular song of his. Back in March 1987, an R&B group called Club Nouveau scored a number one hit on the Billboard Charts with the song "Lean On Me". The song struck a chord with listeners because of its very positive message of extending love and care for one's neighbor. It longed for a strong sense of brotherhood in a time when an individual's needs seems to be valued more than the community's.

Club Nouveau eventually won a Grammy for Best R&B Song. Lean On Me also became the group's first and only number 1 hit. Mr. Withers was the man who wrote the song and was the first artist to take the song to the top of the charts back in July 1972. The following video is a live performance of the song by Bill Withers:

This song remains very popular because its positive message of love and friendship continues to resonate. Aside from Club Nouveau, the song has been covered by a number of other artists such as Al Jarreau, Michael Bolton, and Limp Bizkit, to name a few.

Bill Withers scored other hits aside from the two I just mentioned. His other hits that I count as personal favorites are "Lovely Day" and "Just The Two Of Us". Just The Two Of Us was a collaboration with the late saxophonist Grover Washington (1943-1999) and topped the charts worldwide in 1981. But at the time and for some reason, a lot of radio stations in Manila mentioned Grover Washington as the artist behind the song. But just to help set the record straight, Mr. Withers co-wrote the song and performed the vocals as evidenced by the following video:

Mr. Withers retired from recording in 1985.