Bill Withers: "Ain't No Sunshine"

This song haunts me. It was Bill Withers' first hit, released as a B-side in 1971 but favored by disc jockeys over "Harlem," the intended single. The song is now in the Grammy Hall of Fame along with "Lean on Me," and Withers is recognized and honored as a phenomenal songwriter.

In an interview in 2004, Withers said of this song: "It's pretty obvious what it's about. I was watching a movie called Days Of Wine And Roses (1962) with Lee Remick and Jack Lemmon. They were both alcoholics who were alternately weak and strong. It's like going back for seconds on rat poison. Sometimes you miss things that weren't particularly good for you. It's just something that crossed my mind from watching that movie, and probably something else that happened in my life that I'm not aware of."

Withers also apparently had plans to write more lyrics and was using the repeated "I know" as a placeholder, but Booker T. Jones convinced him to leave it as is. Good advice, I'd say.It's the saddest song this side of Eric Clapton's "Tears in Heaven," but it's simply gorgeous. This may be one of the best songs ever written. Anyone care to disagree?
Enjoy.

"Ain't No Sunshine," performed by Bill Withers.
Original on Withers' "Just As I Am" (1971).