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“Ain’t No Sunshine,” a single from Bill Withers’ 1971 album “Just As I Am,” was a significant hit for Withers, reaching the sixth position on the US R&B chart and third on the Billboard Hot 100. The track, produced by Booker T. Jones, saw the inclusion of musicians like Donald “Duck” Dunn, Al Jackson Jr., and Stephen Stills performing on bass guitar, drums, and guitar respectively.
Booker T. Jones also managed the string arrangements for the track. The recording sessions for the song were held in Los Angeles along with additional overdubbing in Memphis, supervised by engineer Terry Manning. Billboard even ranked “Ain’t No Sunshine” at No.23 for the year 1971.
In 2009, the song found its way back to the Top 40 list when Kris Allen performed it in the eighth season of “American Idol.” Withers found motivation to pen the song after viewing the 1962 film, Days of Wine and Roses. He drew parallels with the characters portrayed by Lee Remick and Jack Lemmon, stating, “The characters, both alcoholics, demonstrated alternating strength and weakness. It’s akin to the irrationality of repeatedly consuming rat poison. Often, we find ourselves longing for things that aren’t necessarily beneficial. This observation from the film, along with some undisclosed personal experiences, sparked the song’s inspiration.”
When crafting the song’s third verse, Withers originally planned to incorporate additional lyrics instead of echoing the phrase “I know” 26 times. However, he decided to heed the suggestions of his fellow musicians to maintain the repetition: “Being an erstwhile factory worker, I was open to suggestions,” Withers revealed. “Once they advised keeping it as is, I obliged.”
Withers created the song when he was 31 and was employed in a factory that manufactured bathrooms for 747s. The song’s success prompted the record company to award Withers a golden toilet seat, a humorous token marking the dawn of his new career. “Ain’t No Sunshine” was the first of his three U.S. gold records.
It was originally the B-side to “Harlem”, yet it soon surpassed its counterpart in popularity due to favoritism by disc jockeys. It marked Withers’ debut hit. “Harlem” was later covered by The 5th Dimension, featuring on their Soul and Inspiration album as a single.
Withers gave a performance of “Ain’t No Sunshine” on The Old Grey Whistle Test. The song was awarded the Grammy for Best R&B Song in 1972 and ranks 285th on the Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
