"Ain't No Sunshine" is a song by American singer and songwriter Bill Withers. It is from his 1971 first album, Just As I Am. The song was produced by Booker T. Jones. Musicians who played on the song include Donald "Duck" Dunn on bass guitar, Al Jackson Jr. on drums, and Stephen Stills on guitar. Booker T. Jones also arranged the string parts for the song. The song was recorded in Los Angeles, with additional recordings added in Memphis by engineer Terry Manning.
The song was released as a single in 1971. It became a major success for Withers and is one of his most well-known songs. It reached number six on the U.S. R&B Chart and number three on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Billboard listed it as the 23rd biggest hit single of 1971.
In 2009, the song returned to the Top 40 in the United Kingdom after Kris Allen performed a version of it on the eighth season of American Idol.
In 2024, the song was added to the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress. This recognition was given because the song is considered "culturally, historically, and/or aesthetically significant."
History
Withers was inspired to write the song after watching the 1962 movie Days of Wine and Roses. He explained, in reference to the characters played by Lee Remick and Jack Lemmon, "They were both alcoholics who were sometimes weak and sometimes 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."
For the song's bridge, Withers had wanted to write more lyrics instead of repeating the phrase "I know" 26 times, but he followed the advice of the other musicians to leave it that way. Withers stated: "I was this factory worker puttering around. So when they said to leave it like that, I left it."
Withers, then 31, was working at a factory making lavatories for Boeing 747s at the time he wrote the song. When the song went gold, the record company presented Withers with a golden toilet seat, marking the start of his new career. "Ain't No Sunshine" was the first of Withers' three gold records in the U.S.
Originally released as the B-side to another song called "Harlem," "Ain't No Sunshine" was preferred by disc jockeys, and it became a huge hit, Withers' first. "Harlem" was subsequently covered by The 5th Dimension, who featured it on their Soul and Inspiration album and released it as a single.
Withers performed "Ain't No Sunshine" on The Old Grey Whistle Test. It won the Grammy for Best R&B Song in 1972 and is ranked 285th on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
Michael Jackson version
In 1971, singer Michael Jackson recorded a version of Bill Withers' song for his first album, Got to Be There, which was released in early 1972. In the United Kingdom, the song was released as the third and final single from the album. This followed the two earlier singles, "Got to Be There" and "Rockin' Robin" (a cover of Bobby Day's 1958 song). The song "I Wanna Be Where You Are" was included on the B-side of the single released in the United States. It became a hit, reaching number 8 on the UK Singles Chart for three weeks in September 1972. In 2009, the song was remixed by Benny Blanco for the release The Remix Suite. Later, the song's drum break was used in "Gonna Love Me" by Teyana Taylor from her second studio album, K.T.S.E.
Other charted versions
In November 1991, the Australian pop band Rockmelons, which included singer Deni Hines, released a version of the song as the lead single from their second studio album, Form 1 Planet (1992). This version reached number five on the charts and was certified Gold in Australia. It also reached number eight in New Zealand.
In 1998, the band The Nylons released their version of the song, which reached number 53 on the Canadian Adult Contemporary chart. A South African male choral group called Ladysmith Black Mambazo recorded their own version featuring singer Des'ree for their album In Harmony (1999). As a single, this version reached number 42 in the United Kingdom.
In 2013, the heavy metal band Black Label Society covered the song, titled "Ain't No Sunshine When She's Gone," for their album Unblackened. As a single, this version reached number 42 on the Canadian Rock Chart.