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Bob Dylan – If Not For You
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George Harrison – If Not For You – Lyrics
If Not for You
| “If Not For You” | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Artwork for some continental European countries (Dutch vinyl single pictured)
|
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| Single by Bob Dylan | ||||
| from the album New Morning | ||||
| B-side | “New Morning” | |||
| Released | October 19, 1970 | |||
| Recorded | August 12, 1970 | |||
| Genre | Country rock | |||
| Length | 2:39 | |||
| Label | Columbia | |||
| Writer(s) | Bob Dylan | |||
| Producer(s) | Bob Johnston | |||
| Bob Dylan singles chronology | ||||
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“If Not for You” is a song by Bob Dylan, recorded for his 1970 album New Morning. Dylan recorded the album version in August 1970, having first recorded the song in a session with George Harrison on May 1 of that year. In addition to appearing on the album in October 1970, the August recording was released as a single in Europe; the May recording remained unreleased until its inclusion on The Bootleg Series Volumes 1–3 (Rare & Unreleased) in 1991.
In November 1970, a month after Dylan’s original had appeared, George Harrison released a version of the song on his triple album All Things Must Pass. Another well-known cover of the song was recorded by Olivia Newton-John, who had the only U.S. charting version of the song in 1971.
Bob Dylan’s version[edit]
Release[edit]
Bob Dylan recorded “If Not for You” for his album New Morning, on August 12, 1970. The song was released as a single in Europe. It was later included on the Dylan compilations Bob Dylan’s Greatest Hits Vol. II (1971),[1]Masterpieces (1978),[2] Biograph (1985),[3] The Essential Bob Dylan (2000),[4] The Very Best of Bob Dylan (2000),[5] Best of Bob Dylan Vols 1 & 2 (2001),[6] Greatest Hits Vol 1–3 (2003),[7] The Best of Bob Dylan (2005),[8] Dylan (2007),[9] Playlist: The Very Best of Bob Dylan ’70s (2009),[10] and The Real… (2012),[11] as well as on the various artist compilation The Best Year of My Life: 1970 (2011).[12]
A June 2, 1970 outtake of “If Not for You,” featuring only vocal, piano, and violin, is included on The Bootleg Series Vol. 10 – Another Self Portrait (1969–1971).
A previously unreleased version was included on the 2015 album Dylan, Cash, and The Nashville Cats: A New Music City.
Live performances[edit]
Dylan performed “If Not for You” with George Harrison during rehearsals for the Concert for Bangladesh in New York in 1971, but did not perform the song at the concert itself. Since then, however, Dylan has performed the song over 80 times.[13]
Charts[edit]
| Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Dutch Single Top 100 | 30[14] |
George Harrison’s version[edit]
| “If Not for You” | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Song by George Harrison from the album All Things Must Pass | |||
| Released | 27 November 1970 | ||
| Genre | Folk rock | ||
| Length | 3:29 | ||
| Label | Apple | ||
| Writer(s) | Bob Dylan | ||
| Producer(s) | George Harrison, Phil Spector | ||
| All Things Must Pass track listing | |||
|
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George Harrison had sat in on a session for Dylan’s New Morning album, on May 1, 1970, at Columbia’s Studio B in New York, where he had played on an early take of “If Not for You” (later included on the Bob Dylan box set The Bootleg Series Volumes 1–3 (Rare & Unreleased)).[15] News of the collaboration between Dylan and the recently ex-Beatle caused great excitement in the music press, even though Columbia Records had made a point of announcing that neither artist deemed the results worthy of release.[16]
Over the following months, and despite having a wealth of extra material of his own, Harrison thought enough of the song to record it in London for his All Things Must Pass set. His was a characteristically melody-centric version of the track, which more clearly defined the song’s verse and bridge sections and eschewed the Dylan preference for spontaneity.[17] Harrison’s “If Not for You” immediately met with favour from critics and album reviewers: Mikal Gilmore describes it as “surprisingly beautiful”,[18] while to musical biographer Simon Leng, it’s a “gleaming pop creation”.[17]
Live performances[edit]
The following year, Dylan and Harrison duetted on “If Not for You” during a soundcheck for the historic Concert for Bangladesh in New York.[19] Judging by this, and from Harrison’s early notes for a possible setlist,[20] the pair had considered performing it at the UNICEF benefit later that day. (This soundcheck performance was later released on the 2005 remastered DVD of The Concert for Bangladesh.)
Harrison finally got a chance to perform “If Not for You” live, again at Madison Square Garden, on 16 October 1992 during the all-star concert celebrating Dylan’s first three decades in the music industry.[21] Backed by the house band for the night, Harrison performed “startling versions” of “If Not for You” and “Absolutely Sweet Marie“,[22] but only the latter found its way onto the officially released album the following August.
Personnel[edit]
The musicians who performed on Harrison’s studio version of the song are believed to be as follows:[17]
- George Harrison – vocals, acoustic guitars, dobros, harmonica
- Gary Wright – piano
- Billy Preston – organ
- Klaus Voormann – bass
- Alan White – drums
- Ringo Starr – tambourine
Olivia Newton-John version[edit]
| “If Not For You” | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Olivia Newton-John | ||||
| from the album If Not For You | ||||
| B-side | “The Biggest Clown” | |||
| Released | May 1971 | |||
| Format | 7″ | |||
| Genre | Country, pop | |||
| Length | 2:50 | |||
| Label | Uni 55281 | |||
| Writer(s) | Bob Dylan | |||
| Producer(s) | Bruce Welch, John Farrar | |||
| Olivia Newton-John singles chronology | ||||
|
||||
Basing her version on the Harrison arrangement rather than Dylan’s,[23] Australian singer Olivia Newton-John enjoyed considerable international success with “If Not for You”. It was the title track of her debut album, and became her first hit single, reaching the Top 10 in several countries. In addition, the single spent three weeks at No. 1 on the United States Easy Listening charts.[24][25]
Chart performance[edit]
Weekly charts[edit]
|
Year-end charts[edit]
|
Other cover versions[edit]
Numerous other artists have covered “If Not For You”. These include Rod Stewart,[37] Bryan Ferry,[38] Richie Havens,[39] Sarah Vaughan,[40] Glen Campbell,[41] Barb Jungr,[42] Katie Buckhaven,[43] Susan McKeown and Lindsey Horner,[44] Phil Keaggy,[45] Lee Everton, Karl Blau, Ed Kuepper,[46] and the Flatmates.[47]Melinda Schneider and Beccy Cole covered the song on their album Great Women of Country (2014).
See also[edit]
Notes[edit]
- Jump up^ Erlewine (Bob Dylan’s Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 Review)
- Jump up^ Ruhlmann
- Jump up^ Erlewine (Biograph Review)
- Jump up^ Erlewine (The Essential Bob Dylan Review)
- Jump up^ Leggett (The Very Best of Bob Dylan Review)
- Jump up^ Best of Bob Dylan Vols. 1 & 2 Overview
- Jump up^ Jurek
- Jump up^ Erlewine (Best of Bob Dylan Review)
- Jump up^ Erlewine (Dylan (2007) Review)
- Jump up^ Leggett (Playlist: The Very Best of Bob Dylan ’70s Review)
- Jump up^ The Real… Overview
- Jump up^ The Best Year of My Life: 1970 Overview
- Jump up^ If Not For You: Discover
- Jump up^ Bob Dylan – If Not for You
- Jump up^ Badman 2001, p. 7
- Jump up^ Harrison (Rolling Stone Press/Simon & Schuster), pp. 179–180
- ^ Jump up to:a b c Leng 2006, p. 88
- Jump up^ Harrison (Rolling Stone Press/Simon & Schuster), p. 40
- Jump up^ Leng 2006, p. 120
- Jump up^ Harrison 2011, p. 288
- Jump up^ Leng 2006, p. 273
- Jump up^ Harrison (Rolling Stone Press/Simon & Schuster), p. 48
- Jump up^ Clayson 2003, p. 296
- Jump up^ Whitburn 2002, p. 181
- ^ Jump up to:a b Top 40 Easy Listening
- Jump up^ Steffen Hung. “Forum – 1970 (ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts)”. Australian-charts.com. Archived from the originalon 2016-06-02. Retrieved 2016-10-03.
- Jump up^ Olivia Newton-John – If Not For You (Ultratop)
- Jump up^ Top Singles – Volume 16, No. 4, September 11, 1971
- Jump up^ Top 40 (1971-04-03)
- Jump up^ “flavour of new zealand – search listener”. Flavourofnz.co.nz. Retrieved 2016-10-03.
- Jump up^ Olivia Newton-John – If Not For You (Norwegiancharts.com)
- Jump up^ Olivia Newton-John: Singles
- Jump up^ Olivia Newton-John Billboard Singles
- Jump up^ “Archived copy”. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2016-06-03.
- Jump up^ David Kent’s “Australian Chart Book 1970-1992” ArchivedMarch 5, 2016, at the Wayback Machine.
- Jump up^ Whitburn, Joel (1999). Pop Annual. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. ISBN 0-89820-142-X.
- Jump up^ Erlewine (Still the Same: Great Rock Classics of Our Time Overview)
- Jump up^ Erlewine (Dylanesque Review)
- Jump up^ Eder (Sings Beatles & Dylan Review)
- Jump up^ Eder (Time in My Life Review)
- Jump up^ Worbois
- Jump up^ Swihart
- Jump up^ Katie Buckhaven Overview
- Jump up^ Mighty Rain Overview
- Jump up^ Acoustic Cafe Overview
- Jump up^ Out-Takes, Castaways, Pirate Women and Takeaways Overview
- Jump up^ Sendra
References[edit]
- “Acoustic Cafe Overview”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
- Badman, Keith (2001). The Beatles Diary Volume 2: After the Break-Up 1970−2001. Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-7119-8307-0.
- “Best of Bob Dylan Vols. 1 & 2 Overview”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-06.
- “The Best Year of My Life: 1970 Overview”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-06.
- “Bob Dylan – If Not for You” (in Dutch). GfK Dutch Charts. Retrieved 2012-0910-01. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help) - Clayson, Adam (2003). George Harrison. Sanctuary. ISBN 1-86074-489-3.
- Eder, Bruce. “Sings Beatles & Dylan Review”. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
- Eder, Bruce. “Time in My Life Review”. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
- Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. “Best of Bob Dylan Review”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-06.
- Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. “Biograph Review”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-06.
- Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. “Bob Dylan’s Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 Review”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-06.
- Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. “Dylan (2007) Review”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-06.
- Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. “Dylanesque Review”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
- Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. “The Essential Bob Dylan Review”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-06.
- Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. “Still the Same: Great Rock Classics of Our Time Overview”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
- Harrison. Rolling Stone Press/Simon & Schuster. 2002. ISBN 1-4234-0609-5.
- Harrison, Olivia (2011). George Harrison: Living in the Material World. Abrams. ISBN 978-1-4197-0220-4.
- “If Not For You: Discover”. Bobdylan.com. Retrieved 2012-10-08.
- Jurek, Thom. “Greatest Hits, Vol. 1–3: Review”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-06.
- “Katie Buckhaven Overview”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
- Leggett, Steve. “Playlist: The Very Best of Bob Dylan ’70s Review”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-06.
- Leggett, Steve. “The Very Best of Bob Dylan Review”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-06.
- Leng, Simon (2006). While My Guitar Gently Weeps: The Music of George Harrison. Hal Leonard. ISBN 1-4234-0609-5.
- “Mighty Rain Overview”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
- “Olivia Newton-John Billboard Singles”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
- “Olivia Newton-John – If Not For You”. Norwegiancharts.com. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
- “Olivia Newton-John – If Not For You” (in German). Ultratop. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
- “Olivia Newton-John: Singles”. Theofficialcharts.com. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
- “Out-Takes, Castaways, Pirate Women and Takeaways Overview”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
- “The Real… Overview”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-06.
- Ruhlmann, William. “Masterpieces Review”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-08.
- Sendra, Tim. “Potpurri (Hits, Mixes and Demos ’85-’89) Overview”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
- Swihart, Stanton. “Every Grain of Sand Review”. Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
- “Top 40” (in Dutch). Media Markt. 1971-04-03. Retrieved 2012-10-01.
- “Top 40 Easy Listening”. Billboard. 1971-08-21. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
- “Top Singles – Volume 16, No. 4, September 11, 1971”. RPM. 1971-08-21. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
- Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–2001. Record Research. ISBN 0898201497.
- Worbois, Jim. “I Knew Jesus (Before He Was a Star) Overview”. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
External links[edit]
- 1970 singles
- 1971 singles
- Songs written by Bob Dylan
- Bob Dylan songs
- George Harrison songs
- Olivia Newton-John songs
- Glen Campbell songs
- Billboard Adult Contemporary number-one singles
- 1970 songs
- Song recordings produced by Bob Johnston
- Song recordings produced by Phil Spector
- Song recordings produced by George Harrison
- Song recordings produced by John Farrar
- Columbia Records singles
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