"Don't Know Much" is a song written by
Barry Mann
Barry Mann (born Barry Imberman; February 9, 1939) is an American songwriter and musician, and part of a successful songwriting partnership with his wife, Cynthia Weil.
He has written or co-written 53 hits in the UK and 98 in the US.
Early li ...
,
Cynthia Weil
Cynthia Weil (born October 18, 1940) is an American songwriter who wrote many songs together with her husband Barry Mann.
Life and career
Weil was born in New York City, and was raised in a Conservative Jewish family. Her father was Morris Weil ...
and
Tom Snow
Thomas Righter Snow (born 1947 in Princeton, New Jersey) is an American songwriter.
Biography
Snow has written songs for Gayle McCormick "(Even a Fool Would Let Go" with Kerry Chater – a song covered by a number of artists including Kenny ...
. Mann was the first to record the song in 1980, gaining a minor chart hit in the US. The song was made famous when it was covered as a duet by
Linda Ronstadt
Linda Maria Ronstadt (born July 15, 1946) is a retired American singer who performed and recorded in diverse genres including rock, country, light opera, the Great American Songbook, and Latin. She has earned 11 Grammy Awards, three American ...
and
Aaron Neville
Aaron Joseph Neville (born January 24, 1941) is a retired American R&B and soul singer. He has had four platinum albums and four Top 10 hits in the United States, including three that reached number one on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart. ...
in 1989. Their version was a worldwide success, topping the
Irish Singles Chart
The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are bas ...
and reaching the top 10 in several territories.
History
The song first appeared on
Barry Mann
Barry Mann (born Barry Imberman; February 9, 1939) is an American songwriter and musician, and part of a successful songwriting partnership with his wife, Cynthia Weil.
He has written or co-written 53 hits in the UK and 98 in the US.
Early li ...
's self-titled 1980 album, released on Casablanca records.
Bill Medley
William Thomas Medley (born September 19, 1940) is an American singer and songwriter, best known as one half of The Righteous Brothers. He is noted for his bass-baritone voice, exemplified in songs such as "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'". Med ...
scored a
''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart success with it rising to number 88 in April 1981. The next month, the song hit number 29 on the Adult Contemporary chart.
Bette Midler
Bette Midler (;'' Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American singer, actress, comedian and author. Throughout her career, which spans over five decades, Midler has received numerous accolades, including four Golden ...
recorded a version with changed lyrics under the title "All I Need to Know", charting at number 77 in 1983.
In 2000, Barry Mann re-recorded the song with
Brenda Russell
Brenda Russell (née Gordon; born April 8, 1949) is an American singer-songwriter, producer, and keyboardist. Russell has a diverse musical range which encompasses R&B, pop, soul, dance, and jazz. She has received five Grammy nominations.
Lif ...
on his album ''Soul and Inspiration'', released on Atlantic Records.
Bill Medley version
In 1981, American singer-songwriter
Bill Medley
William Thomas Medley (born September 19, 1940) is an American singer and songwriter, best known as one half of The Righteous Brothers. He is noted for his bass-baritone voice, exemplified in songs such as "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'". Med ...
covered the song for his eighth studio album Sweet Thunder. Medley's version was a minor hit, reaching Number 88 on the
Billboard Hot 100
The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online stream ...
and Number 29 on the
US Adult Contemporary chart.
Charts
Bette Midler version
In 1983, American actress and singer
Bette Midler
Bette Midler (;'' Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American singer, actress, comedian and author. Throughout her career, which spans over five decades, Midler has received numerous accolades, including four Golden ...
covered the song for her 1983 album
No Frills under the name "All I Need to Know", with changed lyrics. Midler's version reached Number 39 on the Billboard Hot Adult contemporary chart, Number 77 on the Billboard Hot 100,
and Number 5 on the
RPM Adult contemporary chart, having its highest peak there.
Charts
Linda Ronstadt and Aaron Neville version
The song was covered on
Linda Ronstadt
Linda Maria Ronstadt (born July 15, 1946) is a retired American singer who performed and recorded in diverse genres including rock, country, light opera, the Great American Songbook, and Latin. She has earned 11 Grammy Awards, three American ...
's triple-platinum 1989 album ''
Cry Like a Rainstorm, Howl Like the Wind
''Cry Like a Rainstorm, Howl Like the Wind'' is a studio album by American singer/producer Linda Ronstadt, released in October 1989 by Elektra Records. Produced by Peter Asher, the album features several duets with singer Aaron Neville — two of ...
''. It was introduced to Ronstadt and Neville by
Steve Tyrell
''yes'Steve is a masculine given name, usually a short form (hypocorism) of Steven or Stephen
Notable people with the name include:
steve jops
* Steve Abbott (disambiguation), several people
* Steve Adams (disambiguation), several people
* Steve ...
. Co-produced by Tyrell and
Peter Asher
Peter Asher, (born 22 June 1944) is an English guitarist, singer, manager and record producer. He came to prominence in the 1960s as a member of the pop music vocal duo Peter and Gordon before going on to a successful career as a manager and r ...
, it was released as a single in the United States in 1989, peaking at number two on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100
and number one on the
Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
The Adult Contemporary chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary radio stations in the United States. The chart is compiled based on airplay data submitted to ''Billboard'' by stat ...
chart. The single was Ronstadt's 10th top-10 hit and was certified
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile ...
, eventually selling over 900,000 copies in the United States. In the United Kingdom, the song peaked at number two on the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
. The song also peaked at number one in Ireland, number two in Australia, and reached the top five in Austria, Belgium, Canada, the Netherlands, and New Zealand.
"Don't Know Much" won Ronstadt and Neville the 1990
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...
for
Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
Best or The Best may refer to:
People
* Best (surname), people with the surname Best
* Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer
Companies and organizations
* Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain
* Best Lock Corporation ...
and was nominated for
Song of the Year.
Critical reception
The song received favorable reviews from music critics. A reviewer from ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...
'' deemed it "a strong send-off." Swedish newspaper ''
Expressen
''Expressen'' (''The Express'') is one of two nationwide evening newspapers in Sweden, the other being '' Aftonbladet''. ''Expressen'' was founded in 1944; its symbol is a wasp and its slogans are "it stings" or "''Expressen'' to your rescue".
...
'' called it "heavenly". They added, "What a lovesong." Cary Darling from ''
Orange County Register
''The Orange County Register'' is a paid daily newspaper published in California. The ''Register'', published in Orange County, California, is owned by the private equity firm Alden Global Capital via its Digital Fiest/Media News subsidiaries. ...
'' labeled it as a "soaring, wide-screen ballad." Jan DeKnock from ''
Orlando Sentinel
The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is the primary newspaper of Orlando, Florida, and the Central Florida region. It was founded in 1876 and is currently owned by Tribune Publishing Company.
The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is owned by parent company, '' Tribune P ...
'' described the song as "a killer ballad." ''
People Magazine
''People'' is an American weekly magazine that specializes in celebrity news and human-interest stories. It is published by Dotdash Meredith, a subsidiary of IAC. With a readership of 46.6 million adults in 2009, ''People'' had the lar ...
'' wrote that "their voices fuse like sunlight beaming through a stained-glass window." James Hunter of ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...
'' said that it is "brilliant". Californian newspaper ''
Santa Cruz Sentinel
The ''Santa Cruz Sentinel'' is a daily newspaper published in Santa Cruz, California, covering Santa Cruz County, California, and owned by Media News Group.
Ottaway Community Newspapers, a division of Dow Jones & Company bought the paper in 19 ...
'' called it a "tender love ballad duet."
Music video
In the
music video
A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devic ...
, both Neville and Ronstadt portray a middle-aged couple that are remembering their past and all the difficulties that they seem to have faced together.
Track listing
Personnel
* Linda Ronstadt - Vocals
* Aaron Neville - Vocals
*
Don Grolnick
Don Grolnick (September 23, 1947 – June 1, 1996) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and record producer. He was a member of the groups Steps Ahead and Dreams, both with Michael Brecker, and played often with the Brecker Brothers. As a sess ...
-
Piano
The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...
*
Mike Landau -
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gu ...
*
Lee Sklar
Leland Bruce Sklar (born May 28, 1947) is an American bassist and session musician. Sklar rose to prominence as a member of James Taylor's backing band, which coaleced into a group in its own right, The Section. This group of musicians so frequ ...
-
Bass
Bass or Basses may refer to:
Fish
* Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species
Music
* Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range:
** Bass (instrument), including:
** Acoustic bass gui ...
*
Carlos Vega
Carlos Vega (December 7, 1956 – April 7, 1998) was a Cuban-born Los Angeles-based session drummer best known for his performances with James Taylor. As a part of the L.A. studio scene from the late 1970s through the 1990s, Vega contributed to ...
-
Drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a ...
s
* Michael Fisher -
Percussion
A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...
*
Robbie Buchanan
Robbie or Robby is a surname. It is usually encountered as a nickname or a shortened form of Robert, Rob or Robin. The name experienced a significant rise in popularity in Northern Ireland in 2003.
People Given name Robbie
* Robbie Amell (born 1 ...
-
Keyboard
Keyboard may refer to:
Text input
* Keyboard, part of a typewriter
* Computer keyboard
** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping
** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware
Music
* Mu ...
* Skywalker Symphony Orchestra - arranged and conducted by
David Campbell
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
All-time charts
Certifications
References
{{Authority control
1980 songs
1981 singles
1989 singles
Linda Ronstadt songs
Aaron Neville songs
Bill Medley songs
Bette Midler songs
Male–female vocal duets
Songs written by Tom Snow
Songs written by Barry Mann
Irish Singles Chart number-one singles
Songs with lyrics by Cynthia Weil
Elektra Records singles
Song recordings produced by Peter Asher