"Help Me Make It Through The Night" is a

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

ballad written and composed by

Kris Kristofferson Kristoffer Kristofferson (born June 22, 1936) is a retired American singer, songwriter and actor. Among his songwriting credits are " Me and Bobby McGee", " For the Good Times", " Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down", and " Help Me Make It Through the ...

and released on his 1970 album '' Kristofferson''. It was covered later in 1970 by

Sammi Smith Jewel Fay Smith (August 5, 1943 – February 12, 2005), known professionally as Sammi Smith, was an American country music singer and songwriter. She is best known for her 1971 country-pop crossover hit " Help Me Make It Through the Night", w ...

, on the album '' Help Me Make It Through the Night.''

Sammi Smith version

Smith's recording of the song (in May 1970) remains the most commercially successful, and best-known, version in the United States. Her recording ranks among the most successful country singles of all time in terms of sales, popularity, and radio airplay. It topped the country singles chart, and was also a crossover hit, reaching number eight on the U.S. pop singles chart. "Help Me Make It Through The Night" also became Smith's

signature song A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a handwritten (and often stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. The writer of a ...

Other cover versions

Inspired by Smith's success with the song, numerous other artists covered it soon thereafter, including

Tammy Wynette Tammy Wynette (born Virginia Wynette Pugh; May 5, 1942 – April 6, 1998) was an American country music artist, as well as an actress and author. She is considered among the genre's most influential and successful artists. Along with Loretta ...

Loretta Lynn Loretta Lynn (; April 14, 1932 – October 4, 2022) was an American country music singer and songwriter. In a career spanning six decades, Lynn released multiple gold albums. She had numerous hits such as "You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My Ma ...

Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, actor and television host. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting '' The Glen Campbell Good ...

Dottie West Dorothy Marie Marsh West (October 11, 1932 – September 4, 1991) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Along with her friends and fellow recording artists Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn, she is considered one of the genre's most i ...

Joan Baez Joan Chandos Baez (; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing more ...

Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as " rock & roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis mad ...

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the " King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. His ener ...

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the w ...

Ray Stevens Harold Ray Ragsdale (born January 24, 1939), known professionally as Ray Stevens, is an American country and pop singer-songwriter and comedian, known for his Grammy-winning recordings " Everything Is Beautiful" and " Misty", as well as novel ...

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album ''Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of ''Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and ''Stardust'' (1978 ...

Olivia Newton-John Dame Olivia Newton-John (26 September 1948 – 8 August 2022) was a British-Australian singer, actress and activist. She was a four-time Grammy Awards, Grammy Award winner whose music career included 15 top-ten singles, including 5 number-one s ...

, Engelbert Humperdinck,

Scott Matthew Scott William Matthew is a singer-songwriter born in Queensland, Australia. He was a member of alternative pop band Elva Snow (2001–2006), which he co-founded with Spencer Cobrin. On 7 March 2008 he issued his solo debut eponymous album. Hi ...

, Lena Zavaroni and

Kelly Jones Kelly Jones (born 3 June 1974) is a Welsh singer-songwriter and a founding member, lead singer, and guitarist of the rock band Stereophonics. Early life and debut Kelly Jones was born youngest of three boys for Beryl and Arwyn Jones in the s ...

. Other artists who have recorded charting versions of the song include

Gladys Knight & the Pips Gladys Knight & the Pips were an American R&B, soul and funk family music group from Atlanta, Georgia, that remained active on the music charts and performing circuit for over three decades starting from the early 1950s. Starting out as simply ...

, John Holt, and (in French) Claude Valade. The

Michael Bublé Michael Steven Bublé ( ; born September 9, 1975) is a Canadian singer. A four-time Grammy Award winner, he is often credited for helping to renew public interest and appreciation for traditional pop standards and the Great American Songboo ...

version features American singer

Loren Allred Loren Allred (born September 7, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter and actress. Allred made her ''Billboard'' Hot 100 debut with the Platinum-selling " Never Enough" from the musical soundtrack to ''The Greatest Showman''. She appears on Mic ...

Background and writing

Kris Kristofferson said that he got the inspiration for the song from an ''

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentlema ...

Magazine'' interview with

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the " Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular entertainers of the 1940s, 1950s, and ...

. When asked what he believed in, Frank replied, "Booze, broads, or a bible...whatever helps me make it through the night." During his time as a struggling songwriter, Kris Kristofferson wrote and composed the song while staying with

and her husband, Bill, at their home on Shy's Hill Road in Nashville's Green Hills neighborhood. When he offered Dottie West the song, she originally claimed it was "too suggestive" for her. Eventually, she would record it before the year was out, and it is included on her album ''

Careless Hands "Careless Hands" is a popular song written by Carl Sigman and Bob Hilliard, and first recorded in 1948. The song was originally recorded by Sammy Kaye with vocals by Don Cornell,

Content

Kris Kristofferson's original lyrics speak of a man's yearning for sexual intimacy. They were controversial in 1970/1971 when the song was first covered by a woman, Sammi Smith in that case: ''"I don't care what's right or wrong, and I won't try to understand / Let the devil take tomorrow; Lord tonight, I need a friend."''

Chart performance

Sammi Smith

Sammi Smith's recording (made in May 1970) reached number-one on the U.S. country charts and won the

Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance was first awarded in 1965, to Dottie West. The award has had several minor name changes: *From 1965 to 1967 the award was known as Best Country & Western Vocal Performance - Female *In ...

. On February 20, 1971, it reached number 8 on ''

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 ...

''s U.S.

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' ( ...

singles chart, and also enjoyed success in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

. Adult-Contemporary stations took to the song, and it peaked at number 3 on ''Billboards'' Easy Listening chart. Additionally, it spent three weeks at number 1 on the Country chart.''Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990'' - The song became a

gold record 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 me ...

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Willie Nelson

In 1980,

covered the song. His rendition became a hit on the country music charts of both the U.S. and Canada.

Other charting versions

In 1971,

Joe Simon Joseph Henry Simon (October 11, 1913 – December 14, 2011) was an American comic book writer, artist, editor, and publisher. Simon created or co-created many important characters in the 1930s–1940s Golden Age of Comic Books and served as the ...

hit #69 on the Hot 100 and #13 on the

Hot Soul Singles The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

chart. In 1972, a version by

reached number 33 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number 13 on the

chart, and was a Top 10 pop hit in the United Kingdom. In 1974, John Holt included the song on his album ''1000 Volts of Holt.'' That year, his recording of the song made it into the UK Top Ten. In 1975, the French Canadian singer Claude Valade recorded a French version of the song, "Aide-moi à passer la nuit," produced and distributed by London Deram Records. The French-language lyrics were written by Canadian singer-songwriter

Christine Charbonneau Christine Charbonneau (18 October 1943 – 29 May 2014) was a French Canadian singer and songwriter. La Presse Canadienne (CP/PC), Most popular songs ''Du fil des aiguilles et du coton'' recorded by France Castel in 1972 and sung by Céline Dio ...

. The song made its way to fame and was on the charts (3rd place) for more than six months. In 2007, it was recorded for a second time in French, with Annie Blanchard recording it on the Musicor Records label, and the song made the Top 20 for 26 weeks, reaching a high of #6.

Television and film appearances

In 1972,

John Huston John Marcellus Huston ( ; August 5, 1906 – August 28, 1987) was an American film director, screenwriter, actor and visual artist. He wrote the screenplays for most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered ...

used Kristofferson's version as the theme for his feature '' Fat City.'' It plays under the title credits, with instrumental arrangements later in the movie. In 1978, Kristofferson made a guest appearance on the television series ''

The Muppet Show ''The Muppet Show'' is a sketch comedy television series created by Jim Henson and featuring the Muppets. The series originated as two pilot episodes produced by Henson for ABC in 1974 and 1975. While neither episode was moved forward as ...

;'' on that episode, he performed "Help Me Make It Through the Night" as a duet with a besotted

Miss Piggy Miss Piggy is one of the Muppet characters known for her breakout role in Jim Henson's ''The Muppet Show''. Since her debut in 1976, Miss Piggy has been notable for her temperamental diva superstar personality, tendency to use French phrases i ...

. In the 1997 film ''

The Ice Storm ''The Ice Storm'' is a 1994 American novel by Rick Moody. The novel was widely acclaimed by readers and critics alike, described as a funny, acerbic, and moving hymn to a dazed and confused era of American life.American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to ...

'' contestant Kree Harrison sang this song during season 12 on "Songs They Wish They Had Written" week. In 2015, DeAnna Johnson covered this song on ''

The Voice The Voice may refer to: Fictional entities * The Voice or Presence, a fictional representation of God in DC Comics * The Voice (''Dune''), a fictional ability in the ''Dune'' universe * The Voice, a character in the American TV series ''Cleo ...

.''

References

External links

* Allmusic review {{DEFAULTSORT:Help Me Make It Through the Night Songs about nights 1970 songs 1970 singles 1971 singles 1972 singles 1974 singles 1979 singles Songs written by Kris Kristofferson Kris Kristofferson songs Johnny Cash songs Sammi Smith songs Dottie West songs Joe Simon (musician) songs Gladys Knight & the Pips songs Willie Nelson songs Andy Williams songs Glen Campbell songs Elvis Presley songs Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients Columbia Records singles Song recordings produced by Fred Foster