"You Needed Me" is a song written by Randy Goodrum, who describes it as being about "unconditional undeserved love". It was a number one hit single in the United States in 1978 for Canadian singer

Anne Murray Morna Anne Murray (born June 20, 1945) is a retired Canadian singer. Her albums, consisting primarily of pop, country, and adult contemporary music, have sold over 55 million copies worldwide during her over 40-year career. Murray was the fir ...

, for which she won a Grammy Award. In 1999, Irish pop band

Boyzone Boyzone were an Irish boy band, created in 1993 by talent manager Louis Walsh. Before even recording any material, Boyzone made an appearance on RTÉ's '' The Late Late Show''. Their most successful line-up was composed of Keith Duffy, Steph ...

recorded a hit cover of the song that hit number one 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 ...

Original Anne Murray version

"You Needed Me" was first recorded by singer Anne Murray in 1978. The song peaked at number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and revitalized her career after several years of declining popularity as it became her first Top 40 US single since her 1974 remake of

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

' " You Won't See Me". The song, included on her 1978 album '' Let's Keep It That Way'', was also a top-five country single and won Song of the Year at the

Academy of Country Music The Academy of Country Music (ACM) was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California as the Country & Western Music Academy. Among the founders were Eddie Miller, Tommy Wiggins, and Mickey and Chris Christensen. They wanted to promote country musi ...

awards, and is her most successful single in the United Kingdom, where it made the top 30. Murray is quoted in ''The Billboard Book of Number One Hits'' by Fred Bronson as saying she was not surprised by the song's success, as she knew from the start the song would be a hit because she broke down in tears the first time she tried to sing it. Although the song reached number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart (and is her only song to top that chart), it never topped the two ''Billboard'' charts where Murray has had the most success—

Country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, whi ...

and

Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...

. However, it spent a then-record 36 weeks on the Adult Contemporary chart, a record for chart longevity that stood until 1990. The song spent 10 weeks at number one in Malaysia. The song earned Murray the

Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance was a Grammy Award recognizing superior vocal performance by a female in the pop category, the first of which was presented in 1959. It was discontinued after the 2011 Grammy season. The awar ...

at the

21st Grammy Awards The 21st Annual Grammy Awards were held in 1979, and were broadcast live on American television. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the year 1978. Award winners *Record of the Year **Phil Ramone (producer) & Billy Joel for " Jus ...

, the first to be awarded to a Canadian artist. The single was certified Platinum in Canada and Gold in the US. Anne Murray re-recorded the song with

Shania Twain Eilleen Regina "Shania" Twain ( , ; née Edwards; born August 28, 1965) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She has sold over 100 million records, making her the best-selling female artist in country music history and one of the best-s ...

for Murray's 2007 album '' Duets: Friends & Legends''. The song was featured in an ongoing storyline on the CBS soap ''

Guiding Light ''Guiding Light'' (known as ''The Guiding Light'' before 1975) is an American radio and television soap opera. It is listed in ''Guinness World Records'' as the third longest-running drama in television in American history. ''Guiding Light'' a ...

'' in 1980–81, as a theme song for the characters Kelly Nelson and Morgan Richards. In 2013, the song was performed by

Seth MacFarlane Seth Woodbury MacFarlane (; born October 26, 1973) is an American actor, animator, filmmaker, comedian, and singer. He is the creator and star of the television series '' Family Guy'' (since 1999) and '' The Orville'' (since 2017), and co-creat ...

in character as

Stewie Griffin Stewart "Stewie" Gilligan Griffin is a fictional character from the animated television series ''Family Guy''. He was born in 1998 and is voiced by the series creator Seth MacFarlane and first appeared on television, along with the rest of the Gr ...

on the ''

Family Guy ''Family Guy'' is an American animated sitcom originally conceived and created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The show centers around the Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter and Lois; their ch ...

'' episode "Chris Cross", in which Anne Murray herself guest-starred.

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Boyzone version

"You Needed Me" was covered by Irish boy band

in 1999. It was released as the second single from their album '' By Request''. It became their sixth and final single to reach number one on the

, outselling Spice Girl

Geri Halliwell Geraldine Estelle Horner (née Halliwell; born 6 August 1972) is an English singer, songwriter, author, and actress. She rose to prominence in the 1990s as Ginger Spice, a member of the girl group the Spice Girls. With over 100 million records ...

's debut single, " Look at Me", by 748 copies. The song received a silver disc for shipping 200,000 copies in the UK.

Track listings

Irish maxi-CD single # "You Needed Me" # " When the Going Gets Tough" # "You Needed Me" (Jewels & Stone Remix) # "Megamix (Love to Infinity)" UK CD1 # "You Needed Me" # "Words Can't Describe" # "Megamix (Love to Infinity)" UK CD2 # "You Needed Me" # "You Needed Me" (Jewels & Stone Remix) # "Too Late Tonight" # "You Needed Me" (video) UK cassette single # "You Needed Me" # "Words Can't Describe"

Credits and personnel

Credits are lifted from the '' By Request'' album booklet. Studio * Engineered and programmed at Rokstone Studios (London, England) Personnel * Randy Goodrum – writing *

Wayne Hector Wayne Anthony Hector is a British songwriter who is best known for his work with pop artists such as Nicki Minaj, One Direction, the Wanted, Toše Proeski and Olly Murs. He co-wrote seven of Westlife's number one singles, including "World of O ...

– additional backing vocals, backing vocal arrangement * Ali Tennant – additional backing vocals * Yvonne John Lewis – additional backing vocals * John Matthews – additional backing vocals * Paul Gendler – guitars * Steve Mac – production, backing vocal arrangement * Chris Laws – engineering, programming * Matt Howe – mix engineeing *

Richard Niles Richard Niles is an American composer, arranger, record producer, guitarist, broadcaster, and journalist. Biography Early years Niles was born May 28, 1951, in Hollywood. He is the son of Tony Romano, a composer, singer, and guitarist who writ ...

– string arrangement

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Other versions

The New Seekers The New Seekers are a British pop group, formed in London in 1969 by Keith Potger after the break-up of his group, The Seekers. The idea was that the New Seekers would appeal to the same market as the original Seekers, but their music would have ...

, a late 1978 single. *

Burl Ives Burl Icle Ivanhoe Ives (June 14, 1909 – April 14, 1995) was an American musician, actor, and author with a career that spanned more than six decades. Ives began his career as an itinerant singer and guitarist, eventually launching his own rad ...

- included in the album ''The Magic Balladeer '' (1993). *

Daniel O'Donnell Daniel Francis Noel O'Donnell, MBE (born 12 December 1961) is an Irish singer, television presenter and philanthropist. After rising to public attention in 1983, he has since become a household name in Ireland and Britain; he has also had co ...

- in his album ''Songs of Inspiration '' (1996). *

Howard Keel Harold Clifford Keel (April 13, 1919November 7, 2004), known professionally as Howard Keel, was an American actor and singer, known for his rich bass-baritone singing voice. He starred in a number of MGM musicals in the 1950s and in the CBS te ...

- for his 1985 album ''Reminiscing – The Howard Keel Collection''. This peaked at #20 in the UK album chart during a 12-week stay. *

Lynn Anderson Lynn Renée Anderson (September 26, 1947 – July 30, 2015) was an American country singer and television personality. Her crossover signature recording, " Rose Garden," was a number one hit in the United States and internationally. She chart ...

recorded her version of "You Needed Me" for the 1983 album ''Up Close''. The song was subsequently included in various country and love song compilation albums that include her. *

Lynne Perrie Lynne Perrie (born Jean Dudley; 7 April 1931 – 24 March 2006) was an English actress, singer and television personality, best known as Mrs Casper in Ken Loach's 1969 film '' Kes'', Mrs Petty in the television series ''Queenie's Castle'', and a ...

recorded a version for the 1987

Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' is an English soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in Weatherfield, a fictional town based on inner-city Salford. Orig ...

album. *

Patti Page Clara Ann Fowler (November 8, 1927 – January 1, 2013), known professionally as Patti Page, was an American singer and actress. Primarily known for pop and country music, she was the top-charting female vocalist and best-selling female ar ...

- for her album ''Best Country Songs'' (2008). *

Perry Como Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an Italian-American singer, actor and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, after signin ...

- '' Perry Como Live on Tour'' (1981) *

Val Doonican Michael Valentine Doonican (3 February 1927 – 1 July 2015) was an Irish singer of traditional pop, easy listening, and novelty songs, who was noted for his warm and relaxed style. A crooner, he found popular success, especially in the ...

- in the album ''It's Good to See You'' (1988). * Vic Damone - included in his album ''Now'' (1981). *

Cilla Black Priscilla Maria Veronica White (27 May 1943 – 1 August 2015), better known as Cilla Black, was an English singer, actress and television presenter. Championed by her friends the Beatles, Black began her career as a singer in 1963. Her ...

- included on her ''

Especially for You "Especially for You" is a song performed by Australian recording artists Kylie Minogue and Jason Donovan from Donovan's debut album, '' Ten Good Reasons'' (1989). The song was released as his album's second single on 28 November 1988 and was wr ...

'' album (1980) *

Sissel Kyrkjebø Sissel Kyrkjebø (; born 24 June 1969), also simply known as Sissel, is a Norwegian soprano. Sissel is considered one of the world's top crossover sopranos. Her musical style ranges from pop recordings and folk songs, to classical vocals and op ...

recorded a Norwegian version called "Jeg Trenger Deg" (I Need You) for her 1986 debut album ''Sissel''. * Bill Pearce recorded on trombone. *

Kenny Rogers Kenneth Ray Rogers (August 21, 1938 – March 20, 2020) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Rogers was particularly popular with country audiences but also charted mo ...

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 ...

- included in the album Classics (1978) *

Alka Yagnik Alka, AlkA or ALKA may refer to: People * Alka Ajith (born c. 1997), Indian multilingual playback singer * Alka Amin (active from 2011), Indian television actress * Alka Balram Kshatriya, Indian politician, Member of the Parliament of India repr ...

Kumar Sanu Kedarnath Bhattacharya (born 20 October 1957), better known as Kumar Sanu, is an Indian playback singer. He is known as the King of Melody in Bollywood. He is famous for singing thousands of Bollywood Hindi songs. Apart from Hindi, he has al ...

suno zaraa, suno zaraa, hawaaon mein yeh kaisee hai sadaa - in the film Bada Din (1998); music by Jatin-Lalit

References

{{Authority control 1978 singles 1999 singles Songs written by Randy Goodrum Anne Murray songs Boyzone songs Lynn Anderson songs Shania Twain songs Song recordings produced by Jim Ed Norman Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Number-one singles in New Zealand Number-one singles in Scotland UK Singles Chart number-one singles RPM Top Singles number-one singles Capitol Records singles Canadian soft rock songs Pop ballads 1970s ballads 1978 songs Polydor Records singles Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance