"If I Needed You" is a song written by

Townes Van Zandt John Townes Van Zandt (March 7, 1944 – January 1, 1997) was an American singer-songwriter.

and performed on his 1972 album ''

The Late Great Townes Van Zandt ''The Late Great Townes Van Zandt'' is the sixth studio album by American singer-songwriter Townes Van Zandt. It was the second album that he recorded in 1972, and a follow-up to '' High, Low and In Between''. Recording ''The Late, Great Townes ...

''. It was covered 9 years later by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

artists

Emmylou Harris Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, bandleader, and activist. She is considered one of the leading music artists behind the country rock genre in the 1970s and the Americana (music), Americana genre ...

and

Don Williams Donald Ray Williams (May 27, 1939 – September 8, 2017) was an American country music singer, songwriter, and 2010 inductee into the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Country Music Hall of Fame. He began his solo career in 1971, singing p ...

as a duet, and was released in September 1981 as the first single from Harris' album '' Cimarron''. The song reached #3 on the ''

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 advertis ...

Hot Country Singles Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data along with digital sales and streaming. ...

chart and #1 on the ''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or r⋅min−1) is a unit of rotational speed (or rotational frequency) for rotating machines. One revolution per minute is equivalent to hertz. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 def ...

'' Country Tracks chart in Canada. According to Townes's business partner and producer Kevin Eggers, the song was written about his wife Anne Mittendorf Eggers. The song is very similar musically to

David Allan Coe David Allan Coe (born September 6, 1939) is an American singer and songwriter. Coe took up music after spending much of his early life in reform schools and prisons, and first became notable for busking in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville. He ini ...

's later song " Would You Lay with Me (In a Field of Stone)." Van Zandt's former manager John Lomax III recounts that when Coe heard Van Zandt play the song, he asked Van Zandt if he could "do something with it." However, Van Zandt is not credited on the later song.

Charts

Covers

Townes Van Zandt John Townes Van Zandt (March 7, 1944 – January 1, 1997) was an American singer-songwriter.

's "If I Needed You" was not only covered by

and

, but also by

Andrew Bird Andrew Wegman Bird (born July 11, 1973) is an American indie rock multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter. Since 1996, he has released 16 studio albums, as well as several live albums and EPs, spanning various genres including swing musi ...

on '' Hands of Glory'',

Guy Clark Guy Charles Clark (November 6, 1941 – May 17, 2016) was an American folk and country singer-songwriter and luthier. He released more than 20 albums, and his songs have been recorded by other artists, including Townes Van Zandt, Jerry Jeff ...

on ''Songs and Stories'',

Lyle Lovett Lyle Pearce Lovett (born November 1, 1957) Lyle Lovett Pageat Allmusic – Lovett's Genre and Styles. Retrieved February 2, 2007 is an American country singer and actor. Active since 1980, he has recorded 14 albums and released 25 singles to dat ...

on '' Step Inside This House'', and others. The song was also recorded by

Doc Watson Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson (March 3, 1923 – May 29, 2012) was an American guitarist, songwriter, and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues, and gospel music. He won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. His ...

for his record Then and Now. On his record Live at the Old Quarter, Townes introduces the song "If I Needed You" by saying, "This was recorded by Doc Watson, and it really blew my mind, you know…" The song is also covered in the Belgian film

The Broken Circle Breakdown ''The Broken Circle Breakdown'' (also known as ''Alabama Monroe'') is a 2012 Belgian romantic drama film directed by Felix van Groeningen, from a screenplay by van Groeningen and Carl Joos. The film is based on the stage play of the same name by ...

, where the Broken Circle Breakdown Bluegrass Band, including actors Johan Heldenbergh and Veerle Baetens sing it live. It also appears on the original soundtrack of the film. In 1997, Dead Ringer Band covered the song on their album, '' Living in the Circle'', and in 2000 Seán Keane covered it on his album ''The Man That I Am''. In 2012,

Mumford & Sons Mumford & Sons are a British folk rock band formed in London in 2007. The band consists of Marcus Mumford (lead vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, drums), Ted Dwane (vocals, double bass, bass guitar), and Ben Lovett (British musician), B ...

released a version of the song.

Kasey Chambers Kasey Chambers (born 4 June 1976) is an Australian country music, Australian country singer-songwriter and musician born in Mount Gambier, South Australia, Mount Gambier to musicians Diane and Bill Chambers (musician), Bill Chambers. Her older ...

covered the song on her 2011 album '' Storybook''. In 2018, the Spanish singer-songwriter Javier Álvarez released a version of the song in his tenth album, properly called "10". An acoustic version of the song, performed by

Terry O'Quinn Terrance Quinn (born July 15, 1952), known professionally as Terry O'Quinn, is an American actor. He won a Primetime Emmy Award for his performance as John Locke on the TV series '' Lost'' (2004–2010). In film, he also played the title role i ...

and Michael Dorman, appears in the pilot episode of the television show Patriot, which aired on November 5, 2015. Swedish Translations. Swedish Country Legend Alf Robertson covered the song on his 1982 Album "Emily's Foto" called "Om jag saknar dig". Another version in Swedish
Om jag behövde dig
appears on the 2016 albu
Vid Grinden
b
Georga
and is performed as a duet with singer Frida Wiljansros.

Joey + Rory Joey + Rory was an American country and bluegrass duo composed of singer-songwriters Rory Feek (born April 25, 1965) and Joey Feek (September 9, 1975 – March 4, 2016), who were husband and wife. Both members of the duo were vocalists and s ...

recorded it on their album "Made to Last" in 2013. Adam Harvey and Beccy Cole covered the song on their album, '' The Great Country Songbook Volume 2'' (2017). In 2017,

Jason Isbell Michael Jason Isbell ( ; born February 1, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. One of the most celebrated contemporary songwriters in his genre, his lyrics are defined by their raw emotional honesty. Isbell began his career as a me ...

and Amanda Shires recorded a cover for a Don Williams tribute album. Gove Scrivenor recorded a version on his "Shine On" album in 1998 Jake Ewald of

Slaughter Beach, Dog Slaughter Beach, Dog is an indie rock band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, formed by former Modern Baseball co-lead vocalist Jake Ewald in 2014. Initially starting as one of Ewald's solo projects during his tenure with Modern Baseball, the gr ...

recorded an acoustic cover on the album " Live at the Cabin" in 2022.

References

{{authority control 1981 singles 1972 songs Townes Van Zandt songs Songs written by Townes Van Zandt Don Williams songs Emmylou Harris songs Male–female vocal duets Warner Records singles Song recordings produced by Garth Fundis