"It Doesn't Matter Anymore" is a pop ballad written by

Paul Anka Paul Albert Anka (born July 30, 1941) is a Canadian and American singer, songwriter and actor. His songs include " Diana", “ You Are My Destiny", “Lonely Boy", " Put Your Head on My Shoulder", and " (You're) Having My Baby". Anka also wr ...

and recorded by

Buddy Holly Charles Hardin Holley (September 7, 1936 – February 3, 1959), known as Buddy Holly, was an American singer, songwriter, and musician who was a central and pioneering figure of rock and roll. He was born to a musical family in Lubbock, Texa ...

in 1958. The song was issued in January 1959, less than a month before Holly's death. "It Doesn't Matter Anymore" reached number 13 as a

posthumous Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award, an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication, publishing of creative work after the author's death * Posthumous (album), ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1 ...

hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in early 1959, shortly after Holly was killed in a plane crash on February 3, 1959. The single was a two-sided hit, backed with " Raining in My Heart". "It Doesn't Matter Anymore" was Holly's last US Top 20 hit and featured the orchestral backing of

Dick Jacobs Dick Jacobs (29 March 1918 – 20 May 1988) was an American musician, conductor, arranger, orchestrator, music director and an artists-and-repertoire director for several record labels (Coral, Decca, Brunswick and Springboard). He h ...

. It was also successful in the United Kingdom, where it became the country's first posthumous number 1 hit.Buddy Holly. UK Official Charts.
/ref> The song was recorded in mid-October 1958 in New York City. Paul Anka wrote it specifically for Holly. He donated his royalties from the song to Holly's wife. He said: "'It Doesn't Matter Anymore' has a tragic irony about it now, but at least it will help look after Buddy Holly's family. I'm giving my composer's royalty to his widow - it's the least I can do." The song has been covered many times by artists like

Linda Ronstadt Linda Maria Ronstadt (born July 15, 1946) is an American singer who has performed and recorded in diverse genres including rock, country, light opera, the Great American Songbook, and Latin music. Ronstadt has earned 11 Grammy Awards, three A ...

in 1974, and by

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

-born singer-songwriter Mark Williams in 1977, who had a number-one hit with it in New Zealand.

Track listing

#"It Doesn't Matter Anymore" (2:01) #"Raining in My Heart" (2:45)

Chart performance

In the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

the song reached number 1 on April 24, 1959, and remained in that position for three weeks, becoming the first posthumous number 1 hit in UK chart history. Holly would continue to achieve posthumous chart success in the UK well into the 1960s. In the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

it reached number 13 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. It was Holly's last Top 20 hit in the United States. Internationally, the song reached number 1 in both Canada and Ireland, and also peaked at number 2 in the Australian charts.

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Linda Ronstadt version

covered "It Doesn't Matter Anymore" in 1974 on her multi-platinum album ''

Heart Like a Wheel ''Heart Like a Wheel'' is the fifth solo studio album by Linda Ronstadt, released in November 1974. It was Ronstadt's last album to be released by Capitol Records. At the time of its recording, Ronstadt had already moved to Asylum Records and re ...

''. As the B-side of " When Will I Be Loved," it became a double-sided hit in the United States. The single reached number 20 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, number 47 on the Pop chart, and number 54 on the Country chart in the fall of 1975.

Chart history

Mark Williams' version

"It Doesn't Matter Anymore" was covered by

-born singer songwriter, Mark Williams. The song was released in April 1977 as the second single from his third

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

, '' Taking It All In Stride'' (1977). The song peaked at number 1 on the New Zealand charts and was the highest selling single by a New Zealand artist in New Zealand in 1977.

Track listing

; 7" single (EMI – HR 566) Side A: "It Doesn't Matter Anymore"
Side B: "True Love (Is Never Easy)"

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

;General Whitburn, Joel (2000). Top Pop Singles 1955-1999. Record Research Inc. . ;Specific {{authority control 1959 singles Buddy Holly songs Linda Ronstadt songs UK singles chart number-one singles Songs written by Paul Anka Songs released posthumously Paul Anka songs 1958 songs Coral Records singles EMI Records singles 1977 singles Mark Williams (singer) songs Number-one singles in New Zealand Pop ballads 1950s ballads

Track listing

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Linda Ronstadt version

Chart history

Mark Williams' version

Track listing

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

See also

References