"I've Been Loving You Too Long" (originally "I've Been Loving You Too Long (To Stop Now)") is a

soul music Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in the African American community throughout the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. It has its roots in African-American gospel music and rhythm and blues. Soul music became po ...

ballad written by

Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...

and

Jerry Butler Jerry Butler Jr. (born December 8, 1939) is an American soul singer-songwriter, producer, musician, and retired politician. He was the original lead singer of the Rhythm and blues, R&B vocal group the Impressions, inducted into the Rock and Rol ...

. Considered by music critics and writers to be one of Redding's finest performances and a soul classic, it is a slow, emotional piece with Redding's pleading vocals backed by producer

Steve Cropper Steven Lee Cropper (born October 21, 1941), sometimes known as "The Colonel", is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He is the guitarist of the Stax Records house band, Booker T. & the M.G.'s, which backed artists such as Ot ...

's arpeggiated guitar parts and a horn section. Redding recorded the song in 1965 and when released as a single in April 1965, became his second best selling single. The song was subsequently included on his third album, '' Otis Blue: Otis Redding Sings Soul'' (1965). The song reached number 21 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number 2 on the ''Billboard'' Rhythm & Blues chart. ''

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 advertise ...

'' described it as a "winning tender and soulful piece of material and performance by 'Mr. Pitiful' himself." ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' described it as "a tender, slow-moving heartfelt lament about a fella whose love for his gal is growing cold." The song was added to the United States National Recording Registry in 2003.

Background and composition

Songs by Redding appeared in the U.S. ''

'' pop and R&B charts as early as 1962, but "I've Been Loving You Too Long" became his biggest hit upon its release. Although the tempo is exactly the same, two versions of the song have been recorded in 1965; one lasts 2'50 and the second one is 3'10 long ( in the original LP version), i.e., with an extra verse.

Booker T. Jones Booker Taliaferro Jones Jr. (born November 12, 1944) is an American musician, songwriter, record producer and arranger, best known as the frontman of the band Booker T. & the M.G.'s. He has also worked in the studios with many well-known art ...

plays piano on one version while

Isaac Hayes Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. (August 20, 1942 – August 10, 2008) was an American singer, actor, songwriter, and composer. He was one of the creative forces behind the Southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songwri ...

is on the other.

Recording and personnel

– vocals *

– keyboards, piano *

– guitar *

Donald Dunn Donald Dunn may refer to: * Donald "Duck" Dunn (1941–2012), American bass guitarist, session musician, record producer, and songwriter * Donald G. Dunn (1923–2021), decorated U.S. Army veteran of World War II {{hndis, Dunn, Donald ...

– bass guitar *

Al Jackson Jr. Albert J. Jackson Jr. (November 27, 1935 – October 1, 1975) was an American drummer, producer, and songwriter. He was a founding member of Booker T. & the M.G.'s, a group of session musicians who worked for Stax Records and produced their ...

– drums * Wayne Jackson – trumpet *

Gene Miller Gene Miller (1928–2005) was a longtime investigative reporter at the ''Miami Herald'' who won two Pulitzer Prizes for reporting that helped save innocent men on Florida's Death Row from execution. He was also a legendary editor, mentoring genera ...

– trumpet * Andrew Love – tenor saxophone *

Floyd Newman Floyd Newman (born August 17, 1931) is a saxophonist, session musician and bandleader. As a baritone sax player, he was long associated with Stax Records, and as a member of The Mar-Keys’ horn section and the Memphis Horns. Born in Memphis, in t ...

– baritone saxophone

Ike & Tina Turner version

Ike & Tina Turner Ike & Tina Turner were an American musical duo consisting of husband and wife Ike Turner and Tina Turner. From 1960 to 1976, they performed live as the Ike & Tina Turner Revue, supported by Ike Turner's band the Kings of Rhythm and backing vocal ...

recorded the song for their 1969 album, '' Outta Season''. Produced by

Tina Turner Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939) is an American-born Swiss retired singer and actress. Widely referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", she rose to prominence as the lead singer o ...

and Bob Krasnow, the single peaked at number 23 on the ''Billboard'' R&B chart and number 68 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. It was reissued in 1971, reaching number 56 on the ''Cash Box'' R&B chart and number 44 on ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of the three main music industry trade magazines in the United States, along with '' Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 under the name ''Music Vendor'', but in 1964 it was changed to ''Record Wo ...

'''s R&B chart.

Live performances

The Turners can be seen performing the song at

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...

the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

concert film ''

Gimme Shelter "Gimme Shelter" is a song by English rock band the Rolling Stones. Released as the opening track from band's 1969 album ''Let It Bleed''. The song covers topics of war, murder, rape and fear. It features prominent guest vocals by American singer ...

'' (1970). Their version differs from the original because they added an additional section with an explicit interaction. During their live performances they simulated

oral sex Oral sex, sometimes referred to as oral intercourse, is sexual activity involving the stimulation of the genitalia of a person by another person using the mouth (including the lips, tongue, or teeth) and the throat. Cunnilingus is oral sex per ...

. Tina caressed the microphone and moaned while Ike made suggestive slurping noises. Prior to Tina, a former member of the

Kings of Rhythm The Kings of Rhythm are an American music group formed in the late 1940s in Clarksdale, Mississippi and led by Ike Turner through to his death in 2007. Turner would retain the name of the band throughout his career, although the group has underg ...

named

Jimmy Thomas Jimmy Thomas (January 20, 1939 – April 25, 2022) was an American soul singer and songwriter. He was best known as a vocalist for Ike Turner. Thomas joined Turner's Kings of Rhythm in 1958, and remained with the band when the Ike & Tina T ...

would perform that song. In her autobiography ''

I, Tina ''I, Tina: My Life Story'' is a 1986 autobiography by Tina Turner, co-written by MTV news correspondent and music critic Kurt Loder. The book was reissued by Dey Street Books in 2010. Content The book details Tina Turner's story from her chil ...

'', she said:

Then when Jimmy left, I started singing the song, because it was a very good show song, and I started mimicking Jimmy, but putting my own female thing into it. I was really involved with that song in the beginning. Then I became bored with it, but Ike wouldn't let me stop. He started making those noises in the background, and it became really pornographic. Embarrassing. But the people loved it.

Track listing

Johnny Diesel version

In 1992 Australian musician,

Diesel Diesel may refer to: * Diesel engine, an internal combustion engine where ignition is caused by compression * Diesel fuel, a liquid fuel used in diesel engines * Diesel locomotive, a railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engin ...

recorded the song for his

ARIA Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

number 1 album, '' The Lobbyist'' (1993). It was released as the third and final single and peaked at number 41 on the Australian

on 29 November 1993.

Track listing

# "I've Been Loving You Too Long" # " Come to Me" (UK Remix)

Other versions

* The first

cover Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

of the song was a

recording A record, recording or records may refer to: An item or collection of data Computing * Record (computer science), a data structure ** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity ** Boot sector or boot record, ...

in 1965, shortly after Redding's original version became a hit. It was included on the Stones' first

live album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

, '' Got Live If You Want It!'' (1966), although the track was a studio recording that had been overdubbed with audience noises. Returning the compliment, Redding covered the Rolling Stones song "

(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" is a song recorded by the English rock band the Rolling Stones. A product of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards' songwriting partnership, it features a guitar riff by Richards that opens and drives the song. The riff ...

", written by

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English singer and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and one of the founder members of the rock band the Rolling Stones. His ongoing songwriting partnershi ...

and

Keith Richards Keith Richards (born 18 December 1943), often referred to during the 1960s and 1970s as "Keith Richard", is an English musician and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the co-founder, guitarist, secondary vocalist, and co-princi ...

Chart performance

References

{{Authority control 1965 songs 1965 singles 1969 singles 1994 singles Otis Redding songs Songs written by Otis Redding Songs written by Jerry Butler Song recordings produced by Don Gehman Ike & Tina Turner songs Blue Thumb Records singles EMI Records singles James & Bobby Purify songs Barbara Mandrell songs Diesel (musician) songs Guy Sebastian songs The Rolling Stones songs United States National Recording Registry recordings Etta James songs Loleatta Holloway songs Atco Records singles