"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 African-American culture, African-American African-American neighborhood, communities throughout the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Catchy rhythms, stressed by handclaps ...

ballad written by

Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is regarded as 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. (December 8, 1939 – February 20, 2025) was an American soul singer-songwriter, producer, musician, and politician. He was the original lead singer of the R&B vocal group the Impressions, who were inducted into the Rock and ...

. 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 was the guitarist of the Stax Records house band, Booker T. & the M.G.'s, which backed artists such as ...

'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 advertis ...

'' 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'', is 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." Notable

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

s include performances by

the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Honored as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Soul", she was twice named by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine as the Roll ...

Etta James Jamesetta Hawkins (January 25, 1938 – January 20, 2012), known professionally as Etta James, was an American singer and songwriter. Starting her career in 1954, James frequently performed in Nashville's R&B clubs, collectively known as the Ch ...

Ike & Tina Turner Ike & Tina Turner was 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 the Kings of Rhythm and backing vocalists, the Ikettes. ...

, and a

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 ...

version by

Barbara Mandrell Barbara Ann Mandrell (born December 25, 1948) is an American retired country music singer and musician. She is also credited as an actress and author. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, she was considered among country's most successful mus ...

—her first single. In Australia, Johnny Diesel charted with a cover version in 1993. The song was added to the United States National Recording Registry in 2003. In 2011, the 1965 recording by Redding on

Volt Records Stax Records is an American record company, originally based in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1957 as Satellite Records, the label changed its name to Stax Records in September 1961. It also shared its operations with sister label Volt Records. ...

was inducted into the

Grammy Hall of Fame The Grammy Hall of Fame is a hall of fame to honor musical recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of ...

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 plays piano on one version while

Isaac Hayes Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. (August 20, 1942 – August 10, 2008) was an American singer, songwriter, composer, and actor. He was one of the creative forces behind the Southern soul music label Stax Records in the 1960s, serving as an in-house songwr ...

is on the other.

Recording and personnel

– vocals * Booker T. Jones – keyboards, piano *

– keyboards, piano *

– guitar *

Donald Dunn Donald Dunn may refer to: * Donald "Duck" Dunn Donald "Duck" Dunn (November 24, 1941 – May 13, 2012) was an American bass guitarist, session musician, record producer, and songwriter. Dunn was notable for his 1960s recordings with Booker T. & ...

– bass guitar * Al Jackson Jr. – drums * Wayne Jackson – trumpet * Gene Miller – trumpet * Andrew Love – tenor saxophone *

Floyd Newman Floyd Newman (August 17, 1931 – May 23, 2023) was an American 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 Ho ...

– baritone saxophone

Ike & Tina Turner version

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

Tina Turner Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939 – May 24, 2023) was a singer, songwriter, actress, and author. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", her vocal prowess, raspy voice, and electrifyin ...

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 three major weekly music industry trade magazines in the United States, with ''Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 as ''Music Vendor''. In 1964, it was changed to ''Record World'' under the ...

'''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 Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh and Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eig ...

concert film ''

Gimme Shelter "Gimme Shelter" is a song by the English rock band the Rolling Stones. Written by Jagger–Richards, it is the opening track of the band's 1969 album '' Let It Bleed''. The song covers the brutal realities of war, including murder, rape and f ...

'' (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). Cunnilingus is oral sex performed on the vu ...

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

Kings of Rhythm 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 undergone c ...

named Jimmy Thomas would perform that song. In her autobiography '' I, Tina'', 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 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 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, re ...

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 (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track or cassette), or digital. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th centur ...

, '' 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 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 is w ...

", written by

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English musician. He is known as the lead singer and one of the founder members of The Rolling Stones. Jagger has co-written most of the band's songs with lead guitarist Keith Richards; Jagge ...

and

Keith Richards Keith Richards (born 18 December 1943) is an English musician, songwriter, singer and record producer who is an original member, guitarist, secondary vocalist, and co-principal songwriter of the Rolling Stones. His songwriting partnership wi ...

. *

covered the song on her 1972 album '' Young, Gifted And Black''.

Chart performance

Notes

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 Barbara Mandrell songs Diesel (musician) songs The Rolling Stones songs United States National Recording Registry recordings Etta James songs Atco Records singles