I (Who Have Nothing)
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"I (Who Have Nothing)" (sometimes billed as "I Who Have Nothing") is an English language cover of the Italian song "''Uno dei Tanti''" (English: "One of Many"), with music by
Carlo Donida Carlo Donida Labati (30 October 1920, in Milan – 22 April 1998, in Porto Valtravaglia) was an Italian composer and pianist. Carlo Donida Labati was born in Milan on 30 October 1920. He graduated in piano and composition from the Giuseppe Verdi ...
and lyrics by Giulio "Mogol" Rapetti. The initial version, "Uno dei Tanti", was performed by
Joe Sentieri Joe Sentieri (byname of Rino Luigi Sentieri; Genoa 3 March 1925, - Pescara 27 March 2007) was an Italian singer and actor. Career His first success was the winning of the competition "Canzonissima" in 1959 with his version of the number one hit ...
in 1961. The song first recorded in English by
Ben E. King Benjamin Earl King (né Nelson; September 28, 1938 – April 30, 2015) was an American soul and R&B singer and record producer. He is best known as the singer and co-composer of " Stand by Me"—a US Top 10 hit, both in 1961 and later i ...
in 1963 with new lyrics by
Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller Lyricist Jerome Leiber (April 25, 1933 – August 22, 2011) and composer Michael Stoller (born March 13, 1933) were American songwriting and record producing partners. They found success as the writers of such crossover hit songs as " Hound Dog" ( ...
. Other successful cover versions were released by
Shirley Bassey Dame Shirley Veronica Bassey (; born 8 January 1937) is a Welsh singer. Best known for her career longevity, powerful voice and recording the theme songs to three James Bond films, Bassey is widely regarded as one of the most popular vocalists ...
and Tom Jones, also by
Status Quo is a Latin phrase meaning the existing state of affairs, particularly with regard to social, political, religious or military issues. In the sociological sense, the ''status quo'' refers to the current state of social structure and/or values. W ...
.


Ben E. King version

The English lyrics for "I (Who Have Nothing)" were written by
Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller Lyricist Jerome Leiber (April 25, 1933 – August 22, 2011) and composer Michael Stoller (born March 13, 1933) were American songwriting and record producing partners. They found success as the writers of such crossover hit songs as " Hound Dog" ( ...
. The title is a translation of a line in the Italian lyrics "''Io, che non ho niente''", but otherwise the English lyrics were written afresh by the lyricists. Leiber and Stoller also produced the first English language release, performed by
Ben E. King Benjamin Earl King (né Nelson; September 28, 1938 – April 30, 2015) was an American soul and R&B singer and record producer. He is best known as the singer and co-composer of " Stand by Me"—a US Top 10 hit, both in 1961 and later i ...
in 1963. Leiber and Stoller previously had co-written and produced the song " Stand by Me" with Ben E. King in 1961. The record used the same arrangement from Joe Sentieri's record (orchestra conducted by
Luis Enriquez Bacalov Luis Enríquez Bacalov (30 August 1933 – 15 November 2017) was an Argentine-born film composer. He learned music from Enrique Barenboim, father of Daniel Barenboim the conductor of the Berlin, and Chicago orchestras, and also Berta Sujovolsk ...
). In the US, the Ben E. King version reached No. 29 on the ''Billboard''
Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...
charts and No. 16 on the
Hot R&B Singles The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...
chart.


Charts


Shirley Bassey Version

Shirley Bassey Dame Shirley Veronica Bassey (; born 8 January 1937) is a Welsh singer. Best known for her career longevity, powerful voice and recording the theme songs to three James Bond films, Bassey is widely regarded as one of the most popular vocalists ...
recorded the song with producer
George Martin Sir George Henry Martin (3 January 1926 – 8 March 2016) was an English record producer, arranger, composer, conductor, and musician. He was commonly referred to as the "Fifth Beatle" because of his extensive involvement in each of the B ...
as the song by Ben E. King was rising in the chart in the US, and released the song in the UK in September 1963. Her version reached No. 6 on UK charts. Bassey has performed the song at almost every live concert she gave, and it is included in many of her compilation albums, such as a version in ''I Am What I Am'' recorded with the
London Symphony Orchestra The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's orchestras, symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's ...
, and a version in Spanish ("Hoy No Tengo Nada") in her 1989 album ''La Mujer''. She has also performed with the song's composer Donida who conducted his own music on Italian television.


Charts


Tom Jones version

Tom Jones recorded a version which was released in 1970. The song is the title track of his album ''I Who Have Nothing''. This became the most popular version of the song in the United States, peaking at No. 14 in 1970 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 advertise ...
'' Hot 100, No. 2 on the
Easy Listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to 1970s. It is related to middle-of-the-road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit songs, n ...
chart, and No. 10 in Canada. This version also peaked at No. 11 in '' Cashbox''.


Charts


Sylvester version

Sylvester recorded a disco version in 1979. The orchestral arrangement for the song was recorded at Island Records'
Basing Street Studios Basing Street Studios was a recording studio in a former 17th century chapel at 8–10 Basing Street, in Notting Hill, London, England. Originally established in 1969 as Island Studios by Chris Blackwell, the founder of Island Records, the studi ...
. This version reached No. 40 in US and No. 86 Canada.


Charts


Other versions

Other versions which reached the Billboard charts were performed by
Terry Knight and the Pack Terry Knight and the Pack (also known as The Pack and The Fabulous Pack) was an American garage rock band formed in Flint, Michigan in 1965. The band was signed to the Lucky Eleven label through most of its brief recording career. They produced ...
in 1966 (No. 46 US, No. 36 Canada), Liquid Smoke in 1970 (No. 82 US, No. 66 Canada), Warhorse in 1972. British rock band The Spectres, later known as
Status Quo is a Latin phrase meaning the existing state of affairs, particularly with regard to social, political, religious or military issues. In the sociological sense, the ''status quo'' refers to the current state of social structure and/or values. W ...
, released their version of the song produced by John Schroeder in September 1966 as a single on
Piccadilly Records Pye Records was a British record label. Its best known artists were Lonnie Donegan (1956–1969), Petula Clark (1957–1971), the Searchers (1963–1967), the Kinks (1964–1971), Sandie Shaw (1964–1971), Status Quo (1968–1971) and Brotherhoo ...
. This would be their debut single, nearly a year before changing their name and finding their way to mainstream popularity. The single, however, failed to chart. Swedish pop group Tom & Mick & Maniacs recorded the song sporadically between 5–7 and 15 October 1967 at
Europafilm Europafilm was an influential Swedish film company established in 1929 by Schamyl Bauman and Gustaf Scheutz. The office was located at Kungsgatan in central Stockholm, while the film studio was located in Mariehäll, Bromma, northwest of Stock ...
Studio in
Bromma Bromma () is a borough (''stadsdelsområde'') in the western part of Stockholm, Sweden, forming part of the Stockholm Municipality. Bromma is primarily made up of Bromma Parish and Västerled Parish. The fourth largest airport in Sweden and the th ...
, Stockholm together with producer Anders Henriksson.''Tom Mick & Maniacs'' (liner notes pg. 10). Brandels, Göran. Tom & Mick & Maniacs.
Riverside Records Riverside Records was an American jazz record company and label. Founded by Orrin Keepnews and Bill Grauer, Jr, under his firm Bill Grauer Productions in 1953, the label played an important role in the jazz record industry for a decade. Riverside ...
. 2013.
In December of that year, it was released on their album ''Tom & Mick Maniacs'',''Tom Mick & Maniacs'' (liner notes pg. 4). Brandels, Göran. Tom & Mick & Maniacs.
Riverside Records Riverside Records was an American jazz record company and label. Founded by Orrin Keepnews and Bill Grauer, Jr, under his firm Bill Grauer Productions in 1953, the label played an important role in the jazz record industry for a decade. Riverside ...
. 2013.
and in February 1968, it was extracted as a single on
Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
, backed by "Pandemonium", an original composition. It reached No. 8 on ''
Tio i Topp ''Tio i Topp'' (English: ''Ten At The Top'') was a Swedish record chart and radio program broadcast by Sveriges Radio P3 between the years of 1961 and 1974. It was launched to combat pirate radio charts and was the first official Swedish record cha ...
'', becoming their final chart hit.


References

{{authority control 1963 singles 1966 singles 1970 singles 1979 singles Ben E. King songs Shirley Bassey songs Sylvester (singer) songs Songs written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller Songs written by Mogol (lyricist) Song recordings produced by George Martin Torch songs Disco songs 1963 songs Atco Records singles Songs written by Carlo Donida it:Uno dei tanti/Cara cara