"I Keep Forgettin' (Every Time You're Near)" (also known as "I Keep Forgettin") is a song released in 1982 by American singer-songwriter Michael McDonald, from his debut album '' If That's What It Takes''. It was written by McDonald and

Ed Sanford The Sanford-Townsend Band was a rock and roll band that scored a hit single in 1977 with " Smoke from a Distant Fire". History The Sanford-Townsend Band featured keyboardists Ed Sanford (from Montgomery, Alabama) and Johnny Townsend (from Tus ...

. Similarity to

Chuck Jackson Chuck Jackson (born July 22, 1937) is an American R&B singer who was one of the first artists to record material by Burt Bacharach and Hal David successfully. He has performed with moderate success since 1961. His hits include "I Don't Want to ...

's 1962 song " I Keep Forgettin", composed 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" ( ...

, resulted in Leiber and Stoller also being given a songwriting credit for Michael McDonald's song.

Background

Michael McDonald recorded it with his sister Maureen McDonald providing background vocals. It was featured on ''If That's What It Takes'', his first solo album away from

The Doobie Brothers The Doobie Brothers are an American rock band formed in 1970 in San Jose, California, known for their flexibility in performing across numerous genres and their vocal harmonies. Active for five decades, with their greatest success in the 1970s, ...

. Released as a single, it peaked at No. 4 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Pop Singles charts, #7 R&B and #8 on the Adult Contemporary chart.

Greg Phillinganes Gregory Arthur Phillinganes (born May 12, 1956) is an American keyboardist, singer-songwriter, and musical director based in Los Angeles, California. A prolific session musician, Phillinganes has contributed the role of keyboards to numerous alb ...

Steve Lukather Steven Lee Lukather (born October 21, 1957) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, arranger and record producer, best known as the sole continuous founding member of the rock band Toto. His reputation as a skilled guitarist led to a stea ...

and

Jeff Porcaro Jeffrey Thomas Porcaro (; April 1, 1954 – August 5, 1992) was an American drummer, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his work with the rock band Toto but is one of the most recorded session musicians in history, working on ...

of the band Toto played the clavinet, guitar and drums respectively. Legendary bassist, Louis Johnson, from

The Brothers Johnson The Brothers Johnson were an American funk and R&B band consisting of American musicians and brothers George ("Lightnin' Licks") and Louis E. Johnson ("Thunder Thumbs"). They achieved their greatest success from the mid-1970s to early 1980s, ...

laid down the song's pronounced bassline.

Influence, covers, and sampling

McDonald's song was heavily

sampled Sample or samples may refer to: Base meaning * Sample (statistics), a subset of a population – complete data set * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of so ...

Warren G Warren Griffin III (born November 10, 1970) is an American rapper and producer known for his role in West Coast rap's 1990s ascent.Steve Huey"Warren G: Biography" ''AllMusic.com'', Netaktion LLC, visited May 8, 2020. Along with Snoop Dogg and N ...

on his hit 1994 single " Regulate", featuring

Nate Dogg Nathaniel Dwayne Hale (August 19, 1969 – March 15, 2011), known professionally as Nate Dogg, was an American singer and rapper. He gained recognition for providing guest vocals for a multitude of hit rap songs between 1992 and 2007, earning the ...

, and by

Jadakiss Jason Terrance Phillips (born May 27, 1975), better known by his stage name Jadakiss, is an American rapper from Yonkers, New York. He began his career in the 1990s as a member of the rap trio The Lox, managed by Ruff Ryders and signed with Bad ...

on "Kiss Is Spittin'", which also features Nate Dogg.

Young MC Marvin Young (born May 10, 1967), better known by his stage name Young M.C., is a British-born American rapper, singer and actor. He is best known for his 1989 hit " Bust a Move". His debut album ''Stone Cold Rhymin found international accla ...

sampled it on his song "Love You Slow" of the album ''

What's the Flavor? ''What's the Flavor?'' is the third album by the American rapper Young MC, released in 1993 via Capitol Records. It was his final album for a major record label. Production The album was produced by Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Young MC, and Beetle. Cr ...

''.

Dave Hollister David Le Chaine Hollister (born August 17, 1968) is an American R&B singer who found fame during the 1990s as one quarter of the R&B quartet Blackstreet, before going on to have a solo career. Hollister is best known for his 2000 gold-certifie ...

covers the song on his album

Ghetto Hymns ''Ghetto Hymns'' is the solo debut studio album by American contemporary R&B singer Dave Hollister. It was released by DreamWorks Records on in the United States. His first effort (after his success with Blackstreet), the album was co-produced ...

, where it's titled "Keep Forgettin'" and is slowed down noticeably but keeps the same lyrics. The song's chorus is interpolated by

Moloko Moloko () were an Irish-English electronic music duo formed in Sheffield, England, consisting of vocalist Róisín Murphy and producer Mark Brydon. Blending elements of electronica and dance music, they are best known for their UK top 10 sin ...

in an acoustic mix of their 2003 hit single "Familiar Feeling". The song's bassline also was sampled in the track "Next to You" by the 'Daytime Disco' Duo Poolside.

Julia Fordham Julia Fordham (born 10 August 1962) is a British singer-songwriter. Her professional career started in the early 1980s, under the name "Jules Fordham", as a backing singer for Mari Wilson and Kim Wilde, before signing a recording contract of h ...

performed the song in duet with McDonald on her 2008 LP ''China Blue''. In 2011, DJ and producer Solomun sampled the song on ''Love Recycled''. Laura Jane Grace, lead singer, songwriter and guitarist of

Against Me! Against Me! is an American punk rock band formed in 1997 in Naples, Florida, by singer and guitarist Laura Jane Grace. That same year, Grace moved to Gainesville, Florida, which is considered the band's hometown. Since 2001, the band's lineup ...

, performed a version of the song in April 2015 for A.V. Undercover series.

Personnel

* Michael McDonald — lead vocals, electric piano, synthesizers *

— guitar *

—

clavinet The Clavinet is an electrically amplified clavichord invented by Ernst Zacharias and manufactured by the Hohner company of Trossingen, West Germany, from 1964 to 1982. The instrument produces sounds by a rubber pad striking a point on a tension ...

* Louis Johnson — bass guitar *

— drums * Maureen McDonald — backing vocals

Chart history

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

In popular culture

The song was also used during the

Condoleezza Rice Condoleezza Rice ( ; born November 14, 1954) is an American diplomat and political scientist who is the current director of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. A member of the Republican Party, she previously served as the 66th Uni ...

dance segment on '' You're Welcome America: A Final Night with George W. Bush''. The song is the primary plot device of, and gives its name to, an episode of ''

Yacht Rock Yacht rock (originally known as the West Coast soundThat ' ...

'', which comedically fictionalized the events leading to

sampling it.

References

{{authority control 1982 debut singles Michael McDonald (musician) songs Male–female vocal duets Songs written by Michael McDonald (musician) Songs written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller Patti LaBelle songs 1982 songs Song recordings produced by Ted Templeman Warner Records singles Farid Ouali idrissi production