"I Need You" is a song written by

Eric Carmen Eric Howard Carmen (born August 11, 1949) is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and keyboardist. He was first known as the lead vocalist of the Raspberries. He had numerous hit songs in the 1970s and 1980s, first as a member of the Rasp ...

. Versions by

Euclid Beach Band The Euclid Beach Band was a rock band from Cleveland, Ohio best known for their local hit song "There's No Surf in Cleveland". The band was formed in 1978 by '' Scene'' magazine editor Jim Girard and Rich Reising, a guitarist in Eric Carmen's band ...

(1979) and then 3T (1996) were released as singles.

Early versions

"I Need You" was originally recorded in 1977 by

Frankie Valli Francesco Stephen Castelluccio (born May 3, 1934), better known by his stage name Frankie Valli, is an American singer, known as the frontman of the Four Seasons beginning in 1960. He is known for his unusually powerful lead falsetto voice. ...

on his album ''

Lady Put the Light Out ''Lady Put the Light Out'' is an album by Frankie Valli, released in November 1977 on the Private Stock label. Background, composition and recording Frankie Valli assembled some New York City session players for the album ''Lady Put the Light O ...

''.

released their version as a single in 1979 which reached No. 81 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Carmen provided keyboard and production work on the song. The lead vocalist is Peter Hewlett.

3T version

The song was covered by American R&B group 3T in 1996, released as the fifth single from their debut album, ''

Brotherhood Brotherhood or The Brotherhood may refer to: Family, relationships, and organizations * Fraternity (philosophy) or brotherhood, an ethical relationship between people, which is based on love and solidarity * Fraternity or brotherhood, a mal ...

'' (1995). It had a very good performance on the European charts, but was never released in the US.

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

, their uncle, provides background vocals, and is sometimes credited as a featured artist.

Critical reception

A reviewer from ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...

'' rated the song four out of five, adding, "Uncle

Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name "Michael" * Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian an ...

provides backing vocals on this

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

which sends 3T harmonising down the schmaltz road via an arrangement oddly reminiscent of

East 17 East 17 are an English pop boy band started by Tony Mortimer, Brian Harvey, John Hendy, and Terry Coldwell in 1991. As of 2020, the group consists of Coldwell, Robbie Craig, and Joe Livermore. East 17 have undergone multiple lineup changes, ...

Stay Another Day "Stay Another Day" is a song recorded by British boy band East 17, released on 21 November 1994, as the third single from their second album, ''Steam'' (1994). It is their only number-one song on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the Christmas num ...

Track listings

* CD single # "I Need You" (Album Version) – 3:55 # "Brotherhood" (Single Edit) – 3:16 * CD maxi # "I Need You" (Christmas Mix) – 4:13 # "I Need You" (Singalong Version) – 3:55 # "

Anything Anything may refer to: Albums * ''Anything'' (The Cranberry Saw Us demo), by the band later named the Cranberries, 1990 * ''Anything'' (The Damned album) or the title song (see below), 1986 * ''Anything'' (Kinnie Starr album) or the title son ...

" (Acoustic Version) – 4:02 * CD maxi (2) # "I Need You" (Album Version) – 3:55 # "I Need You" (Linslee Campbell Remix) – 5:27 # "I Need You" (Linsee Campbell Breakdown Remix) – 5:27 # "Brotherhood" (Single Edit) – 3:16

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Disco Stewie Harrison version

The song was covered by Australian dance group Disco Stewie Harrison, featuring Roma Waterman in 2005. The song peaked at number 21 on the Australian charts.

Track listing

# "I Need You" (Dance Mix) - 3:32 # "I Need You" (Love Mix) - 3:30

Charts

References

External links

* * * {{authority control 1977 songs 1979 singles 1996 singles 2005 singles Frankie Valli songs 3T songs Michael Jackson songs Songs written by Eric Carmen Song recordings produced by Denniz Pop Song recordings produced by Max Martin Epic Records singles Pop ballads Contemporary R&B ballads