I Don't Want to Go On Without You

"I Don't Want To Go On Without You"
Single by The Drifters
Released	June 1964
Genre	Soul, pop
Label	Atlantic 2237
Songwriter(s)	Bert Berns, Jerry Wexler
Producer(s)	Bert Berns

"I Don't Want to Go On Without You" is a soul ballad written by Bert Berns and Jerry Wexler and produced by Bert Berns for the Drifters in 1964. ^[1]

History

Originally intended to be the A-side to "Under the Boardwalk", the song was recorded in May 1964 under the direction of songwriter and producer Bert Berns. The night before the session, the Drifters' lead singer, Rudy Lewis, died of a heroin overdose. Longtime Drifters tenor Charlie Thomas took over the vocal. ^[2]

Covers

"I Don't Want to Go On Without You" has been covered by Nazareth, ^[3] the Escorts (1965), ^[4] the Moody Blues, ^[4] the Searchers, ^[5] Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles, ^[6] and Van Morrison. ^[6] Dusty Springfield also performed the song on her television series Dusty. ^[7] The performance was included on the Dusty Springfield DVD release Live at the BBC. ^[8]

References

1. Millward, Stephen (2012). Changing Times: Music and Politics In 1964. Matador. p. 63. ISBN   978-1-78088-344-1.
2. Selvin, Joel (2014). Here Comes the Night: The Dark Soul of Bert Berns and the Dirty Business of Rhythm and Blues. Counterpoint. p. 121. ISBN   978-1-61902-378-9.
3. Strong, Martin Charles (1998). The Great Rock Discography. Canongate Books. p. 565. ISBN   978-0-86241-827-4.
4. Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Oxford University Press. p. 1357. ISBN   978-0-19-531373-4.
5. Rees, Dafyyd; Crampton, Luke (1999). VH1 Rock Stars Encyclopedia. DK Pub. p. 681. ISBN   978-0-7894-4613-8.
6. Mills, Peter (2010). "Listening To The Lion". Hymns to the Silence: Inside the Words and Music of Van Morrison. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 167. ISBN   978-1-4411-5677-8.
7. Dusty Springfield (1966). I Don't Want to Go On Without You (video).
8. Unterberger, Richie. "Live at the BBC - Dusty Springfield". AllMusic.