Remembering Bill Withers
• R&B singer-songwriter Bill Withers, who gifted the world with such timeless classics as “Lean On Me,” “Use Me,” “Ain’t No Sunshine,” “Lovely Day” and “Just The Two Of Us” (with Grover Washington, Jr.), died from heart complications last Monday in Los Angeles, his family told the Associated Press. He was 81 years old.
In statement to the AP, Withers’ family said, “We are devastated by the loss of our beloved, devoted husband and father. A solitary man with a heart driven to connect to the world at large, with his poetry and music, he spoke honestly to people and connected them to each other. As private a life as he lived close to intimate family and friends, his music forever belongs to the world. In this difficult time, we pray his music offers comfort and entertainment as fans hold tight to loved ones.”
Our friend and former colleague Chris Morris wrote a more in-depth remembrance for Variety, reminding us of Withers’ humble background and late start — he was 33 years old and working on a Burbank aircraft assembly line in May 1971 when his debut album, Just As I Am was released; Withers is pictured here on the album cover holding a lunchbox in his hand — turns out the shot was taken during Withers’ lunch break at Weber Aircraft, where he continued to install toilet seats in commercial airplanes. His first single from the album, the self-penned, Grammy-winning “Ain’t No Sunshine,” proceeded to soar up the charts. He quickly followed up that success with a quick run of hit singles that included “Use Me” and the gospel-soul smash “Lean On Me,” which won a belated Grammy Award as Best R&B Song in 1987.
According to RAMP‘s resident Keeper of the Charts, Steve Resnik, Withers spent most of his recording career with Sussex Records before transitioning to Columbia in the mid-’70s. According to Steve’s archives, “Lean on Me” peaked at No. 1; “Use Me” peaked at No. 2 and “Ain’t No Sunshine” peaked No. 3. “Just The Two Of Us,” with Withers as a guest vocalist on Grover Washington, Jr.’s Elektra hit reached No. 2 in 1981, while fan-favorite “Lovely Day” peaked at No. 30 in 1977. Interestingly, “Lean on Me” was performed at the inaugurations of both Barack Obamaand Bill Clinton, and “Ain’t No Sunshine” and “Lean on Me” made Rolling Stone‘s list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
Withers essentially retired from performing and recording in the mid-’80s and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2015.
• Our friends at Benztown and The Mix Group (password: leanonme) have both produced respectful audio tributes to the career of Bill Withers.
