# Since I Don't Have You

"Since I Don't Have You" is a song written and composed by Jackie Taylor, James Beaumont, Janet Vogel, Joseph Rock, Joe Verscharen, Lennie Martin, and Wally Lester. It was first a 1958 hit single for the doo-wop group the Skyliners on the Billboard Hot 100. Country music singer Ronnie Milsap had a hit with the song in 1991. American hard rock band Guns N' Roses also had some success in 1994 with their version of the song which reached the top 10 on the UK Singles Chart.

## The Skyliners version
### Background

Taken from their self-titled album and released in late 1958, the single reached number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 7 on the Cash Box Top 100. It was also a top five hit on the 1959 R&B chart.

### Charts

| Weekly chart (1959) | Peak position |
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 12 |
| US Billboard Hot R&B Sides | 3 |
| US Cash Box Top 100 | 7 |
| Year-end chart (1959) | Rank |
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 65 |
| US Cash Box Top 100 | 41 |

## Don McLean version

Don McLean's 1981 rendition reached number 23 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 6 on the Adult Contemporary chart. In Canada, it peaked at number two on its AC chart.

### Charts

| Chart (1981) | Peak position |
| Canada Top Singles | 45 |
| Canada Adult Contemporary | 2 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 23 |
| US Billboard Adult Contemporary | 6 |
| US Billboard Country | 68 |
| US Cash Box Top 100 | 28 |

## Ronnie Milsap version
### Background

Country music artist Ronnie Milsap's version was a number 6 hit on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart in 1991. The single was taken from his album Back to the Grindstone, released on RCA Nashville. It was produced by Milsap, Rob Galbraith, and Richard Landis.

### Charts

| Weekly chart (1991) | Peak position |
| Canada Country Tracks (RPM) | 7 |
| US Adult Contemporary (Billboard) | 25 |
| US Hot Country Songs (Billboard) | 6 |
| Year-end chart (1991) | Rank |
| Canada Country Tracks (RPM) | 84 |
| US Country Songs (Billboard) | 67 |

## Guns N' Roses version
### Background

The song was covered by rock band Guns N' Roses for their fifth studio album, "The Spaghetti Incident?" (1993). This was Guns N' Roses' 18th single release overall, and the second single released from "The Spaghetti Incident?". The single was released in mid-1994, reaching No. 69 on the Hot 100 and the top ten in the UK. The music video features actor Gary Oldman – then a popular casting choice for Hollywood villains – as a smiling demon who is constantly mocking singer Axl Rose. The video was the last to feature original members Duff McKagan and Slash as well as drummer Matt Sorum and rhythm guitarist Gilby Clarke.

### Personnel

* W. Axl Rose – lead vocals, keyboards
* Slash – lead guitar
* Duff McKagan – bass
* Matt Sorum – drums
* Dizzy Reed – piano
* Gilby Clarke – acoustic guitar

### Charts
#### Weekly charts

| Chart (1993–1995) | Peak position |
| Australia (ARIA) | 47 |
| Canada Top Singles (RPM) | 20 |
| Europe (Eurochart Hot 100) | 35 |
| France (SNEP) | 28 |
| Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40) | 1 |
| Ireland (IRMA) | 16 |
| Italy Airplay (Music & Media) | 7 |
| New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) | 48 |
| Scotland (OCC) | 26 |
| Sweden (Sverigetopplistan) | 40 |
| UK Singles (OCC) | 10 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 69 |

#### Year-end charts

| Chart (1994) | Position |
| Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40) | 20 |
| UK Singles (OCC) | 136 |

### Release history

| Region | Date | Format(s) | Label(s) |
| United States | March 1, 1994 | 7-inch vinylcassette | Geffen |
| Japan | April 21, 1994 | CD | Geffen |
| United Kingdom | May 23, 1994 | CDcassette | Geffen |

## Other notable versions

* In 1964, Chuck Jackson went to No. 47 on the Hot 100 with his recording.
* Jay and the Americans remade "Since I Don't Have You" for their April 1969 Sands of Time album release, their rendition serving as B-side for their Top Ten single "This Magic Moment" released November 1968.
* The Vogues remade "Since I Don't Have You" for their 1968 album release Memories: the track would also be included on the 1970 album release The Vogues Sing the Good Old Songs and Other Hits from which it was issued as a fourth single in December 1970 to reach #8 on the Billboard Easy Listening hit ranking, marking the Vogues last Top Ten appearance on a national chart.
* Released in 1978, the motion picture American Hot Wax, a biographical picture about one day in the life of legendary Rock and Roll DJ, Alan Freed, has a fictional character, named Teenaged Louise (a thinly veiled teenaged Carole King; played by Laraine Newman) who demonstrates at the piano one of “her” song-writing compositions, Since I Don’t Have You, to the astonishment of her parents.
* Art Garfunkel reached No. 38 on the UK singles chart in July 1979 with his cover, while peaking at No. 53 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 5 on the adult contemporary chart in the US.
* Dorothy Moore's 1979 Definitely Dorothy album release included the medley "Since I Don't Have You"/"Since I Fell for You".
* Peter Weller sang the first part of the song to his future love interest in the movie The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984).
* Barbra Streisand recorded a version of the song for her 1974 album ButterFly.
* Taiwanese singer Fong Fei-fei recorded the Chinese version of the song in 1982.
* In 1965, The British rock group Manfred Mann recorded the song and was placed on their 2nd studio album Mann Made.
* In 2018 Joe Hawley of Tally Hall recorded the song as a single for his YouTube and Bandcamp pages
* it also made an appearance in the 1973 movie American Graffiti.