- Written by Roger Nichols and Paul Williams
- Together the two penned several of The Carpenters songs, including I Won't Last A Day Without You, We've Only Just Begun, and Rainy Days and Mondays
- Williams is remembered as both a composer and as an actor, on shows such as The Muppet Movie, Smokey and the Bandit, and Battle For The Planet Of The Apes
- His TV appearances included The Love Boat, The Muppet Show, The Gong Show, The Odd Couple, and Hawaii Five-O
- His other musical compositions include Rainbow Connection as sung by Kermit the Frog, Just An Old Fashioned Love Song by Three Dog Night, and Evergreen by Barbra Streisand
- In 2001 Paul Williams was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame
- In addition to co-writing The Carpenters hits We've Only Just Begun and Rainy Days and Mondays, he also penned Out In The Country done by Three Dog Night, (and later covered by REM), as well as the theme song to the popular TV series Hart To Hart
- The first recording of the song was done in 1972 by Paul Williams himself, on the album Life Goes On, which did not chart
- Also in 1972 Maureen McGovern covered the song, releasing it as a single following her Oscar winning smash The Morning After
- McGovern's cover only reached #89 on the Billboard magazine Hot 100, but it did manage a respectable #14 on the Adult Contemporary chart
- Near the middle of 1972 The Carpenters released their smash album A Song For You
- I Won't Last A Day Without You was the fifth and final single released from that album
- In 1974 it rose to #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart, and #9 on the UK chart
- The Carpenters were a brother / sister act that exploded on the music scene in 1970, and in the space of only 10 years racked up 20 Top 40 hits
- Most people are familiar with the tragic story of Karen Carpenter, (born 3/2/50 in New Haven Connecticut, died 2/4/83 in Downey California), a rare female drummer, who was brought out from behind the drum kit to front the group, and her insecurities about her appearance leading to the eating disorder that eventually claimed her life
- Karen's brother Richard Carpenter continues to watch over the group's legacy, in addition to performing and arranging on his own
- Altogether The Carpenters have had three #1 singles on the Billboard Hot 100, fifteen #1 hits on the Adult Contemporary Singles Charts, and twelve top 10 hits.
- By best accounting the Carpenters' album and single sales total to more than 100 million units
- Other artists to cover I Won't
Last A Day Without You include:
- Shirley Bassey
- Mel Torme
- Herbie Mann
- Sue Bell
- Rosemary Clooney
- Bobby Darin
- Robert Goulet
- Diana Ross
- Barbra Streisand
- Andy Williams
| MP3 Downloads from Amazon.com | |
| The Carpenters | I Won't Last A Day Without You (1986 Remastered version)  |
| The Carpenters | I Won't Last A Day Without You (2005 Remastered version)  |
| The Carpenters | I Won't Last A Day Without You
(1997 Remastered version)  |
| Barbra Streisand | I Won't Last a Day Without You (Album Version) |
| Mel Torme | I Won't Last A Day Without You |
| Herbie Mann | I Won't Last A Day Without You (LP Version) |
| Sue Bell | I Won't Last a Day Without You |
| Mary Haskell | I Won't Last A Day Without You |
| Carmen McRae | I Won't Last A Day Without You |
Other songs by The Carpenters performed by Oracle Band:
- Top Of The World
- We've Only Just Begun
Song Lyrics -
I Won't Last A Day Without You
Day after day I must face a world of strangers
Where I don't belong,
I'm not that strong
It's nice to know that there's someone I can
turn to
Who will always care,
You're always there
When there's no getting over that rainbow
When my smallest of dreams won't come true
I can take all the madness the world has to give
But I won't last a day without you
So many times
When the city seems to be without a friendly
face
A lonely place
It's nice to know
That you'll be there if I need you
And you'll always smile,
It's all worthwhile
When there's no getting over that rainbow
When my smallest of dreams won't come true
I can take all the madness the world has to give
But I won't last a day without you
Touch me and I end up singing
Troubles seem to up and disappear
You touch me with the love you're bringing
I can't really lose when you're near
If all my friends have forgotten half their
promises
They're not unkind, just hard to find
One look at you and I know that I could learn to live
Without the rest, I found the best
When there's no getting over that rainbow
When my smallest of dreams won't come true
I can take all the madness the world has to give
But I won't last a day without you
When there's no getting over that rainbow
When my smallest of dreams won't come true
I can take all the madness the world has to give
But I won't last a day without you
| Note that the lyrics posted here are those as interpreted and performed by The Oracle Band. In a few cases we have taken some liberties with the lyrics to make them more appropriate for tasteful gatherings. Their use here is intended as an aid for people in selecting music for their wedding reception or private party, and may not be reproduced for any commercial, for-profit use. |
|
A Song For You
Includes I Won't Last A Day Without You, plus: Top of
the World |
|
The Carpenters
This is a very attractively priced "Greatest Hits" album of The Carpenters. Although not containing ALL of their Top 40 hits, it does include all the majors, including: I
Won't Last A Day Without You |
|
The Carpenters
This is the "gold" standard for Carpenters albums. A whopping 40 tracks on 2-CDs of some of the best music to come out of the 70s. The album includes ALL of their chart hits, as well as plenty of other material that was never released as a single. |
|
Close To You
For fans of the Carpenters this video look back will be a pleasure and a half. The DVD offers a glimpse of their body of their work via videoclips, interviews, and snippits of video and promo film of their songs. And of course, there is the music. Some critics have complained that the DVD doesn't use the full length versions of the songs, but this is NOT a presentation of The Carpenters in concert, but a retrospective on one of the happiest and saddest stories in music. |
