Withers, the youngest of six children, was born in the small coal-mining town of Slab Fork, West Virginia, on July 4, 1938. He was the son of Mattie (Galloway), a maid, and William Withers, a miner. He was born with a stutter and later said he had a hard time fitting in. His parents divorced when he was three, and he was raised by his mother's family in nearby Beckley, West Virginia. He was 13 years old when his father died. Withers enlisted in the United States Navy at the age of 17, and served for nine years, during which time he became interested in singing and writing songs.
He left the Navy in 1965, relocating to Los Angeles in 1967 to start a music career. His debut release was "Three Nights and a Morning" in 1967. Arranged by Mort Garson, the song went unnoticed at the time but was later reworked by Withers as the track "Harlem".
Withers worked as an assembler for several different companies, including Douglas Aircraft Corporation, IBM and Ford, while recording demo tapes with his own money, shopping them around and performing in clubs at night. When he returned with the song "Ain't No Sunshine" in 1971, he refused to resign from his job because he believed the music business was a fickle industry. In early 1970, Withers's demonstration tape was auditioned favorably by Clarence Avant, owner of Sussex Records. Avant signed Withers to a record deal and assigned former Stax Records stalwart Booker T. Jones to produce Withers' first album. Four three-hour recording sessions were planned for the album, but funding caused the album to be recorded in three sessions with a six-month break between the second and final sessions. Just as I Am was released in 1971 with the tracks, "Ain't No Sunshine" and "Grandma's Hands" as singles. The album features Stephen Stills playing lead guitar. On the cover of the album, Withers is pictured at his job at Weber Aircraft in Burbank, California, holding his lunch box.
Withers was known for his "smooth" baritone vocals and "sumptuous" soul arrangements. He wrote some of the most covered songs of the 1970s, including "Lean on Me" and "Ain't No Sunshine". The former entered the Hot 100 chart through multiple versions, including Club Nouveau's 1987 cover, which made the composition one of nine songs to have led the chart via different acts. With "Lovely Day", he set the record for the longest sustained note on a chart hit on American charts, holding a high E for 18 seconds. Editors from The Guardian considered that Withers' songs are "some of the most beloved in the American songbook," citing, "'Ain't No Sunshine' is regarded as one of the all-time great breakup tracks, while 'Lean on Me', an ode to the supportive power of friendship ..." For the same newspaper, Alex Petridis noticed "[he] laid pain and paranoia under his deceptively gentle songs, and retired early having conquered gospel, funk, blues, disco and more." In Rolling Stone, writer Andy Greene noted that several of his songs "are embedded in the culture and have been covered countless times."
Writing for The New York Times, Giovanni Russonello considered Withers "[a] soulful singer with a gift for writing understated classics", adding, "the ultimate homespun hitmaker, he had an innate sense of what might make a song memorable, and little interest in excess attitude or accoutrements. Ultimately Withers reminded us that it’s the everyday that is the most meaningful: work, family, love, loss." A Billboard article considered that Withers "stands as one of R&B/soul music's most revered singer-songwriters." In the same magazine, writer Gail Mitchell acknowledged "Withers' legacy has flourished in the decades since, thanks to a cross-section of artists who have covered/sampled his songs or cited him as a major influence." Musician and music journalist Questlove referred to Withers' post-breakup 1974 album +'Justments as "a diary [...] [it] was a pre-reality-show look at his life. Keep in mind this was years before Marvin Gaye did it with Here, My Dear." The Beach Boys' Brian Wilson deemed him "a songwriter's songwriter". Musicians Sade, D'Angelo, Justin Timberlake, John Legend and Ed Sheeran have credited Withers as a music inspiration.
Withers died from heart complications in Los Angeles on March 30, 2020, at age 81; his family announced his death four days later. He is interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills).
Hope She
Bill Withers Lyrics
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Makes me seem bluer than I am
But in my heart there is a shower
I hope she'll be happier with him
Maybe the darkness of the hour
Makes me seem lonelier than I am
But over the darkness I have no power
I can't believe that she don't wanna see me
We lived and loved with each other so long
I never thought that she really would leave me
But she's gone
Maybe the lateness of the hour
Makes me seem bluer than I am
But in my heart there is a shower
Hope she'll be happier with him
The song "Hope She'll Be Happier" by Bill Withers talks about the singer's feelings towards the breakup with his significant other, and his hope that she will find happiness even if it's not with him. The lyrics indicate that the singer is experiencing a deep sense of sadness and loneliness, but also suggests that he is trying to release his loved one to the possibility of happiness with another person. The chorus of the song repeats the phrase "Hope she'll be happier with him" which conveys the singer's desire for his ex-partner to find contentment even if it means without him, and suggests that he cares about her well-being.
The song's verses illustrate the singer's helplessness in the face of the breakup. He feels that he has no power over the situation and accepts that his loved one has indeed left him. The line "I can't believe that she don't wanna see me" signifies the singer's disbelief at the severance of their relationship. The song ends with a repetition of the first verse, emphasizing the majority of the singer's emotions throughout the duration of the song. The lyrics reflect the complexity of a relationship's end, and the difficulty that comes from accepting the loss of someone that was once so important to us.
Line by Line Meaning
Maybe the lateness of the hour
Perhaps the lateness of the hour is making me feel more sorrowful than I actually am.
Makes me seem bluer than I am
Causing me to appear sadder than my true emotions.
But in my heart there is a shower
However, in my heart, I am experiencing a release of emotions.
I hope she'll be happier with him
I desire for her to find joy and contentment in her new relationship.
Maybe the darkness of the hour
Perhaps the darkness of the hour is causing me to feel more isolated than I am.
Makes me seem lonelier than I am
Causing me to seem more alone than my true emotions.
But over the darkness I have no power
However, I have no control over the gloomy atmosphere.
I can't believe that she don't wanna see me
I am surprised and sad that she does not want to see me.
We lived and loved with each other so long
We had a long and intimate history together.
I never thought that she really would leave me
I never imagined that she would actually end our relationship.
But she's gone
But unfortunately, she has left me.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Bill Withers
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind