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"One" is a song by American singer-songwriter Harry Nilsson from his 1968 album Aerial Ballet. It is known for its opening line "One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do". Nilsson wrote the song after calling someone and getting a busy signal. He stayed on the line listening to the "beep, beep, beep, beep..." tone, writing the song. The busy signal became the opening notes.
| "One" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Side B of the UK single; solid center variant | ||||
| Single by Harry Nilsson | ||||
| from the album Aerial Ballet | ||||
| B-side | "Sister Marie" | |||
| Released | 1968 | |||
| Recorded | 1967 | |||
| Studio | RCA (Hollywood, California) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Label | RCA Records | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Harry Nilsson | |||
| Producer(s) | Rick Jarrard | |||
| Harry Nilsson singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Audio | ||||
| "One" by Harry Nilsson on YouTube | ||||
A better-known cover version, recorded by Three Dog Night, reached number five on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100[4] in 1969 and number four in Canada. In 1969, the song was also recorded by Australian pop singer Johnny Farnham, reaching number four on the Go-Set National Top 40 Chart.[5]
Three Dog Night version
edit| "One" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Late 1970s US reissue | ||||
| Single by Three Dog Night | ||||
| from the album Three Dog Night | ||||
| B-side | "Chest Fever" | |||
| Released | April 1969 | |||
| Recorded | 1968 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 3:06 (album) 2:55 (single) | |||
| Label | Dunhill | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Harry Nilsson | |||
| Producer(s) | Gabriel Mekler | |||
| Three Dog Night singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Audio | ||||
| "One" by Three Dog Night on YouTube | ||||
Three Dog Night released One as the second single from their eponymous first album, with Chuck Negron performing the lead vocal.[8] It became their first of seven gold records over the next five years.
The original issue of the single version fades out about ten seconds before the final notes heard on the album version. Upon reissues by ABC Records and its successor labels, the label reverted to the album version which is heard on radio today.
The song reached number five on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and spent three weeks at number two on the Cash Box Top 100.[9] It also reached number four in Canada.
Chart performance
editCertifications
edit| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United States (RIAA)[14] | Gold | 1,000,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
Other versions
editMany cover versions have been recorded. Among the most notable are:
- Johnny Farnham released "One" as a double-sided single with "Mr. Whippy" in 1969, reaching number four in Australia.[15]
- US rock band Filter recorded a version of the song in 1998 for the first X-Files movie, re-interpreting the lyrics towards the show's main antagonist, the Cigarette Smoking Man. The song was first released on The X-Files: The Album and later featured as a bonus track on the German release of their album Title of Record in 1999.
- A cover by Aimee Mann is used in the 1999 film Magnolia. The song is the opening track for the movie's soundtrack album. This version is also used in the In Plain Sight season 5 episode 4 'The Merry Wives of WitSec'.
References
edit- ^ "Playlist: Best Harry Nilsson songs for what would be his 75th birthday". Azcentral.com. June 16, 2016. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
- ^ Coleman, Mark; Matos, Michaelangelo (2004). "Harry Nilsson". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 586–587. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Harry Nilsson – Everybody's Talkin' [BMG]". AllMusic. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
- ^ "One (song by Three Dog Night) ••• Music VF, US & UK hits charts". Musicvf.com. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
- ^ Nimmervoll, Ed (September 13, 1969). "National Top 40". Go-Set. Waverley Press. Retrieved May 16, 2014.
- ^ Moore, Rick (2017). "Three Dog Night, "One"". American Songwriter. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
"Nilsson's 'One' was very melancholy, lacked passion," he said. "It was a song sang to the beat of a busy signal … We turned that into a rock and roll song.
- ^ Pitchfork Staff (August 18, 2006). "The 200 Best Songs of the 1960s". Pitchfork. Retrieved October 12, 2022.
I grew up on Three Dog Night's R&B bombast so returning to Harry's original I forget how wispy and ethereal this tune could be.
- ^ YouTube.com "Old Fashioned Love Song by Three Dog Night" video - live performance
- ^ a b "Cash Box Top 100 7/19/69". tropicalglen.com. Archived from the original on July 18, 2013.
- ^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
- ^ "RPM's Top 100 of 1969". RPM. January 10, 1970.
- ^ "Top 100 Hits of 1969/Top 100 Songs of 1969". www.musicoutfitters.com.
- ^ "Cash Box YE Pop Singles - 1969". tropicalglen.com. Archived from the original on January 25, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
- ^ "American single certifications – Three Dog Night – One". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved February 14, 2019.
- ^ "Go-Set National Top 40, 11 October 1969".
External links
edit- Review of "One" on allmusic.com