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Eva Cassidy — Ain't No Sunshine
Album: Time After Time
Avg rating:
7.7

Your rating:
Total ratings: 2894









Released: 2000
Length: 3:21
Plays (last 30 days): 0
Ain't no sunshine when he's gone.
It's not warm when he's away.
Ain't no sunshine when he's gone.
And he's always gone too long.
Anytime he goes away.

I Wonder this time where he's gone.
Wonder how long he's gonna stay.
Ain't no sunshine when he's gone.
And this house just ain't no home.
Anytime he goes away.

I know x 16
I know where he's gone
Oh he's gone too long
Anytime he goes away
Anytime he goes away
Anytime he goes away
Comments (220)add comment
Why does almost every artist covering this conclude that what the song needs is a lot more "I knows"?
 R7-12 wrote:

Eva was indeed a great singer and this is a good version, but the very best rendition must be Jose Feliciano's live take.

The video is grainy and so is the audio but the power and groove still comes through in spades.

Check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-lUBlbJkrQ 



Eva's version is absolutely stellar, too.  I see no reason to rank her lower than the best singers who cover other songs. She was able to cover a song i n a way that made it her own, this song being one of her best examples.  I would like to hear Bill Withers or Jose Feliciano cover Somewhere Over The Rainbow and make that one their own the way Eva made it hers. She was immensely underrated when she was alive; an exceedingly rare, superb talent at interpretation.
 radioparadise9 wrote:


For me "I know you by heart"


Somewhere over the rainbow
 DennisOlin wrote:
Oh my god that voice... I hope God is taking good care of her 


God's record isn't good, hasn't ever done a darn thing.
 Signwrtr61 wrote:
Kajukenbo wrote:


FWIW from a Christian perspective, I think the reason bad things happen to good people (i.e. Trump is alive but Eva is not) is because of free will. God does not control us and we are free to make mistakes. And a lot of people make a lot of mistakes. And a lot of people do wonderful things. Long story short, we are free to make mistakes and many unfair things happen. It is up to you to determine if God is there with you or not as you go through life both making mistakes and doing wonderful things. 
Most eloquently stated. I agree with you, 100%! The cause of death was not "contracted" from another....it was a poor choice on her behalf, to spend too much time in the sun, perhaps. Very sad, regardless. Undoubtedly, looking down upon us, from a much better place, in the "room" God had prepared for her. RI.P, dear Eva. And, thank you for the "treasures" you've left us with!

 
Ugh to both of you. Cancer is hard enough (I've been there), but to lay "blame" at the feet of the afflicted is worthy of dunking both of you in hot mud. naked. in public.   And recall the joy that Eva, thru her voice, brought to many.  May neither of you ever enjoy field of gold.
Hot Damn.
FUCK CANCER
 Kajukenbo wrote:


FWIW from a Christian perspective, I think the reason bad things happen to good people (i.e. Trump is alive but Eva is not) is because of free will. God does not control us and we are free to make mistakes. And a lot of people make a lot of mistakes. And a lot of people do wonderful things. Long story short, we are free to make mistakes and many unfair things happen. It is up to you to determine if God is there with you or not as you go through life both making mistakes and doing wonderful things. 
Most eloquently stated. I agree with you, 100%! The cause of death was not "contracted" from another....it was a poor choice on her behalf, to spend too much time in the sun, perhaps. Very sad, regardless. Undoubtedly, looking down upon us, from a much better place, in the "room" God had prepared for her. RI.P, dear Eva. And, thank you for the "treasures" you've left us with!

 tgrier wrote:

It will always be too soon to re do this song. #original 




Cannot agree. Eva's version is absolutely stellar, from a woman's voice. As Eva always did, she made the song her own. Of all the versions of this song that I've heard, it is either Bill Withers's original or Eva's wrenchingly beautiful version that I think of.
 radioparadise9 wrote:

Eva was outstanding ... "Eva died in 1996 from melanoma, the most deadly form of skin cancer. Her music was little-known during her 33 years of life, but today her soul-stirring voice is reaching people all over the world."

You've got 2 "Gods" in a single sentence.

I'm an atheist ... my question to you: Eva died at 33 but Donald Trump lives ... please explain 


Over


God's sovereign choice.  "Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated."

The problem with your question is that you are assuming God would have to be equally good to all, which He says He is not, and nor has history borne that out.  But "All things work together for good for those who love God."  This doesn't necessarily mean that Eva didn't love God and is thus in His favor, it could be that dying of melanoma at age 33 was the best thing that could happen to her and so that is what God chose to have happen.  I know this goes against your other implied assumption that death is always bad, but that assumption is invalid.  If in fact God is "taking good care of her" as DennisOlin hopes, then in fact her death carried with it the highest reward imaginable.

You are making invalid assumptions about how you think God should act, and in doing so you are creating a false idol of a god that you reject.
dammmit I'm trying to get out of the office and go home, but this playlist has me pinned
 radioparadise9 wrote:

Eva was outstanding ... "Eva died in 1996 from melanoma, the most deadly form of skin cancer. Her music was little-known during her 33 years of life, but today her soul-stirring voice is reaching people all over the world."

You've got 2 "Gods" in a single sentence.

I'm an atheist ... my question to you: Eva died at 33 but Donald Trump lives ... please explain 


Over


FWIW from a Christian perspective, I think the reason bad things happen to good people (i.e. Trump is alive but Eva is not) is because of free will. God does not control us and we are free to make mistakes. And a lot of people make a lot of mistakes. And a lot of people do wonderful things. Long story short, we are free to make mistakes and many unfair things happen. It is up to you to determine if God is there with you or not as you go through life both making mistakes and doing wonderful things. 
 reallylost wrote:

An extraordinary talent. Taken far too soon. So grateful that we have her recordings. 




So very true.
An extraordinary talent. Taken far too soon. So grateful that we have her recordings. 
Superb voice and nicely composed 😊
It will always be too soon to re do this song. #original 
 Fada1000 wrote:
love Eva, forever. here best is still "fields of gold"
 

For me "I know you by heart"
 DennisOlin wrote:
Oh my god that voice... I hope God is taking good care of her 
 
Eva was outstanding ... "Eva died in 1996 from melanoma, the most deadly form of skin cancer. Her music was little-known during her 33 years of life, but today her soul-stirring voice is reaching people all over the world."

You've got 2 "Gods" in a single sentence.

I'm an atheist ... my question to you: Eva died at 33 but Donald Trump lives ... please explain 


Over
What a voice
Oh my god that voice... I hope God is taking good care of her 
Quelle formidable chanteuse et merveilleuse personne. Quelle voix !
Hélas partie si tôt...
Not always a fan of her interpretations but her talent ALWAYS captures my attention. That said, she seemed to surround herself with some talented musicians too...a true artist and a great loss...
 eliaspace wrote:
Me First And The Gimme Gimmes version is MUCH better, hope to hear next time...:)

 
I like those fellas as well but i dont think the versions are really comparable. 😉
(why me first&the gimme gimmes would even start and cover sad songs is beyond my understanding, tbh..)
Me First And The Gimme Gimmes version is MUCH better, hope to hear next time...:)
 hayduke2 wrote:
Mr. Wither's is a solid 10
Ms. Cassidy's is excellent
the chirpy-cute Beatle is (imo) unable to bring any of the necessary angst and longing to this song so he gets ignored

 
Where does Joan Osborne's version rank? Thinking a 9
Oh my God - what a sad story.
Mr. Wither's is a solid 10
Ms. Cassidy's is excellent
the chirpy-cute Beatle is (imo) unable to bring any of the necessary angst and longing to this song so he gets ignored
Holy Sh*t.
Life's just not fair...
Paul McCartney does a nice cover of this song. 
Soul, grace & beauty. Wonderful cover version of this classic. 
Awesome! RIP Eva
Phenomenal voice, but I'm not feeling the passion in her delivery.  There's no edge?  I dunno. {#Ask}
 ppopp wrote:
I like Eva Cassidy, and I like BB King. But this song is unremarkable no matter who sings it. Way over-played, and generic blues at best.

 

 
================

The wiki for this song told me that Booker T. Jones produced the Bill Withers... and did the string arrangements. I never knew he did any of that.
You can't top the original, IMO, but this is a worthy effort.
let's just call it a great song
 smackiepipe wrote:
Started as a 7 until the piano kicked in. Went to 8. 

 
Agreed.
I like Eva Cassidy, and I like BB King. But this song is unremarkable no matter who sings it. Way over-played, and generic blues at best.
 calle01 wrote:
Why does every song Bill plays have some screeching woman crying in her soup???
Guessing?...  if you want to fall asleep or commit suicide.. Listen to 2/3 of RP's music. The other 1/3 is great!

 
ManBird?  Is that you?
 hayduke2 wrote:
what a turd you are calle01, your comments are all signs of a damaged personality

Imo, Eva Cassidy's music is strong and beautiful 

 
thanks, Yeah !
RIP Eva my love forever
what a turd you are calle01, your comments are all signs of a damaged personality

Imo, Eva Cassidy's music is strong and beautiful 
Started as a 7 until the piano kicked in. Went to 8.  Love her 'Wade in the Water' track that's played on RP, too. Great voice.
 Fada1000 wrote:
love Eva, forever. here best is still "fields of gold"

 
Agreed
Wow, highly rated...wonder why?  To me its a passable cover, at best.
What a voice ! didn't know her before I heard this song today ...
{#Bananapiano}   ........... voice from the gods "Outstanding"
Only 7 Eva Cassidy tracks in the library Bill?  {#Cry}
Lame!
{#Guitarist}tasty, soulful....
' me likey "{#Dance}{#Bananapiano} 
Saw Vienna Teng last month, she did a mashup of the original mixed in with Eminem's Lose Yourself. The songs worked really well together, and she absolutely crushed the rendition. 
love Eva, forever. here best is still "fields of gold"
I am such a fan of Eva, but in this case, the song itself just falls short for me, so not even Eva's exquisite voice can lift it beyond 8.
 Cynaera wrote:

Yep - an extraordinary voice, and gone too soon... RIP, Eva Cassidy.


 
Tragic loss to a terrible terrible illness!!!  33 years.  My Lord!!!  God Damn cancer!!!! 
Wow!  She did a marvelous job with this.  (Of course, I am a sucker for torch singers who put their heart into their vocals.) 
Verrrrry tasssssty.
mmhmm
the danny gatton story to eva's no shunshine
with commentary by the incomprable bill
i know i know i know i know
 Cynaera wrote:
Yep - an extraordinary voice, and gone too soon... RIP, Eva Cassidy.
 

Miss you so much, Cynaera...

this is a very moving cover...
 
Yawn. Wake me up when it's over.
She slays me with raw emotion. The raw and almost Wes Montgomery style guitar is a perfect touch with the unassuming piano. Oh this is good!
Opens my veins and flows in.... Thank You.
She had a way with a song...

Melody Gardot, Jill Barber, Madeleine Peyroux could follow and hold the mood...
Nice change-up pitch following Toni Price... Roy Orbison-? OK... It fits..
Very surprised at the high rating ... Strikes me as lounge music coming out of a strip mall bar.


finally - after months and months this is the first Eva Cassidy I actually catch on RP - thanks to the universe and Bill :)
 stevendejong wrote:

Actually I came here to complain about the horrible vocals. That Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Celine Dion trick. Absolutely terrible. Adele, on the other hand, does not jam five scales in each syllable. My intended post was:

Yawn, as if the original wasn't sleep-inducing enough, here comes a girl with a terribly morose cover. And too many vocal tricks. Hope never to hear it again.
 
Eva Cassidy was an exquisitely talented jazz, blues and R&B vocalist who died terribly young and pretty much unknown of a brain tumor at age 36 .  Her work was preserved by friends and is admired by just about every accomplished musician who has ever heard it.  And you are a boorish dumb-ass who prefers a can of Jolt Cola to a glass of fine wine.  Piss off, Stevie Boy.
 R7-12 wrote:
In my opinion, Eva rarely showboats like Adelle or C. Dion. That's why her songs seldom induce listening fatigue.
 
Actually I came here to complain about the horrible vocals. That Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Celine Dion trick. Absolutely terrible. Adele, on the other hand, does not jam five scales in each syllable. My intended post was:

Yawn, as if the original wasn't sleep-inducing enough, here comes a girl with a terribly morose cover. And too many vocal tricks. Hope never to hear it again.
 johnjconn wrote:

When this song was released, my sister and her friends would count the "I know, I know, I know, I know ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,"

27

For some stupid reason, I always remember there's 27 "I knows"

 
...thanks a lot for this info...{#Yes}.....another one musicdetail i´ll never forget the rest of my life....
Grace.
 Cynaera wrote:

Yep - an extraordinary voice, and gone too soon... RIP, Eva Cassidy.

 


I am really sorry I was unaware of her when she was alive.  She was quite a talent and it is really too bad she died way too young.
If one listens for the subtleties of Eva's vocal inflections the emotion and passion does indeed reveal itself. However, one must have a playback system with enough fidelity to reproduce at least some of that through the speakers.

In my opinion, Eva rarely showboats like Adelle or C. Dion. That's why her songs seldom induce listening fatigue.
Meh.
Edit: She knows... apparently.
 handyrae wrote:

I respectfully disagree. I think there's plenty of emotion there.
 

Here, here. I hear it too. A definite 9.
Life is unfair...always has been...always will be. Sigh...guess we have to make do with what we have and hope for the best. I miss Eva Cassidy.
Meh.  I'll give it a 5.
 fredriley wrote:

I wouldn't yawn because it's a nice enough cover, but there's no passion in her singing. Her voice is fine but it doesn't sound like she's pining for her lover, unlike the original cri de coeur. This would go down fine in a hotel bar late at night, but it doesn't rouse the emotions as it should do. 5 from the unmoved Nottingham jury, 9 for the original.

 
I respectfully disagree. I think there's plenty of emotion there.
 fredriley wrote:

I wouldn't yawn because it's a nice enough cover, but there's no passion in her singing. Her voice is fine but it doesn't sound like she's pining for her lover, unlike the original cri de coeur. This would go down fine in a hotel bar late at night, but it doesn't rouse the emotions as it should do. 5 from the unmoved Nottingham jury, 9 for the original.

 
Well said, Fred
 the_jake2 wrote:
Silky smooth sweet voice.
Very nice indeed.
 
What he said - lovely voice and arraignment.
This is one song that I like no matter who performs it. This is a nice version.
Such a shame that's she's gone! :'(
Voice of an angel.
reviewing my rating for the song 8 yup
One of my regrets in life is not being able to see her live.  RIP Eva.
Nice. "Wade in the Water" and "Oh, Had I a Golden Thread" are my two favorites of hers. Too bad we never got to see how she might have developed as an artist...
Eva was indeed a great singer and this is a good version, but the very best rendition must be Jose Feliciano's live take.

The video is grainy and so is the audio but the power and groove still comes through in spades.

Check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-lUBlbJkrQ 
Lounge singer?! Make it a double!
 Danimal174 wrote:
Pales in comparison to Bill Withers. Big yawn.
 
I wouldn't yawn because it's a nice enough cover, but there's no passion in her singing. Her voice is fine but it doesn't sound like she's pining for her lover, unlike the original cri de coeur. This would go down fine in a hotel bar late at night, but it doesn't rouse the emotions as it should do. 5 from the unmoved Nottingham jury, 9 for the original.

 Danimal174 wrote:
Pales in comparison to Bill Withers. Big yawn.
 
I think Bill would like this.

Eva sure had a great voice.  I love her version of "Fields of Gold" and "Over The Rainbow" as well.
Hahaha LOL ; )

 laozilover wrote:
Bill should play this track more often!  Don't recall hearing it before.
 


I know the "cult of the dead" like her, and anyone else who died before getting popular (yes, Nick Drake fans, I'm talking about you too). But I've never found her work to be anything better than I can hear in a local coffee house performance on a Saturday night.
Nice version...silky. {#Chillpill}{#Cowboy}
Pales in comparison to Bill Withers. Big yawn.
Nice. . .
 ricmo wrote:
Possibly one of the greatest vocal talents in the last 40 years! Makes virtually everyone out there (I won't mention Diana Krall) look anemic and sad.
 
Diana Krall doesn't need outside help to look anemic.
{#Roflol}
 melissa wrote:
Um mm, gone too soon.
 
Yep - an extraordinary voice, and gone too soon... RIP, Eva Cassidy.

An incredible voice. Gave me goose bumps.

Bill, thanks a bunch for the introduction!



Not as ghastly as her rendition of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" but still massively oversung.  Great voice but it lacked restraint.  And yes I am sorry for her sad demise, but feel she hit it just right with "Fields of Gold"

Bill Withers and MJ do this one best imho.

Excellent  version for Ain't no sunshine! I like it a lot....very sexy voice
Voice of an angel. With a little bit of devil peaking out!
Come on, Bill...you haven't played the original version of this song in EIGHT years, but this one gets played every few months. Please...let us hear Bill Withers doing this, instead of someone just doing a cover of his amazing song.
Possibly one of the greatest vocal talents in the last 40 years! Makes virtually everyone out there (I won't mention Diana Krall) look anemic and sad.
Um mm, gone too soon.
 Walrus_Gumbo wrote:
Great voice, but did she sing anything original? It seems she relied only on covers. I think she could have made the big time if she could have put her own signature on it.
 
She preferred to turn into gold what she touched with her blessed voice. Go figure.

Great voice, but did she sing anything original? It seems she relied only on covers. I think she could have made the big time if she could have put her own signature on it.
This woman did some amazing music. If you haven't spent some time with her music, I highly recommend you do.  Just wish she'd lived a little longer to see what she'd do next..
agreed. voice better than song. or piano.
very nice
Bill should play this track more often!  Don't recall hearing it before.


Eva's voice always gives me pause, and makes me listen.  beautiful
 Bakaretsu wrote:

I would say Evas voice is so much better than this song lends itself to (hear "Fields of Gold") ..............

 

Intersting. While I quite like her take on Fields of Gold, I prefer her voice on this song. It's less angelic, but has much more soul — if that makes any sense.
 stkman wrote:

Uh did ya figure out Sting didn't write this yet?

 
I don't think that's what he was saying.  Read the post again.

 sfListener wrote:
yeah. I heard her do a Sting cover here. Gave me more respect for Sting as a writer.
 
Uh did ya figure out Sting didn't write this yet?

Eva had a voice that was amazing, anything she sang was great yes other songs she did were more dynamic but she knocked this one out of the park and it is a killer song
All I know is that my lunch is digesting very well as she sings... gotta be worth sometin'... right..?{#Rolleyes} Solid 6
 reason06 wrote:


Can you articulate why?
 
I would say Evas voice is so much better than this song lends itself to (hear "Fields of Gold") ..............

Nice. But I prefer Wovenhand's version...
Nabla wrote:
Not bad... However, I still prefer the original version of Bill Withers .

I completely agree. This isn't bad, but it doesn't blow me away. Bill's original is masterful. I've heard Sting cover this, and his version is just as good as, or quite possibly better than, Eva's, IMO.

swinghamer wrote:
Sorry...I just don't see how this one is rated so high. I strongly dislike this version.
Can you articulate why?
Baby_M wrote:
Second that.
Is there such a thing as triple it? Anyway, one more than "second that".