Song:When I Need You
Album:The Very Best Of Leo Sayer
When I Need You was one of two number one hits for British singer songwriter Leo Sayer in 1976. He had some other hits but that and You Make Me Feel Like Dancing are the two most folks remember. He still does well in England today. He was born Gerard Hugh Sayer May 21, 1948 in Shoreham-by-Sea, Sussex, England. He was leader of the Terraplane Blues Band in the late 60s. He formed Patches with drummer David Courtney. Courtney used to play with British pop star Adam Faith. At the time, Faith was transitioning into being an artist manager. Courtney brought Patches to Faith. Faith didn't like Patches but he liked Sayer and got him a recording contract with Chrysalis Records. Sayer started recording at Roger Daltrey's studio and Daltrey used several of Sayer's songs on his solo album. And Sayer's song And The Show Must Go On was a hit in the US for Three Dog Night in 1973. So Warner Bros. signed him to a contract for the US. Long Tall Glasses was Sayer's first US top ten hit in 1975. Meanwhile, Sayer split with Courtney and started working with former Supertramp member Frank Farrell. For the 1976 album Endless Flight, Faith hired high powered producer Richard Perry. It was the first album Sayer recorded in Los Angeles with LA studio musicians. And unlike Sayer's previous albums, Perry used songs by outside writers instead of Sayer's own songs. You Make Me Feel Like Dancing and When I Need You both reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. When I Need You was written by Albert Hammond and Carole Bayer Sager and Hammond recorded it on his 1976 album When I Need You. It borrows the melody from the Leonard Cohen song Famous Blue Raincoat. Cohen's publisher sued and it was settled out of court. The sax solo was by Steve Madaio. This Rhino comp is a good intro to his music. Sayer faded in the US but continued to chart in England. He now lives in Australia. Here's Leo Sayer performing When I Need You on The Midnight Special 1976.
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