To Be with You
Encyclopedia
"To Be with You" is a song by the American
hard rock
band Mr. Big
. It appears on the album Lean into It
. The song charted in 20 plus countries, many of them at number one, such as on the United States Billboard Hot 100
. It also reached a peak of number three in the UK.
"To Be With You" is about a man who has his eye on a woman who has recently experienced a broken heart from a previous relationship.
The song was written and composed by Eric Martin during his teen years. Raoul contributed to its melodic arrangements later on. Writing credit is also given to David Grahame, a songwriter working for the label at the time (though exactly what contributions each of the three men made to the song is unclear).
In his solo career, Mr. Big guitarist Paul Gilbert
performed the song live using the riff from the Van Halen
song "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love
".
performed the song during the acoustic session of their 2003 Greatest Hits Tour, and it was subsequently included on their Turnaround
album later that year.
Tyler Ward YouTube star also sang a cover.
Australian male vocal group Human Nature
included a cover of the song in their 2004 Walk the Tightrope
studio album. Their interpretation was somewhat more pop/R&B than the original.
Old Man Gloom
performed an acoustic cover of the song titled under the guise of "Gratuitous Bonus Track Made By Sensible Musicians Doing Questionable Things" on their 2003 EP Christmas Eve I and II + 6
.
Andrew Spencer has also made dance remixes of the song in late 2007, early 2008. The pop-punk band Allister
and Japanese "bilingual melodic punk
band" Nicotine have also recorded covers of the song.
The song is also featured in the first act of Rock of Ages
.
12" maxi
CD maxi
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
hard rock
Hard rock
Hard rock is a loosely defined genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock...
band Mr. Big
Mr. Big (band)
Mr. Big is an American rock supergroup, formed in Los Angeles, California in 1988. The band is a quartet composed of Eric Martin , Paul Gilbert , Billy Sheehan , and Pat Torpey ; Mr. Big also included Richie Kotzen, a reputable blues-based guitarist who replaced Gilbert in 1999...
. It appears on the album Lean into It
Lean into It
Lean into It is an album by hard rock band Mr. Big, released in 1991. Known as the band's breakthrough release, it peaked at number 15 on the Billboard 200 charts, while the single "To Be With You" became the band's first and only song to hit number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100...
. The song charted in 20 plus countries, many of them at number one, such as on the United States Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
. It also reached a peak of number three in the UK.
"To Be With You" is about a man who has his eye on a woman who has recently experienced a broken heart from a previous relationship.
The song was written and composed by Eric Martin during his teen years. Raoul contributed to its melodic arrangements later on. Writing credit is also given to David Grahame, a songwriter working for the label at the time (though exactly what contributions each of the three men made to the song is unclear).
In his solo career, Mr. Big guitarist Paul Gilbert
Paul Gilbert
Paul Brandon Gilbert is an American guitarist. He is well known for his technical guitar work with Racer X and Mr...
performed the song live using the riff from the Van Halen
Van Halen
Van Halen is an American hard rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. The band has enjoyed success since the release of its debut album, Van Halen, . As of 2007 Van Halen has sold 80 million albums worldwide and has had the most #1 hits on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart...
song "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love
Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love
"Ain't Talkin' 'bout Love" is a song by Van Halen, from their 1978 eponymous debut album.When Eddie Van Halen originally wrote the song a year before the album was released, he did not consider it good enough to show his bandmates....
".
History
While in Paul's apartment at Yucca Street in L.A., Eric and Paul were laying out their compositions. Eric had a ballad called "To Be With You". Paul had his psychedelic rock song called "Green Tinted Sixties Mind". Both felt the two songs were strong enough to be included in their upcoming album, despite it being purely rock; and true enough, these songs remained throughout the course of their career as a group and as solo artists.Cover versions
Irish pop group WestlifeWestlife
Westlife are an Irish boy band established on 3 July 1998. They are to disband in 2012. The group's line-up was Nicky Byrne, Kian Egan, Mark Feehily, Shane Filan, and Brian McFadden . The group are the only act in British and Irish history to have their first seven singles peak at number one...
performed the song during the acoustic session of their 2003 Greatest Hits Tour, and it was subsequently included on their Turnaround
Turnaround (Westlife album)
Turnaround is the fourth studio album by Irish boy band Westlife and it was released on 24 November 2003. The first single released was the upbeat track, "Hey Whatever". The song is essentially a cover of Irish rock band Relish's Rainbow Zephyr, but with a slightly changed set of lyrics and a...
album later that year.
Tyler Ward YouTube star also sang a cover.
Australian male vocal group Human Nature
Human Nature (band)
Human Nature are an Australian pop vocal group. The group was originally formed as a doo-wop band in 1989 while the current members were at school together in Sydney. So far, the band has had 17 Top 40 hits and five Top 10 hits in Australia since 1996 when their first album Telling Everybody was...
included a cover of the song in their 2004 Walk the Tightrope
Walk the Tightrope
Walk the Tightrope is the fourth album by Australian boy band and pop vocal group Human Nature released on 26 April 2004. After a three year absence since their greatest hits album, Here & Now: The Best of Human Nature, the group returned with a more adult-contemporary sound, presaging their future...
studio album. Their interpretation was somewhat more pop/R&B than the original.
Old Man Gloom
Old Man Gloom
Old Man Gloom is a sludge/doom metal/post-metal band originally formed in Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States, but now based in Massachusetts. The group, formed by Aaron Turner of Isis and Santos Montano, has now expanded to become a sort of supergroup in the Boston hardcore and metalcore scene....
performed an acoustic cover of the song titled under the guise of "Gratuitous Bonus Track Made By Sensible Musicians Doing Questionable Things" on their 2003 EP Christmas Eve I and II + 6
Christmas Eve I and II + 6
Christmas Eve I and II + 6 is an EP by post-metal band Old Man Gloom and was released on a 3" mini CD format.- Track listing :#"Christmas Eve Part I" – 7:08...
.
Andrew Spencer has also made dance remixes of the song in late 2007, early 2008. The pop-punk band Allister
Allister
Allister is an American pop punk band from Chicago, Illinois. The four-piece formed in 1996 and were one of the first bands to sign to Drive-Thru Records...
and Japanese "bilingual melodic punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band" Nicotine have also recorded covers of the song.
The song is also featured in the first act of Rock of Ages
Rock of Ages (musical)
Rock of Ages is a rock/jukebox musical, with a book by Chris D'Arienzo, built around classic rock hits from the 1980s, especially from the famous glam metal bands of the decade. The musical features songs from Styx, Journey, Bon Jovi, Pat Benatar, Twisted Sister, Steve Perry, Poison and Asia, among...
.
Formats and track listings
7" single- "To Be with You" (LP Version) (3:27)
- "Green-Tinted Sixties Mind" (LP Version) (3:30)
12" maxi
- "To Be with You"
- "A Little Too Loose" (Live)
- "The Drill Song (Daddy, Brother, Lover, Little Boy)" (Live)
- "Alive And Kickin'" (Live)
CD maxi
- "To Be with You" (3:27)
- "Green-Tinted Sixties Mind" (3:30)
- "Alive And Kickin'" (5:28)
Peak positions
| Chart (1992) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart | 1 |
| Austrian Singles Chart Ö3 Austria Top 40 Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann... |
1 |
| Dutch Top 40 | 1 |
| French Singles Chart Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
10 |
| German Singles Chart Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
1 |
| Irish Singles Chart Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured... |
2 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 1 |
| Norwegian Singles Chart VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
1 |
| Swedish Singles Chart Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association .... |
1 |
| Swiss Singles Chart Swiss Music Charts The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75... |
1 |
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
3 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks The Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States... |
11 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks | 19 |
End of year charts
| End of year chart (1992) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart | 4 |
| Austrian Singles Chart | 5 |
| Dutch Top 40 | 7 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 3 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 12 |
End of decade charts
| Chart (1990–1999) | Position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 90 |
Certifications
| Country | Certification | Date | Sales certified |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | Gold | 1992 | 250,000 |
| Netherlands | Gold | 1992 | 40,000 |
| U.S. | Gold | February 12, 1992 | 500,000 |