"On My Own"
Single by Patti LaBelle and Michael McDonald
from the album Winner in You
Released	March 22, 1986
Format	Maxi single, CD
Recorded	1985
Genre	R&B, soul, soft rock, pop rock, adult contemporary, pop, ballad
Length	4:50
Label	MCA
Writer(s)	Burt Bacharach, Carole Bayer Sager
Certification	Gold (RIAA)
Patti LaBelle and Michael McDonald singles chronology
LaBelle: "Stir It Up" (1985) McDonald: "No Lookin' Back" (1985) "On My Own" (1986) LaBelle: "Oh, People" (1986) McDonald: "Sweet Freedom" (1986)

"On My Own" was a hit duet by singers Patti LaBelle and Michael McDonald when it was released as a single in 1986. It was released from LaBelle's first platinum album, Winner in You and was written and produced by Burt Bacharach and his former wife Carole Bayer Sager. The song was based on a relationship that had reached its end with both parties going their separate ways in a melancholy state with the occasional option of coming back together again one day.

It was often stated the two performers were in separate cities when they recorded their individual parts which were then "married" during mastering. This was reflected in the music video produced to promote the song, which depicted LaBelle and McDonald performing the song simultaneously on different coasts. The singers were shown on separate sides of a split screen, each singing the song while walking through apartments which had identical layouts but different decor and furniture. The views from their respective porches, where they finished the song, made clear their separation by the continent.

[edit] Chart performance

The song became the biggest single ever for both singers, both of whom were members of respective funk/R&B groups in the 1970s: LaBelle and The Doobie Brothers - as it hit number one on the Billboard magazine pop, for 3 weeks, the R&B and Adult Contemporary charts, as well as number two in the UK singles chart, going gold - (it was the 22nd best-selling single of 1986 in the UK). The song was initially not intended to be a duet at all, but LaBelle decided to invite McDonald to help her turn the song into a duet, as she stated: "The song was sent to me and I did a version of it but somehow it just didn't quite work. We were going over things I'd done and we talked about turning it into a duet. Someone asked, 'If you could do it with anyone, who would you sing it with,' and Michael was my first choice..." ^[1]

[edit] Chart positions

[edit] Reba McEntire version

"On My Own"
Single by Reba McEntire
from the album Starting Over
Released	1995
Format	CD single
Genre	Country
Length	4:34
Label	MCA Nashville
Producer	Tony Brown, Reba McEntire
Reba McEntire singles chronology
"And Still" (1995) "On My Own" (1995) "Ring on Her Finger, Time on Her Hands" (1995)

In 1995, country music sinnger Reba McEntire covered the song on her 1995 album Starting Over. Her version, featuring guest vocals from Martina McBride, Linda Davis, and Trisha Yearwood peaked at #20 on Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart, although only McEntire received chart credit for it. Its music video was directed by Dominic Orlando and was filmed on the Chaplin Stage.

[edit] Chart positions

[edit] Other covers

This song was also covered by Sheena Easton in 2000, on her album Fabulous.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• On My Own at Allmusic