Without You (Keith Urban song)

2011 single by Keith Urban

"Without You"

Single by Keith Urban
from the album  Get Closer
Released| 7 February 2011
Recorded| 2010
Genre|

* Country pop[1]
* pop rock[1]

Length| 3:56
Label| Capitol Nashville
Songwriter(s)| Joe West
Dave Pahanish[2]
Producer(s)| Dann Huff
Keith Urban
Keith Urban singles chronology
| "Put You in a Song"
(2010)  | "Without You"
(2011)  | "Long Hot Summer"
(2011)

|
|

"Without You" is a song written by Joe West and Dave Pahanish[2] and recorded by Australian country music artist Keith Urban. It was released in February 2011 as the second single from Urban's 2010 album Get Closer. The song reached number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.[3]

This song should not be confused with another song of the same title that Urban had recorded on his Australian self-titled 1991 debut album.

## Background

[edit]

Urban described the song as his "life story" and considered it "an amazing song that [he] would have never allowed [himself] to write."[4]

## Content

[edit]

"Without You" is a ballad in which the narrator says that his life would not have any meaning without his lover. This song is set in the key of A-flat major and is accompanied mainly by acoustic guitar, banjo and fiddle. It has a main chord pattern of A♭-A♭/G♭-D♭sus2/F-D♭ and a vocal range from E♭4 to F5.[5]

## Critical reception

[edit]

Matt Bjorke of Roughstock gave the song five stars out of five, citing it a song that "suits Keith Urban and his life with wife Nicole Kidman."[6] Blake Boldt of Engine 145 gave the song a "thumbs down," stating that Urban is "at his best when exploring heart's aches and pains," and saying that it "lacks the excitement of past hits."[7]

## Music video

[edit]

The video for the song was directed by Chris Hicky. Filmed entirely in black-and-white, it shows Urban performing the song while seated on a stool in an empty bedroom, while home footage of his personal and professional life is shown projected onto the background. Keith would use this same setup (complete with black-and-white lighting) for his performance of the song at the 2011 ACM Awards.

## Chart performance

[edit]

"Without You" debuted at number 47 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts for the week of 19 February 2011.[8] It also debuted at number 95 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart for the week of 26 March 2011.

Chart (2011)  | Peak
position

|

Australia (ARIA)[9] | 39
Canada Country (Billboard)[10] | 2
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[11] | 69
US Billboard Hot 100[12] | 52
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[13] | 1

### Year-end charts

[edit]

Chart (2011)  | Position

|

US Country Songs (Billboard)[14] | 29

## Certifications

[edit]

Region  | Certification | Certified units/sales

|
|

Australia (ARIA)[15] | Gold  | 35,000‡
United States (RIAA)[16] | Gold  | 500,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b "Get Closer - Keith Urban". Allmusic. Retrieved 29 February 2016.
2. ^ a b Morris, Edward (23 June 2011). "Keith Urban Celebrates No. 1 "Without You" With Writers Dave Pahanish, Joe West". Country Music Television. Archived from the original on 26 June 2011. Retrieved 29 May 2012.
3. ^ Billboard Hot Country Songs
4. ^ Keith Urban Says 'Without You' is His 'Life Story'/
5. ^ "'Without You' sheet music". MusicNotes.com. 8 August 2011. Retrieved 16 March 2012.
6. ^ Bjorke, Matt (31 January 2011). "Keith Urban — "Without You"". Roughstock. Retrieved 15 March 2011.
7. ^ Boldt, Blake (15 February 2011). "Keith Urban — "Without You"". Engine 145. Retrieved 15 March 2011.
8. ^ Billboard Hot Country Songs – 19 February 2011
9. ^ "Keith Urban – Without You". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 2012-10-05.
10. ^ "Keith Urban Chart History (Canada Country)". Billboard. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
11. ^ "Keith Urban Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 17 March 2011.
12. ^ "Keith Urban Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 17 March 2011.
13. ^ "Keith Urban Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 17 March 2011.
14. ^ "Best of 2011: Country Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2011. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
15. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2021 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 4 February 2022.
16. ^ "American single certifications – Keith Urban – Without You". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 24 August 2019.

* v
* t
* e

Keith Urban singles

Discography

Keith Urban|

* "It's a Love Thing"
* "Your Everything"
* "But for the Grace of God"
* "Where the Blacktop Ends"

Golden Road|

* "Somebody Like You"
* "Raining on Sunday"
* "Who Wouldn't Wanna Be Me"
* "You'll Think of Me"

Be Here|

* "Days Go By"
* "You're My Better Half"
* "Making Memories of Us"
* "Better Life"
* "Tonight I Wanna Cry"

Love, Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing|

* "Once in a Lifetime"
* "Stupid Boy"
* "I Told You So"
* "Everybody"

Greatest Hits: 19 Kids|

* "You Look Good in My Shirt"

Defying Gravity|

* "Sweet Thing"
* "Kiss a Girl"
* "Only You Can Love Me This Way"
* "'Til Summer Comes Around"
* "I'm In"

Get Closer|

* "Put You in a Song"
* "Without You"
* "Long Hot Summer"
* "You Gonna Fly"

Fuse|

* "Little Bit of Everything"
* "Shame"
* "We Were Us"
* "Cop Car"
* "Somewhere in My Car"
* "Raise 'Em Up"

Ripcord|

* "John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16"
* "Break on Me"
* "Wasted Time"
* "Blue Ain't Your Color"
* "The Fighter"

Graffiti U|

* "Female"
* "Parallel Line"
* "Coming Home"
* "Never Comin Down"

The Speed of Now Part 1|

* "We Were"
* "God Whispered Your Name"
* "Polaroid"
* "Superman"
* "Change Your Mind"
* "One Too Many"

High|

* "Straight Line"
* "Messed Up as Me"

TBA|

* "Wild Hearts"
* "Nightfalls"
* "Brown Eyes Baby"
* "Street Called Main"

Collaborative songs|

* "America the Beautiful"
* "The Twelfth of Never"
* "Funky Tonight"
* "In God's Hands"
* "Start a Band"
* "Lean on Me"
* "Highway Don't Care"
* "Be a Light"
* "Forever Country"
* "Love Songs Ain't for Us"
* "Throw It Back"
* "That's When"

Other songs|

* "Arms of Mary"
* "For You"

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