Eric Carmen’s All By Myself: The Perfect #1 Hit That Almost Wasn’t
The iconic pop music singer Eric Carmen died peacefully in his sleep over the weekend at the age of 74. For fans, it was a punch in the gut. It feels like we lost a longtime, personal friend. In some respects, he was the soundtrack of our lives.
The world of music’s who’s who has shared their appreciation for this musical genius. Names like have shared their condolences on social media.
But with all of this very well deserved recognition, Eric Carmen himself would be the first to say that even he had to be his biggest salesman. But why?
The Raspberries
Before we dig in, we have to examine the incredible staying power of Eric Carmen. First as leader as the 70’s band The Raspberries, Eric had international hits like I Wanna Be With You, and Let’s Pretend. We can’t forget his biggest band hit, Go All The Way, which had a modern day resurgence. It was used on the Guardians Of The Galexy movie soundtrack, reaching an entire new audience.
John Lennon Loved Eric Carmen
It was reported that even the iconic Beatle John Lennon would visit Eric and The Raspberries while recording to watch and offer a helping hand. One such report says that an uncredited Lennon helped mix Raspberries hit Overnight Sensation.
Eric Carmen’s All By Myself
Believe it or not, his biggest hit, All By Myself, was all alone, when it came to support from Eric’s own record label. When it came time to showcase his first solo album, label executive’s did not like All By Myself. They made it clear that they didn’t want to release it first, because “it was a ballad.” Add to that the record label’s own in house research said the song was in fact “not a hit.” Upon this shocking news, there were only two people that disagreed. Arista head Clive Davis, and Eric himself.
Clive insisted that Eric Carmen’s All By Myself be released first.
It became the biggest hit of Eric’s career.
The lesson: we must trust ourself. Even the experts get it wrong. See the wonderful story in Eric’s own words.