Nobody Knows (Tony Rich song)

"Nobody Knows"
Single by The Tony Rich Project
from the album Words
Released January 14, 1996
Format 7", CD single, cassette single
Recorded 1995
Genre R&B
Length 5:06
Label LaFace/Arista
Writer(s) Joe Rich, Don DuBose
Producer(s) Tony Rich
The Tony Rich Project singles chronology
"Nobody Knows"
(1996)		 "Like a Woman"
(1996)

"Nobody Knows" is a song by R&B artist Tony Rich from his 1996 debut album Words. Released as his debut single, the song peaked at #11 on the soul singles chart.[1] Elsewhere, "Nobody Knows" went to #2 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks charts.[2] Rich received a nomination for the 1997 Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance; he lost to Eric Clapton's "Change the World".

Track list

-US CD Single (73008-24116-2)

  1. Album Version 5:06
  2. Eddie F.'s Untouchable Remix 6:17
  3. Rich Remix 5:32
  4. Album Instrumental 5:06

Official versions

  1. Nobody Knows [Album Version] 5:06
  2. Nobody Knows [Radio Edit] 4:22
  3. Nobody Knows [Album Instrumental] 5:06
  4. Nobody Knows [Eddie F.'s Untouchable Remix] 6:17
  5. Nobody Knows [Rich Remix] 5:32

Chart positions

Peak positions

Chart (1996) Peak
position
Australian Singles Chart 2
Canadian RPM Top Singles 2
Dutch Top 40 13
New Zealand Singles Chart 19
Irish Singles Chart 1
Swedish Singles Chart 15
United Kingdom Singles Chart 4
U.S. Billboard Hot R&B Singles 11
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 2
U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks 2

End of year charts

End of year chart (1996) Position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[3] 4

End of decade charts

Chart (1990-1999) Position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[4] 61

Kevin Sharp version

"Nobody Knows"
Single by Kevin Sharp
from the album Measure of a Man
Released September 23, 1996
Format CD single
Genre Country
Length 3:27
Label Asylum
Producer(s) Chris Farren
Kevin Sharp singles chronology
"Nobody Knows"
(1996)		 "She's Sure Taking It Well"
(1997)

American country music artist Kevin Sharp recorded a cover version of the song on his 1996 debut album Measure of a Man. It was released in September 1996 as his debut single. It became Sharp's only number-one single on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts, spending four weeks at the top of the chart.

Critical reception

Deborah Evans Price, of Billboard magazine reviewed the song favorably, saying that his "smooth, melodic voice and sensitive interpretation of the lyric signal show promise for this talented new artist.""[5]

Music video

The music video was directed by Jeffrey Phillips and premiered in late 1996.

Chart positions

"Nobody Knows" debuted at number 75 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks for the week of September 28, 1996.

Chart (1996–1997) Peak
position
Canada Country Tracks (RPM)[6] 1
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[7] 1

Year-end charts

Chart (1997) Position
Canada Country Tracks (RPM)[8] 22
US Country Songs (Billboard)[9] 51
Preceded by
"One Way Ticket (Because I Can)" by LeAnn Rimes		 Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks number-one single
(Kevin Sharp version)
January 11, 1997 - February 1, 1997 		Succeeded by
"It's a Little Too Late" by Mark Chesnutt
Preceded by
"I Meant to Do That" by Paul Brandt		 RPM Country Tracks number-one single
(Kevin Sharp version)
January 20, 1997 		Succeeded by
"Maybe We Should Just Sleep on It" by Tim McGraw

Other versions

In 1997, saxophonist Richard Elliot covered the song from his album "Jumpin' Off."[10][11] Eli Mattson delivered a piano/vocal cover on the third season of America's Got Talent in 2008. British boyband JLS also recorded a cover of the song; it was leaked onto the internet in June 2010 and has now appeared as the B-Side to their single She Makes Me Wanna. British pop singer Shayne Ward included a cover on his third album, Obsession. The song is featured on the Boyzone album, BZ20, released in November 2013.

References

  1. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 491.
  2. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 203.
  3. ↑ "Billboard Top 100 - 1996". Retrieved 2010-08-27.
  4. ↑ Geoff Mayfield (December 25, 1999). 1999 The Year in Music Totally '90s: Diary of a Decade - The listing of Top Pop Albums of the '90s & Hot 100 Singles of the '90s. Billboard. Retrieved October 15, 2010.
  5. ↑ Billboard, October 12, 1996.
  6. ↑ "Top RPM Country Tracks: Issue 9797." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. January 20, 1997. Retrieved July 17, 2013.
  7. ↑ "Kevin Sharp Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Hot Country Songs for Kevin Sharp.
  8. ↑ "RPM Top 100 Country Tracks of 1997". RPM. December 15, 1997. Retrieved July 17, 2013.
  9. ↑ "Best of 1997: Country Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 1997. Retrieved July 17, 2013.
  10. ↑ "Jumpin' Off overview". Allmusic.com.
  11. ↑ "Jumpin' Off - Richard Elliot". JazzTimes.com.