Yearning for Your Love

"Yearning for Your Love"
side-A label
One of side-A labels of the US single
Single by the Gap Band
from the album The Gap Band III
B-side
ReleasedJanuary 1981
GenreQuiet storm[1]
Length3:59 (single edit)
5:43 (album version)
LabelMercury
Songwriters
  • Oliver Scott
  • Ronnie Wilson
The Gap Band singles chronology
"Humpin'"
(1980)
"Yearning for Your Love"
(1981)
"Early in the Morning"
(1982)

"Yearning for Your Love" is a 1980 ballad recorded and released by the Gap Band on Mercury Records. The single was the third release off the band's fifth album, The Gap Band III (1980). Four different singles, each with a different B-side, were released in 1981.

The song became a modest hit on the US and UK charts when it was released; it arose to number 5 on the Hot Soul Singles chart and number 60 on the Billboard Hot 100. Written by Gap Band keyboardist Oliver Scott and keyboardist Ronnie Wilson, it was a romantic love song dedicated to Wilson's wife at the time and was performed by Ronnie's brother Charlie Wilson.

Structure

The song was markedly different in style from the past few hits, with less emphasis on synthesizers, instead on "light slices of guitar, smooth keyboard pads and soft percussion".[2]

Releases

  1. "Yearning for Your Love" / "Burn Rubber"
  2. "Yearning for Your Love" / "Humpin'"
  3. "Yearning for Your Love" / "When I Look in Your Eyes"
  4. "Yearning for Your Love" / "Oops Upside Your Head"

Personnel

  • Lead vocals by Charlie Wilson
  • Background vocals by Oliver Scott, Ronnie Wilson and Robert Wilson
  • Drums by Ronnie Kaufman
  • Guitars by Fred Jenkins, Glenn Nightingale
  • Bass by Robert Wilson
  • Synthesizers by Ronnie Wilson
  • Keyboards by Oliver Scott

Charts

Chart (1981) Peak
position
US Billboard Hot 100 60
US Hot Soul Singles Chart 5

Famous cover versions

In 1990, Guy also covered the song on their 1990 album, The Future.[3]

In 2001, keyboardist Kevin Toney covered the song on his album Strut. The song featured Evelyn "Champagne" King on vocals.[4]

References

  1. ↑ Harvey, Eric (May 19, 2012). "The Quiet Storm". Pitchfork. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
  2. ↑ "Yearning for Your Love - The Gap Band | Song Info | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  3. ↑ "Strut overview". AllMusic.
  4. ↑ "Contempo October 2001". SmoothVibes.com. Archived from the original on 2011-07-17. Retrieved 2010-07-01.