All by Myself

According to Eric Carmen, he first wrote the solo part of the song, writing four bars at a time, eventually completing the interlude after two months. He needed to put this into a song, and after listening to Sergei Rachmaninoff's 2nd piano concerto, a piece famously used to underscore the 1945 British film Brief Encounter, he adapted the melody of its second movement to write the verse. Rachmaninoff's music was in the public domain in the United States at that time, so Carmen thought no copyright existed on it, but it was still protected outside the U.S. subsequent to the release of the album. He was later contacted by the Rachmaninoff estate and informed that it was protected.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HyijAwAAQBAJ&q=Eric+Carmen%2C+Sergei+Rachmaninoff&pg=PA17 |title=The Cliff Richard Recording Catalogue 1958-2010 |year=2010|access-date=November 30, 2014|isbn=9780956738400 |last1=Rust |first1=Victor |publisher=Victor Rust }} An agreement was reached in which the estate would receive 12 percent of the royalties from "All by Myself" as well as from "Never Gonna Fall in Love Again", which was based on the third movement from Rachmaninoff's Symphony No. 2.Soeder, John. "One Lonely Song, But Many Voices Keep Eric Carmen's Tear-Jerker in Rotation" The Plain Dealer February 12, 2006: J1Vandeventer, Mary. "Symphony Promises a Crowd Pleaser" The Beaumont Enterprise January 19, 2007

Carmen stated that he also incorporated part of another melody into this song. The melody of the chorus was taken from his previous 1973 hit with the Raspberries, "Let's Pretend".{{cite web|url=http://www.ericcarmen.com/eric-interview-01.html|title=An Interview with Eric Carmen|access-date=February 12, 2016}}

Carmen performed "All by Myself" and his follow-up hit, "Never Gonna Fall in Love Again", on The Midnight Special television program on July 23, 1976 (season 4, episode 37). The show was hosted by The Spinners.{{cite web|url=http://www.tv.com/shows/the-midnight-special/season-4/|title=The Midnight Special|website=TV.com|access-date=August 13, 2017|archive-date=August 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200808175606/http://www.tv.com/shows/the-midnight-special/season-4/|url-status=dead}}

The power ballad{{Cite web|url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/the-40-greatest-power-ballads-playlist|title=The 40 Greatest Power Ballads Playlist|first=Classic Rock14|last=February 2015|website=Classic Rock Magazine|date=February 14, 2015 |access-date=April 22, 2021}} was the first single from Carmen's first solo LP after leaving the power pop group the Raspberries and was released in December 1975. Billboard described the song as "a superb rock ballad...faithfully capturing most of the good time feel in rock."{{cite news|newspaper=Billboard|accessdate=2023-06-03|date=December 13, 1975|page=58|title=Top Single Picks|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/70s/1975/Billboard-1975-12-13.pdf}} Cash Box said that Carmen "captures the vocal power of at least two of the three Bee Gees and seems also to have tapped the lyric capabilities of a Paul McCartney."{{cite magazine |title=CashBox Singles Reviews |date=December 13, 1975 |page=16 |access-date=2023-06-03 |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/70s/1975/CB-1975-12-13.pdf |magazine=Cash Box}} Record World said that Carmen "croons over a backdrop of cascading strings on this self-penned delight from his recent album."{{cite magazine|title=Hits of the Week|magazine=Record World|date=December 20, 1975|page=1|accessdate=2023-06-02|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Record-World/70s/75/RW-1975-12-20.pdf}}

It reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100; both "Love Machine" by The Miracles and "December 1963 (Oh, What a Night)" by The Four Seasons, kept the song from number one.{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/charts/hot-100/1976-03-06|title=The Hot 100 Chart|magazine=Billboard|access-date=April 22, 2021}} "All by Myself" did reach number one on the Cash Box Top 100 Singles and number three in Canada. The single sold more than one million copies in the United States and was certified gold by the RIAA in April 1976.{{Cite web|url=http://riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?resultpage=1&table=SEARCH_RESULTS&action=&title=&artist=eric%20carmen&format=SINGLE&debutLP=&category=&sex=&releaseDate=&requestNo=&type=&level=&label=&company=&certificationDate=&awardDescription=&catalogNo=&aSex=&rec_id=&charField=&gold=&platinum=&multiPlat=&level2=&certDate=&album=&id=&after=&before=&startMonth=1&endMonth=1&startYear=1958&endYear=2008&sort=Artist&perPage=25|title=RIAA - Gold and Platinum - Search Results - Eric Carmen singles|website=Recording Industry Association of America |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120524231426/http://riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?resultpage=1&table=SEARCH_RESULTS&action=&title=&artist=eric%20carmen&format=SINGLE&debutLP=&category=&sex=&releaseDate=&requestNo=&type=&level=&label=&company=&certificationDate=&awardDescription=&catalogNo=&aSex=&rec_id=&charField=&gold=&platinum=&multiPlat=&level2=&certDate=&album=&id=&after=&before=&startMonth=1&endMonth=1&startYear=1958&endYear=2008&sort=Artist&perPage=25|archive-date=May 24, 2012}} "All by Myself" was Carmen's first of eight US Top 40 hits. In the UK, however, this was his only Top 40 success, peaking at number 12 on the UK Singles Chart. The song would be featured in "The One Where Eddie Moves In", a 1996 season 2 episode of the popular television series Friends during a scene of Chandler Bing (Matthew Perry) and Joey Tribbiani (Matt LeBlanc) being depressed after Joey moves out.

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{{Infobox song

| name = All by Myself

| cover = All by Myself (Celine Dion version).jpg

| alt =

| border = yes

| type = single

| artist = Celine Dion

| album = Falling into You

| released = December 9, 1996

| recorded =

| studio = {{hlist|The Record Plant|Compass Point|Capitol}}

| genre = Soft rock{{cite news|first= Randall |last= Roberts |title= Alone in Las Vegas, man crafts clip for Celine Dion's 'All by Myself' |date= June 11, 2014 |newspaper= Los Angeles Times |url= http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/posts/la-et-ms-man-alone-in-las-vegas-celine-dions-all-by-myself-20140611-story.html |access-date= May 24, 2015}}

| length = {{ubl|5:09 (album version)|4:30 (single version)|3:54 (radio edit)}}

| label = {{hlist|Epic|550 Music|Columbia}}

| writer = {{hlist|Eric Carmen|Sergei Rachmaninoff{{cite book|author=Georges-Hébert Germain|title=Céline: The Authorized Biography of Céline Dion|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EvYnMhGsUWkC&pg=PA235|date=September 1998|publisher=Dundurn|isbn=978-1-55002-318-3|pages=235–}}}}

| producer = David Foster

| prev_title = The Power of the Dream

| prev_year = 1996

| next_title = Call the Man

| next_year = 1997

| misc = {{External music video|{{YouTube|NGrLb6W5YOM|"All by Myself"}}}}

}}

The most notable cover version of "All by Myself" was recorded by Canadian singer Celine Dion in 1996. It was the fourth (or third, depending on the country) hit single from her fourth English-language studio album, Falling into You (1996).[http://www.celinedion.com/celinedion/english/music.cgi?album_id=8 Falling into You] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080915113526/http://www.celinedion.com/celinedion/english/music.cgi?album_id=8 |date=September 15, 2008 }}. Retrieved January 31, 1996. Produced by David Foster at Compass Point Studios in the Bahamas, it was released on December 9, 1996, in the United Kingdom and on March 11, 1997, in the United States. Selected editions of the album and the single include a Spanish version of the song titled "Sola Otra Vez".{{Cite web |title=Sola Otra Vez - Celine Dion: The Power of The Music |url=http://powerofthemusic.com/t%20sola.html |access-date=2024-09-13 |website=powerofthemusic.com}}

The single became one of Dion's biggest hits in the United States, reaching number one on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks (for three weeks) and the Latin Pop Airplay (two weeks). It peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100 (number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay and number five on the Hot 100 Singles Sales). It was also a top 10 hit in France, United Kingdom, Wallonia in Belgium and on the Irish Singles Chart. In Canada, "All by Myself" was released as a promotional single only, hitting number one on the Adult Contemporary Chart. "All by Myself" was certified gold in the US (500,000) and in the UK (400,000) and silver in France (125,000).

During an interview on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, Dion revealed that the famous high note (F5) leading into the key change had not been planned but David Foster surprised her with it when she appeared for recording. When Dion asked why the surprise, Foster told her that if she couldn't sing it, other singers would, which prompted Dion to prove to Foster that she could sing it.{{cite news |title=Of Course, David Foster Could Convince Céline Dion to Do This |url=https://www.bravotv.com/the-daily-dish/celine-dion-david-foster-all-by-myself-high-note-advice |access-date=December 4, 2019 |agency=Beyond Bravo}}

Dion's cover received positive reviews from most music critics. Bill Lamb from About.com placed it at number nine in their ranking of "Top 10 Celine Dion Songs".{{cite web|author=Lamb, Bill|url=https://www.liveabout.com/top-celine-dion-songs-4032852|title=Top 10 Celine Dion Songs|publisher=About.com|date=November 24, 2017|access-date=April 7, 2020}} Entertainment Weekly editor Chuck Eddy said, "But only in her desolate cover of Eric Carmen's 'All by Myself' does she truly crash through the glass ceiling of passion".{{cite web|first=Chuck|last=Eddy|url=https://ew.com/article/1996/03/15/falling-you/|title=Falling Into You|work=Entertainment Weekly's EW.com|access-date=February 12, 2016|author-link=Chuck Eddy|archive-date=January 5, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090105235656/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,291693,00.html|url-status=live}} Pip Ellwood-Hughes from Entertainment Focus called it "incredible" and "one of the best recorded vocals ever captured." He added that "listening to Dion reach the highs she does on that song is magical and it sends goosebumps down your spine look (sic) nothing else can."{{cite web|author=Ellwood-Hughes, Pip|url=https://www.entertainment-focus.com/music-section/music-reviews/vinyl/celine-dion-falling-into-you-vinyl-review/|title=Celine Dion – Falling Into You vinyl review|publisher=Entertainment Focus|date=October 11, 2018|access-date=April 14, 2020}} Dave Sholin from the Gavin Report commented, "Demand by both programmers and the public for this rendition of Eric Carmen's 1976 smash made it the obvious choice to be the third single lifted off Celine's multi-platinum and Grammy-nominated album, Falling into You".{{cite magazine|first= Dave |last= Sholin |title= Gavin Picks > Singles |magazine= Gavin Report |issue= 2140 |date= January 24, 1997 |page= 62 |access-date= April 16, 2018 |url= http://americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Gavin-Report/90/97/Gavin-1997-01-24.pdf}} Kevin Courtney from Irish Times said, "It's probably a good thing that Celine is all by herself people in the room with her might have their eardrums shattered by her climactic, over the top delivery."Courtney, Kevin (December 20, 1996). "Single File". Irish Times.

A reviewer from Music Week gave it top score with five out of five, stating that "Dion does a great job with the Eric Carmen power ballad and this one could be in for a long run given its guaranteed appeal to once-a-year record buyers. A contender for the top spot."{{cite magazine|url= https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1996/Music-Week-1996-11-30.pdf |title= Reviews: Singles |magazine= Music Week |date= November 30, 1996 |page= 20 |accessdate= October 6, 2021}} The magazine's Alan Jones noted that "it's handled with consummate ease by Dion".{{cite magazine|first= Alan |last= Jones |url= https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1996/Music-Week-1996-11-23.pdf |title= Talking Music |magazine= Music Week |date= November 23, 1996 |page= 24 |accessdate= October 6, 2021}} Yahoo editor Dan Leroy wrote, "Trying to out-emote Eric Carmen was almost crazy enough to work".{{cite web|first=Dan|last=Leroy|url=http://music.uk.launch.yahoo.com/read/review/12030099 |title=Archived copy |access-date=March 9, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120708214631/http://music.uk.launch.yahoo.com/read/review/12030099 |archive-date=July 8, 2012 }} The New York Times editor Stephen Holden stated that the cover, along with "Because You Loved Me", "are the strongest cuts on an album crammed with formulaic romantic bombast".{{cite news|first=Stephen|last=Holden|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1996/04/14/arts/new-releases-073873.html|title=New Releases|date=April 14, 1996|work=The New York Times|access-date=February 12, 2016}} A reviewer from People said Dion "knocks herself out trying to match the classic bombast that Eric Carmen dished out on 'All By Myself'."{{cite magazine|url= https://people.com/archive/picks-and-pans-review-falling-into-you-vol-45-no-11/ |title= Picks and Pans Review: Falling into You |magazine= People |date= March 18, 1996 |access-date= November 15, 2020}} Geoff Edgers from Salon described it as a "dog-ear-shattering remake".{{cite web|first= Geoff |last= Edgers |title= Arts & Entertainment >> Music |work= Salon Magazine |date= December 1, 1999 |access-date= April 21, 2020 |url= http://www.salon.com/ent/music/review/1999/12/01/celine/index.html |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090115063059/http://www.salon.com/ent/music/review/1999/12/01/celine/index.html |url-status= dead |archive-date= January 15, 2009 }} Christopher Smith from TalkAboutPopMusic wrote,

{{cquote|Only a few vocalists could possibly attempt to do justice to Eric Carmen's 1975 classic, but with her out-of-this-world voice, Celine is one of them and perhaps the only one big enough to lift the song's long and emotional chords at the end. Celine shatters glass and blows ear drums as she reaches that final "anymore". Bring on the orchestra, drums and guitar as they prove no match for Celine as she repeats the song's central line again and again "don't wanna be, all by myself". Earth shattering and epic are the words and it was hardly surprising that it wouldn't be released as a single in due course either.{{cite web|author=Smith, Christopher|url=https://talkaboutpopmusic.com/2019/11/02/review-falling-into-you-celine-dion/|title=REVIEW: 'FALLING INTO YOU' – CELINE DION|publisher=TalkAboutPopMusic|date=November 2, 2019|access-date=April 7, 2020}}}}

A music video was produced to promote the single, directed by British director Nigel Dick.{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7625232/|title=Céline Dion: All by Myself - Original Version|publisher=IMDb|date= |access-date=October 6, 2021}} It contains fragments from Dion's photo session for the Falling into You album cover and some scenes from her Live à Paris concert. In between, there are also sepia toned footage showing an apparently lonely and sad Dion. The video was later made available on Dion's official YouTube channel in 2012 and had generated more than 63 million views as of October 2023.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NGrLb6W5YOM|title=Céline Dion - All By Myself (Official Remastered HD Video)|publisher=YouTube|date=August 24, 2012|access-date=October 17, 2023}} A video of the Spanish version was added to the channel in 2021.{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9MdeL2XPbk |title=Sola otra vez (All By Myself - Spanish Version) (Official Remastered HD Video) |date=2021-05-05 |last=CelineDionVEVO |access-date=2024-09-13 |via=YouTube}}

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• Australian CD and cassette single

1. "All by Myself" (Edited Single Version) – 3:58
2. "Because You Loved Me" (Live) – 4:52
3. "Next Plane Out" (Radio Edit) – 4:37
4. "Vole" (Live) – 4:03
5. "All by Myself" (Album Version) – 5:12

• European CD and 7-inch single

1. "All by Myself" – 5:12
2. "The Power of the Dream" – 4:31

• European CD maxi-single

1. "All by Myself" (Single Version) – 4:26
2. "All by Myself" – 5:12
3. "Je sais pas" (Live) – 4:26
4. "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" (Live) – 4:52

• European 12-inch single

1. "All By Myself" – 5:12
2. "The Power of the Dream" – 4:31
3. "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" (Classic Paradise Radio Mix #1) – 4:22

• Japanese CD single

1. "All by Myself" (Single Version) – 4:24
2. "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" (Live) – 4:51

• Mexican promo CD single

1. "All by Myself" – 5:12
2. "Sola Otra Vez" – 5:12
3. "Sola Otra Vez" (Radio Edit) – 4:41

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• UK cassette single

1. "All by Myself" (Edited Single Version) – 3:58
2. "All by Myself" (Spanish Version) – 5:12
3. "When I Fall in Love" (Duet with Clive Griffin) – 4:20

• UK CD single

1. "All by Myself" (Album Version) – 5:12
2. "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" (Live) – 4:38
3. "Je sais pas" (Live) – 4:26
4. "River Deep, Mountain High" (Live) – 3:28

• UK CD single (Limited)

1. "All by Myself" (Edited Single Version) – 3:58
2. "When I Fall in Love" – 4:20
3. "Declaration of Love" – 4:20
4. "A Message from Celine" – 0:34

• US CD and cassette single

1. "All by Myself" (Edited Single Version) – 3:57
2. "Because You Loved Me" (Live) – 4:50

• US promo CD single

1. "All by Myself" (Radio Edit #1) – 3:57
2. "All by Myself" (Album Version) – 5:12
3. "All by Myself" (Radio Edit #2) – 3:52

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{{Certification Table Top}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Canada|type=single|title=All by Myself|artist=Celine Dion|award=Platinum|certyear=2024|relyear=1996|accessdate=December 28, 2024}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=France|type=single|title=All by Myself|artist=Celine Dion|award=Silver|source=infodisc|certyear=1996|relyear=1996|accessdate=November 9, 2021}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|type=single|title=All by Myself|artist=Celine Dion|award=Gold|certyear=2023|relyear=1996|access-date=October 6, 2023|id=370-3394-1}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|type=single|title=All by Myself|artist=Celine Dion|award=Gold|certyear=1997|relyear=1997|access-date=October 11, 2014}}

{{Certification Table Bottom|streaming=true}}

In 1982, "All by Myself" was covered by Shirley Bassey, as part of her album by the same name. She also released it as a single.

In 1994, "All by Myself" was covered by New Zealand singer Margaret Urlich. Her version reached number 100 in Australia in November 1994,{{cite book|first=Gavin|last=Ryan|title=Australia's Music Charts 1988-2010|year=2011|publisher=Moonlight Publishing|location=Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia}} and number 26 in New Zealand in March 1995.{{cite web|url=https://aotearoamusiccharts.co.nz/archive/singles/1995-03-03|title=NZ Top 40 Singles Chart - The Official New Zealand Music Chart|work=THE OFFICIAL NZ MUSIC CHART|access-date=February 12, 2016}}

In 2018, a cover by Ghian Wright, renamed to "I'm All Alone (Belter Version)", was used in the science fiction television series The Expanse, in the episode of season 3 "Delta-V".{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B082FB8JM2/ref=dm_ws_sp_ps_dp|website=amazon.com|title=The Expanse - The Collector's Edition}} The lyrics of the song were rewritten in the mix of English and Belter Creole, a constructed language made for the TV series by Nick Farmer, that was used in the show by Belters, the inhabitants of the asteroid belt and outer planets.{{cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/2017/04/the-expanse-belter-language/|title=That Cool Dialect on The Expanse Mashes Up 6 Languages|magazine=Wired|last1=Dreyfuss |first1=Emily }} The lyrics were additionally adjusted to fit the in-universe setting{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNg5BBenkPo |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/gNg5BBenkPo |archive-date=December 21, 2021 |url-status=live|title=I'm All Alone (Belter Version)|website=youtube.com|author=Various Artists - Topic|date=December 12, 2019}}{{cbignore}} The full version of the song was later placed on The Collector's Edition version of the TV series soundtrack, that was released on December 13, 2019.

The first Disney Channel original movie Under Wraps (1997) featured the original Eric Carmen song as a major plot point. The character of Harold the Mummy (Bill Fagerbakke) becomes entranced with the song as it reminds him of his lover (Cristina Patterson).

The 1999 Australian-French film Me Myself I directed by Pip Karmel, contains cover of this song, performed by Maggie McKinney. The film contains this song in its opening scenes, with the protagonist Pamela Drury (Rachel Griffiths) taking a bubble bath and dissatisfied with her lonely life unknowingly or unintentionally wants to shoot herself in the head with a hair dryer.

In the pilot episode of the 2020 television series Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist, "Zoey's Extraordinary Power", "All by Myself" is performed on a street by strangers and in fact this is the first song of the series' titular "Playlist".

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• Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1976
• Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1997
• List of Billboard Hot 100 top 10 singles in 1997
• List of number-one adult contemporary singles of 1997 (U.S.)
• List of number-one Billboard Hot Latin Pop Airplay of 1997
• List of UK top 10 singles in 1996
• List of Cash Box Top 100 number-one singles of 1976

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{{reflist}}

• {{YouTube|h0KdR8bKHNQ|"All By Myself (Remastered)"}}
• {{YouTube|tT2gVblzFvY|"Céline Dion - All By Myself (Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert)"}}

{{Eric Carmen}}

{{Margaret Urlich}}

{{Celine Dion songs}}

{{Only Men Aloud!}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:1975 songs

Category:1975 debut singles

Category:1976 singles

Category:1996 singles

Category:1970s ballads

Category:550 Music singles

Category:Arista Records singles

Category:Cashbox number-one singles

Category:Celine Dion songs

Category:Columbia Records singles

Category:Epic Records singles

Category:Eric Carmen songs

Category:Il Divo songs

Category:Music videos directed by Nigel Dick

Category:Rock ballads

Category:Song recordings produced by David Foster

Category:Song recordings produced by Jimmy Ienner

Category:Songs about loneliness

Category:Songs written by Eric Carmen

Category:Popular songs based on classical music