Peaked at # 4 in 1961
You don’t know what you’ve got until you lose it You gave me you-your love but I abused it And now I’m sorry for the things I didn’t say
`cause I know now I acted in a foolish way
(oh yeah) uh-huh-huh (oh yeah) oh-oh-yeah
You don’t know what you’ve got until you lose it You gave me you-your love but I misused it I never knew how lonely loneliness could be And now I need you, dear, as you once needed me
(oh yeah) uh-huh-huh (oh yeah) oh-oh-yeah
So now if you’d come to this lonely heart you own
I’d give you all my lovin' like you’ve never known
(bung, bung, bung, bung)
You don’t know what you’ve got until you lose it You gave me you-your love but I misused it And now I’m sorry for the things I didn’t say
`cause I know now I acted in a foolish way
(oh yeah) uh-huh-huh (oh yeah) oh-oh-yeah
(oh yeah) uh-huh-huh (oh yeah) oh-oh-yeah
Fade
(oh yeah) uh-huh-huh (oh yeah)
One of my favorite oldies. It was one of the first 45's I bought as a kid. Too bad Ral didn't have better promoters ... he had such a great voice. I don't remember ever seeing him on TV. Thanks for putting this great tune on You Tube.
I'm proud to say that Ral was a friend of mine. In 1970, I played in a band called "The Markay Trio". We were playing at a club, on Chicago's south side when Ral and his manager had walked in. They sat down at a table, near the bandstand, very close to where my family and friends had been seated. Our band had always played several of Ral's popular songs, so we were very familiar with much of his work. We asked him to please come up to the bandstand and sing a song for us. This was the very first time that we had actually met him. He came right up and was so happy to do it for us. He sang two songs , so very perfectly. He was just magnificent. Such a pleasure and honor it was to have him sing his wonderful songs with our band. He was a wonderful gentleman as well. He danced with my wife, my sister, my mother-in-law and several other friends of ours. Wonderful Memories!!!
I recall reading that Ral Donner greatly respected Elvis and always listed him as his greatest influence. Contrary to what the entity known as Mickey Finn says below, Ral Donner wasn't ripping off Elvis Presley. These were not Elvis songs, but songs associated with and performed only by Ral Donner. He was not an "Elvis impersonator," but a singer whose style was similar. In any era of music, there tends to be a predominant style, and many who follow the original tend to sound similar. That's as true today as it was in the early 60's, and in all other eras of American popular music.
Ral Donner was one of the true greats of Rock'n'Roll. He came from Evanston, Illinois and from what I understand, he was always a nice guy and never got full of himself. It is a shame we lost him so young.