Please Send Me Someone to Love

"Please Send Me Someone to Love" is a blues ballad, written and recorded by American blues and soul singer Percy Mayfield in 1950, for Art Rupe's Specialty Records. It was on the Billboard's R&B chart for 27 weeks and reached the number-one position for two weeks; it was Mayfield's most successful song.[2]

"Please Send Me Someone to Love"
Single by Percy Mayfield
from the album The Best of Percy Mayfield
B-side"Strange Things Happening"
ReleasedSept. 1950[1]
RecordedAugust 16, 1950
Universal, Hollywood, California
GenreR&B, Blues ballad
Length2:53
LabelSpecialty Records
Songwriter(s)Percy Mayfield
Producer(s)Art Rupe
Percy Mayfield singles chronology
"Please Send Me Someone to Love"
(1950)
"Lost Love (Baby, Please Come Back to Me)"
(1951)

Song background

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It has been called a "multilayered universal lament".[3] Mayfield sang it in a soft ballad style. Its appeal lay in the sensitivity of its lyrics in juxtaposing an awareness of a world in conflict with a personal expression of the need for love.[4] Sung in Mayfield's gentle, suave vocal style, the lyrics were a combination of a romantic love ballad and a social message against discrimination.[5]

Track listing

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US 7"Vinyl[6]

  1. "Please Send Me Someone to Love" (2:50)
  2. "Strange Things Happening" (2:49)

Charts

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Chart (1950) Peak
position
US Billboard Hot 100[7] 26
US Hot R&B Sides (Billboard) 1

Johnny Diesel and the Injectors version

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"Please Send Me Someone to Love"
 
Single by Johnny Diesel and the Injectors
from the album The Delinquents (soundtrack)
B-side"Who's for Better" (Live)
ReleasedJanuary 1990
Length4:17
LabelChrysalis
Songwriter(s)Percy Mayfield
Producer(s)Terry Manning
Johnny Diesel and the Injectors singles chronology
"Since I Fell for You"
(1989)
"Please Send Me Someone to Love"
(1990)
"Love Junk"
(1991)

In 1989, the Australian ARIA award-winning rock band Johnny Diesel and the Injectors recorded the song for the soundtrack of the film The Delinquents. It was released as a single and peaked at number 11 on the Australian ARIA chart[8] and was the 87th biggest-selling single in 1990.[9]

Track listing

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  1. "Please Send Me Someone to Love" (4:17)
  2. "Who's for Better" (3:40)
  3. "Thang 1" (3:15)
  • Tracks 2 and 3 recorded live at the Hordern Pavilion, Sydney, Australia, August 16, 1989[10]

Other versions

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References

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  1. ^ "Rhythm & Blues Record Reviews". Billboard. September 30, 1950. p. 34.
  2. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942–2004. Record Research. p. 385.
  3. ^ "West coast artists – Percy Mayfield". Retrieved 2006-11-06.
  4. ^ Gillett, Charlie (1996). The Rise of Rock and Roll (2nd ed.). New York: Da Capo Press. p. 146. ISBN 0-306-80683-5.
  5. ^ Shaw, Arnold (1978). Honkers and Shouters. New York: Macmillan. p. 193. ISBN 0-02-061740-2.
  6. ^ "Percy Mayfield - Please Send Me Someone to Love (Vinyl)". www.discogs.com. Retrieved 14 June 2020.
  7. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2003). Top Pop Singles 1955–2002. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research. p. 68. ISBN 0-89820-155-1.
  8. ^ "Johnny Diesel & the Injectors: Please Send Me Someone to Love (Song)". www.australian-charts.com. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
  9. ^ "The ARIA Australian Top 100 Singles Chart 1990 (61–100) (from The ARIA Report No. 50)". Imgur.com (original document published by ARIA). Retrieved 10 October 2016.
  10. ^ "Johnny Diesel & the Injectors: Please Send Me Someone to Love". Discogs.com. 1990. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
  11. ^ "Dinah Washington 78 RPM - Discography - USA - 78 RPM". 45worlds.com. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  12. ^ "The Moonglows - Please Send Me Someone To Love". 45cat.com. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  13. ^ "Sessions - Fred Neil | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  14. ^ "Toni Williams [New Zealand] Discography - New Zealand - 45cat". 45cat.com. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  15. ^ "Black Is Brown and Brown Is Beautiful - Ruth Brown | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  16. ^ "Freddie King - The Best Of Freddie King (The Shelter Records Years)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  17. ^ "Paul Butterfield's Better Days - New Walkin Blues". 45cat.com. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  18. ^ "Before We Were So Rudely Interrupted - The Animals | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  19. ^ "Patchwork: A Tribute to James Booker". Amazon.com. Retrieved September 9, 2018.
  20. ^ "Deuces Wild - B.B. King | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  21. ^ "CD Album: Sade - The Best Of Sade (2000)". 45worlds.com. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  22. ^ "All My Tomorrows - Grover Washington, Jr. | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  23. ^ "Pleasantville - Music From The Motion Picture (1998, CD)". Discogs.com. 1998. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  24. ^ "Mississippi Mile - John Oates | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 May 2021.