Australia’s national treasure Air Supply just keep getting better and better! With 50 years in the game, the Melbourne soft rock duo still have the golden voices which made them worldwide stars. This was on full display on the band’s recent cut of “Without You” at The Florida Theatre in Jacksonville, Florida. Frontman Russell Hitchcock and guitarist/singer Graham Russell harmonised in the opening verses, creating that magical chemistry that you can hear on radios all around the planet.
But on “Without You,” the big moment comes when it’s time for Hitchcock to shine on that huge, soaring chorus hook. Well into his 70s, he’s still got it and then some! Hitchcock certainly sounds absolutely majestic when he kicks into that iconic vocal hook. The fact that he can still hit those notes with such power, and do it so seemingly effortlessly, is remarkable. The Music Man has to say that in some ways Hitchcock is singing better than ever, because he’s still got the range, but he has a more soulful low range.
Air Supply uploaded their performance of “Without You” to YouTube on September 20, 2024, where it hit nearly 400,000 views. Fans were blown away by the band’s power live, adding comments such as “After all these decades, still sounding like this. What a beautiful and powerful voice! Love from Brazil, Air Supply!” and “A 71-year-old man that still has a voice like that! Beautiful!”
The Music Man’s favourite Air Supply performance features the band at a very special show at a Hong Kong auditorium back in ‘92. The band performs “Without You” and “All Out of Love”, and it’s one of Hitchcock’s finest hours. His chorus hook on “Without You” sounds glorious, and he gives those sky-high melodies such power and emotional weight. Hitchcock is surely one of Australia’s greatest voices.
“Without You” was penned by Badfinger members Pete Ham and Tom Evans, and first issued on their 1970 studio album No Dice. The Music Man readers might be interested to hear that Badfinger curiously didn’t see much potential in the song at the time, and as a result did not issue it as a single.
However, Harry Nilsson heard “Without You” at a party, and realized it was a hit in the making. His instincts were right, and he scored a US number one hit with the power ballad after releasing it on October 11, 1971. Mariah Carey also topped the UK charts with her 1994 version of the song, which was issued shortly after Nilsson’s passing.
Air Supply scored one of their final entries on the US Adult Contemporary Chart when their version of “Without You” hit 48 upon its release in 1991. Despite its modest chart placement, the ballad has since become a firm fan favorite. “Without You” is currently Air Supply’s sixth most popular song on Spotify, with 113 million streams clocked.