Help Me Make It Through the Night - Sammi Smith (1971) 12/27/20

In 1969, Kris Kristofferson was reading an interview with Frank Sinatra in Esquire Magazine, when a particular quote caught his attention. When asked what he believed in, Frank replied, “Booze, broads, or a Bible—whatever helps me make it through the night.”

In those days, Kris was a struggling songwriter, working through all sorts of personal problems—including booze and other substance abuse, but Frank's quote somehow inspired him to cut through his personal fog, and write a “Great Song of the '70s.”

“Help Me Make It Through the Night” was controversial, too. The tender, but blatant sexual content almost kept the song off the air, and off the charts.

Almost.

Kris recorded it first in 1970...but nothing really happened. Perhaps, he thought, it might be better if sung by a woman, so he offered it to his close friend, country legend Dottie West, but Dottie turned him down because, well, the lyrics were not her type of thing.

So the song was then offered to a rather obscure country singer named Sammi Smith. When Sammi's version was released as a single in 1971, Kris' intuition was proven correct: It WAS a hit when sung by a woman. Sammi seemed to capture the longing behind the sexual desire and it made her sound vulnerable. That was the key to the song's success.

Although there was some blow-back from radio stations, they played it anyway, and people not only loved the song, many could identify with it.

Sammi's version went straight to #1 on the Country Charts in the US and Canada...but the song was so popular, it crossed over to other formats, too. In the US, it went to #3 on the Easy Listening Chart and #8 on the Hot 100. In Canada, it reached #4 on the Top 40.

At that point, the flood gates opened, and dozens of artists covered the song—including Dottie West, who told people that initially turning it down was a huge mistake. Other covers came from Tammy Wynette, Loretta Lynn, Anne Murray, Lorrie Morgan, Rita Coolidge, Gladys Knight, Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Glen Campbell, Ray Stevens...and later on by Martina McBride, Mariah Carey and Michael Buble'. That's just a PARTIAL list!

But the most successful cover of all came from Willie Nelson, who took his 1979 version to #1 and #4 on the Country Charts in Canada and the US, respectively.

“Help Me Make It Through the Night:” It may have been controversial at first, but it ended up being a “Great Song of the '70s,” TWICE!

Sammi Smith (1971):

Willie Nelson (1979):

Kris Kristofferson (1970):