Empty Arms Explained

Empty Arms
Type:	single
Artist:	Sonny James
Album:	Empty Arms
B-Side:	Everything Begins and Ends with You
Released:	January 1971
Genre:	Country
Label:	Capitol
Prev Title:	Endlessly
Prev Year:	1970
Next Title:	Bright Lights, Big City
Next Year:	1971

"Empty Arms" is a song composed and first recorded by Ivory Joe Hunter which became an R&B hit in 1957. This original version peaked at #2 on the US, R&B Airplay chart and at #43 on the pop chart.^[1]

Cover Versions

• A cover version by Teresa Brewer became a hit the same month as the original recording.^[2]
• The song was successfully revived with a 1971 single by Sonny James. "Empty Arms" was Sonny James' eighteenth number one on the country charts. The single stayed at number one for four weeks and spent a total of fifteen weeks on the chart.^[3]

Chart performance

Sonny James

Chart (1971)	Peak position
U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles	1
U.S. Billboard Hot 100^[4]	93
Canadian RPM Country Tracks	1

Notes and References

1. Book: Whitburn, Joel . Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Joel Whitburn . 2004 . Record Research . 267.
2. Book: Dean, Maury. Rock and Roll. 2003-01-01. Algora Publishing. 9780875862071. en.
3. Book: Whitburn, Joel . The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Joel Whitburn . 2004 . Record Research . 172.
4. Book: Whitburn, Joel . Joel Whitburn

   . Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles, 14th Edition: 1955-2012 . Joel Whitburn . 2013 . Record Research . 423.