About The Song
“Share Your Love with Me” is a song written by Alfred (Al) Braggs and Deadric Malone, first recorded by blues singer Bobby “Blue” Bland in the early 1960s. Kenny Rogers recorded his version for the 1981 studio album Share Your Love, produced by Lionel Richie and released on Liberty Records. Rogers’ cut was issued as the album’s second single in September 1981, following “I Don’t Need You,” and helped continue the strong commercial run he had begun with “Lady” and his late-1970s country-pop hits.
The song already had an extensive history before Rogers recorded it. Bland’s original appeared on his album Call on Me and became a U.S. hit in 1964, reaching the pop and R&B charts. In 1969 Aretha Franklin recorded the best-known soul version for her album This Girl’s in Love with You; her single topped the U.S. R&B chart for five weeks, made the pop Top 20 and earned her a Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance, Female. By 1981, “Share Your Love with Me” was therefore a recognized standard, associated with both blues and deep soul.
On Rogers’ album Share Your Love, “Share Your Love with Me” opens side two of the original vinyl LP. The record, released in mid-1981, was his first full studio album for Liberty and was entirely produced by Lionel Richie. Sessions were held at Concorde Recording and Devonshire Studios in Los Angeles, during the same period that Rogers was consolidating his crossover status on both country and pop radio. The album topped the U.S. country albums chart, reached the Top 10 of the Billboard 200 and went multi-platinum, with the single releases playing a central role in that success.
Rogers’ version adds notable collaborators from the R&B world. Backing vocals on “Share Your Love with Me” are provided by Gladys Knight & the Pips, whose harmonies had already made them major soul stars in their own right. String and horn arrangements were handled by Gene Page, with additional string work by Edgar Struble and a saxophone solo by David Boruff. The track is produced as a smooth blend of country, pop and soul: a steady rhythm section, warm keyboards and guitars, string lines that lift the chorus, and call-and-response phrases between Rogers and the backing vocalists.
The lyric addresses someone who has been left by a previous partner. Lines about an “ill wind that blows no good” and “a sad heart that won’t love like it should” set the tone, while the singer acknowledges how lonely the other person must feel. He encourages them to move on from the past, warning that it is a “shame” if they do not share their love again. Rather than telling a detailed story, the words focus on empathy and reassurance, turning the title phrase into an invitation to let go of old hurt and accept new affection.
Rogers’ recording performed strongly on several U.S. charts. According to chart summaries, the single reached No. 14 on the Billboard Hot 100, climbed to No. 5 on the Hot Country Singles chart and went all the way to No. 1 on the Adult Contemporary chart in 1981. In Canada it peaked at No. 2 on RPM’s country chart and entered the Top 5 of the adult-contemporary listing. The record thus became a significant crossover hit, following the success of “I Don’t Need You” and arriving shortly before “Through the Years” extended his run on adult-contemporary radio.
Over time, “Share Your Love with Me” has remained closely associated with the Share Your Love era of Kenny Rogers’ career. It appears on reissues of the album and on compilations such as The Best of Kenny Rogers: Through the Years and collections of his 21 U.S. No. 1 hits, where it is highlighted for its Adult Contemporary chart peak and its collaboration with Gladys Knight & the Pips. Alongside other singles from the album, the track illustrates how Rogers and producer Lionel Richie combined existing soul material with country-pop production to reach a broad international audience in the early 1980s.
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Lyric
It’s an ill wind that blows no good
And it’s a sad heart
That won’t love, like I knew it should
And oh, how lonesome
I know you must be
And it’s a shame
If you don’t share your love with me
It’s a heartache
When love is gone
And it’s bad (and it’s bad)
And you know it’s even sad (even sad)
Later on
There’s no one blinder (no one blinder)
Than he who just won’t see
And it’s a shame (oh, shame)
If you don’t share
Your love with me
I can’t help it, oh-no
If he is gone (if he’s gone, if he’s gone)
You must try (you must try)
To forget (to forget)
You must live on
And whoa, how lonesome
(How lonesome)
I know you must be
And it’s a shame
If you don’t share
Your love with me
Whoa, yeah
It’s a shame
If you don’t share
Your love with me, yeah