On This Day

"On My Own" single released by Patti LaBelle and Michael McDonald (Billboard Song of the Year 1986)

"On My Own" is a duet by American singers Patti LaBelle and Michael McDonald. It was written and produced by Burt Bacharach and his then-wife Carole Bayer Sager and originally recorded by singer...

"On My Own" is a duet by American singers Patti LaBelle and Michael McDonald. It was written and produced by Burt Bacharach and his then-wife Carole Bayer Sager and originally recorded by singer Dionne Warwick for inclusion on her album Friends (1985). The song was eventually recorded by LaBelle and McDonald for her eighth studio album, Winner in You (1986). It was released as the album's lead single on March 22, 1986, by MCA Records. Lyrically, "On My Own" was based on a relationship that had reached its end with both parties going their separate ways in a melancholy state with the occasional option of coming back together again one day.

The two performers were in separate cities when they recorded their individual parts, which were then "married" during mixing.

Historical Significance

"On My Own" is a duet by American singers Patti LaBelle and Michael McDonald.

Events Before

  1. 'Nordu.net' is registered as the world's first domain name on the internet

    This is a list of the oldest extant registered generic top-level domains used in the Domain Name System of the Internet. Until 1986, Domain Registration was limited to organizations with access to…

  2. Israel's government confirms the resettlement of 10,000 Ethiopian Jews

    Israel's government confirms the resettlement of 10,000 Ethiopian Jews

  3. Baseball player Darryl Strawberry (22) weds Lisa Andrews

    Baseball player Darryl Strawberry (22) weds Lisa Andrews

  4. Charity single "We Are the World" recorded by supergroup USA for Africa (Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, Quincy Jones, B

    Charity single "We Are the World" recorded by supergroup USA for Africa (Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, Quincy Jones, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, and other pop stars)

  5. South African President P. W. Botha offers to free Nelson Mandela if he denounces violence

    Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was a South African anti-apartheid activist and statesman who was the first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1999.

Events After

  1. 60 bodies are recovered from the Dupont Plaza Hotel fire in Puerto Rico

    60 bodies are recovered from the Dupont Plaza Hotel fire in Puerto Rico

  2. Aretha Franklin becomes the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

    Aretha Louise Franklin ( ə-REE-thə; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist.

  3. Astronomers at the University of California witness the first observation of the birth of a galaxy

    Astronomers at the University of California witness the first observation of the birth of a galaxy

  4. Opera impresario Sir Rudolf Bing (85) weds Carroll Douglass (45); annulled in September, 1989

    Opera impresario Sir Rudolf Bing (85) weds Carroll Douglass (45); annulled in September, 1989

  5. Pennsylvania politician R. Budd Dwyer shoots and kills himself at a press conference on live national television, sparki

    Pennsylvania politician R. Budd Dwyer shoots and kills himself at a press conference on live national television, sparking debate about the boundaries of journalism

More from the 1980s

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on March 22, 1986?
"On My Own" is a duet by American singers Patti LaBelle and Michael McDonald. It was written and produced by Burt Bacharach and his then-wife Carole Bayer Sager and originally recorded by singer Dionne Warwick for inclusion on her album Friends (1985). The song was eventually recorded by LaBelle and McDonald for her eighth studio album, Winner in You (1986).
Why is "On My Own" single released by Patti LaBelle and Michael McDonald (Billboard ... significant?
"On My Own" is a duet by American singers Patti LaBelle and Michael McDonald.

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