Anita Baker

Released: May 31, 1983

Songwriter: Patrick Moten

Producer: Otis Smith Patrick Moten

[Chorus]
You've got to feel the need in me
You've got to feel the need in me, baby
You've got to feel the need in me
You've got to feel the need in me, baby

[Verse 1]
So alone I feel at times
Wondering if you're truly mine
Can't you see the tears falling from my eyes, can't you?
And can't you feel this pain I feel deep inside
My heart seems to bleed when I feel the need
To hold you in my arms and you, and you pull away
Now I may be wrong but my feelings just don't lie
About this emptiness down deep inside, that's why

[Chorus]
You've got to feel the need in me, baby
You've got to feel the need in me
You've got to feel the need in me, baby

[Bridge]
When you're around you make me feel so good
All of my worries are far away
Then other times, oh, you feel so cold
What makes you treat me this way?

[Chorus]
You've got to feel the need in me
You've got to feel the need in me, baby
You've got to feel the need in me
You've got to feel the need in me, baby

[Verse 3]
Everybody say that I got to be a fool
I got to be crazy for lovin' you
Oh, I'm starting to wonder if there is truth in what they say
My mind says to leave you, but my heart says I better stay
I want to feel like I'm something more than a passing thought from you
I need to know that the things you say are true
I want that sweet, sweet love to fill me up inside
Let our hearts come together for all times

[Pre-Chorus]
I do not say things that I don't mean
If I do not love you I'd let you know
If I am not right for you
Won't you tell me so
Before you break my heart in two

[Chorus]
You've got to feel the need in me
You've got to feel the need in me, baby
You've got to feel the need in me
You've got to feel the need in me, baby
You've got to feel the need in me
You've got to feel the need in me, baby
You've got to feel the need in me, baby baby baby
You've got to feel the need in me

Anita Baker is a Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter known for her distinct low contralto vocals. She started out in the band Chapter 8, which had the hit song “I Just Wanna Be Your Girl” that was later sampled by Bone Thugs-n-Harmony for their hit song “1st of tha Month.” “Anita” went on to become a big name in ‘80s R&B alongside “Luther” and “Whitney” as she began to rack up #1 hits.

Her debut album, The Songstress, was released in 1983 on independent label Beverly Glen and featured the hit song “Angel.” She left Beverly Glen and signed with Elektra Records, releasing her second album Rapture in 1986, which went on to sell over 5 million albums and peaked at #1 on the Billboard R&B Albums chart thanks to the hits “Sweet Love,” “Same Ole Love,” and “Caught Up in the Rapture.”

Her third album, Giving You the Best That I Got, was released in 1988 and hit #1 on the Billboard 200, and the title track hit #1 on both the Billboard R&B and Adult Contemporary Singles charts. Rapture and Giving You the Best That I Got accounted for five of her eight Grammy Awards, with her sixth in that time frame coming from her gospel collaboration with The Winans on the song “Ain’t No Need To Worry” in 1988.

more tracks from the album

The Songstress

From the album

The Songstress (1983)

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