The Air That I Breathe



"The Air That I Breathe" is a ballad written by Albert Hammond and Mike Hazlewood, initially recorded by Albert Hammond on his 1972 album It Never Rains in Southern California.

History
This song was a major hit for The Hollies in early 1974, reaching number two in the United Kingdom. In the summer of 1974, it reached number six in the United States on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number three on the Adult Contemporary chart. In Canada, the song peaked at number five on the RPM magazine charts. The audio engineering for "The Air That I Breathe" was done by Alan Parsons.

The 1992 Radiohead song "Creep" uses a similar chord progression and shares some melodic content with the 1972 version of "The Air That I Breathe". As a result, the song's publisher sued Radiohead for copyright infringement and a settlement was reached in which Hammond and Hazlewood were given co-writing credits as well as a portion of the royalties.

Cover versions

 * Rex Allen, Jr. in 1983; this version was released for the country music market. Allen's version peaked at number 37 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart in December 1983.
 * The Mavericks on their self-titled 2003 album. Their version peaked at number 59 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.