"Too Much, Too Little, Too Late" | ||||
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Single by Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams | ||||
from the album You Light Up My Life | ||||
B-side | "Emotion" | |||
Released | February 21, 1978 | |||
Format | Vinyl, 7" | |||
Recorded | 1977 | |||
Genre | Soul, Soft rock , R&B | |||
Length | 3:00 | |||
Label | Columbia | |||
Songwriter(s) | John Vallins, Nat Kipner | |||
Producer(s) | Jack Gold | |||
Johnny Mathis singles chronology | ||||
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Deniece Williams singles chronology | ||||
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"Too Much, Too Little, Too Late" is a song performed by singers Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams. Lyrics and music are arranged by Nat Kipner and John Vallins. The single was a comeback of sorts for Mathis, as it was his first chart-topping hit in the US since 1957's "Chances Are".
Released as a single in 1978, it reached number 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 pop chart, Adult Contemporary chart, and R&B chart. Outside the U.S., the song peaked at number nine on the Canadian Singles Chart and number three on the UK Singles Chart.
"Too Much, Too Little, Too Late" was certified gold and silver in the US and in the UK by the RIAA and the British Phonographic Industry respectively.
Later in 1978 the duo released a follow-up single, "You're All I Need to Get By" (which peaked at number 47 on the Hot 100), and a full album of duets, That's What Friends Are For. The success of the duets with Williams prompted Mathis to record duets with a variety of partners including Jane Olivor, Dionne Warwick, Natalie Cole, Gladys Knight, and Nana Mouskouri. A compilation album, also called Too Much, Too Little, Too Late and released by Sony Music in 1995, featured the title track among other songs by the Mathis/Williams duo.
English power pop band Silver Sun recorded a cover of "Too Much, Too Little, Too Late" for their album Neo Wave. It was also released as a single, reaching number 20 in the UK Singles Chart in 1998.