One (Harry Nilsson Song)

One (Harry Nilsson Song)

"One" is a song written by Harry Nilsson and made famous by Three Dog Night whose cover in 1969 reached number 5 on the Billboard chart. The song is known for its opening line "One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do." It appeared initially on Aerial Ballet, Nilsson's third album.

Nilsson wrote the song after calling someone and getting a busy signal. He stayed on the line listening to the "beep, beep, beep, beep..." tone, writing the song. The busy signal became the opening notes of the song.

In 1968, Al Kooper released the song on his debut album I Stand Alone.

In 1969, the rock band Three Dog Night covered the song on their debut album Three Dog Night, with Chuck Negron on lead vocal. The song was released as a single and became a hit, reaching number 5 on the Billboard Hot 100. That same year, the song was covered by Australian singer Johnny Farnham, reaching number 4 on the Australian charts.