The Story Behind “You’re the Last Thing I Needed Tonight” by John Schneider

The song “You’re the Last Thing I Needed Tonight” by John Schneider is his fourth and last song that makes it to the top of Billboard’s US Hot Country Songs and spent 15 weeks on the weekly chart. 

A musical piece written by David Willis and Don Pfrimmer, Schneider released this song in April 1986 as the second single from his album A Memory Like You. This piece demonstrates how good John Schneider was as a country music artist.

This single tells the story of a man who yearns for his loved one. For him, nothing or no one in this world can replace his lady, no matter what. And with its well-written lyrics and the smooth voice of Schneider, this song became a perfect theme song for many heartbroken listeners.

Story Behind the Song

Unlike other John Schneider songs, the single “You’re the Last Thing I Needed Tonight” has been around for 4 to 5 years before he finally decided to record it in a studio, and it evolved as one of his greatest hits of all time.

Its composers initially offered the song to George Jones, but they realized that he couldn’t get the tune to come off. And after some years, the same thing happened when George Strait tried to record it. But instead of scrapping the written song, John Schneider’s rendition finally proved the merit of this musical piece and released it the same year they first recorded it. And that is the time when that single started to climb the country charts and eventually reach its top.

Now that you know the story behind “You’re the Last Thing I Needed Tonight” by John Schneider, it’s time to enjoy this music by clicking the video below.