David Gates’ heartfelt devotion to his father and the significance of Bread’s song “Everything I Own”

David Gates of Bread was the only songwriter/performer in the early 1970s to blend heartfelt, sensitive lyrics with musical ease. His 1972 hit single “Everything I Own” was one of his best works. Many people view this song as a love song, which it is, but it is also one that is weighed down by significant loss.

What is the subject matter of the song? Who was Gates talking about? What made him decide to write it? Let us examine the ins and outs of “Everything I Own,” from its inception to its significance.

A Band at Its Best
Do you believe this year is going well for your band? Now contrast that with what Bread accomplished in 1972. Their two studio albums, which included six Top 20 singles, were released in that one year. Among them was “Everything I Own,” which peaked at No. 5 on the pop charts and was featured on the first of those ’72 albums (Baby I’m-A Want You).

The band’s rise reached its zenith that year. In the 1960s, Gates had dabbled in writing for other musicians and trying his hand at solo songs. Gates joined Robb Royer and James Griffin, two other songwriters and multi-instrumentalists, to form Bread. Their first album didn’t do well, but in 1970, the No. 1 song “It Don’t Matter to Me” catapulted them into the spotlight, and over the next few years, the hits just kept coming.

Royer had been replaced by Larry Knechtel in the band at the time of “Everything I Own,” and he played a crucial part of the song by playing the beautiful harpsichord section that gives it a slight flourish. Gates delivers an emotive vocal that veers into his falsetto during the verses before returning to more commanding tones for the poignant refrain.

A Tribute to Dad
People frequently hear “Everything I Own” as a sort of testimonial to the lengths one would go to in order to be with their significant other. Maybe it explains why the cover material has been so durable. Boy George of Culture Club and reggae musician Ken Boothe have both pushed it to the top of the charts in the UK.

However, when Gates penned the song, romance was not his intention. At the start of Gates’ musical career, his father had died. Additionally, he told The Guardian that “Everything I Own” was his way of honoring his father and the significant impact he had:

I decided to compose a song in honor of my father, who passed away in 1963. He lived to witness some of my initial steps toward success, but not the hit songs or Bread fame. The lyrics came really quickly, but like with all my songs, the music took center stage. When I played it for my wife, she immediately recognized that it was about my father, even though I wrote the lyrics—’I would give everything I own just to have you back again’—to be perceived as a love song. She sobbed.

What Does “Everything I Own” Mean?
According to Gates’ explanation in the aforementioned quotation, he was able to make the emotional content of “Everything I Own” sufficiently universal to be applicable to all kinds of relationships. Although he uses strong language (You gave my life to me / Set me free, set me free), he also injects some humor to prevent the tone from becoming overly solemn (You taught me how to love / What it’s of, what it’s of).

Gates does a fantastic job of coming up with original methods to convey the loss: The part of me that can’t let go / No one else could ever know. Gates advises his audience to tell individuals they love them while they can: You may lose them one day / Someone snatches them away / And they don’t hear the words you yearn to speak. This counsel in the bridge eliminates any pretense that the song is somehow about a continuing love affair.

When Gates explains what he would do to have you back again, “Everything I Own” roars back into the chorus. The fact that the song functions as both a eulogy and a love poem is evidence of the songwriter’s skill in crafting one of Bread’s most powerful emotional shots.