Has Anyone Ever Written Anything for You?

1986 single by Stevie Nicks

"Has Anyone Ever Written Anything for You?"

Single by Stevie Nicks

from the album Rock a Little

B-side

"I Can't Wait" (Dub Mix)

Released

May 12, 1986

Genre

Soft rock

Length

4:38

Label

Modern

Songwriter(s)

Stevie Nicks, Keith Olsen

Producer(s)

Rick Nowels

Stevie Nicks singles chronology

"I Can't Wait"
(1986)

"Has Anyone Ever Written Anything for You?"
(1986)

"Imperial Hotel"
(1986)

"Has Anyone Ever Written Anything for You?" is a song written by Stevie Nicks and Keith Olsen off the 1985 album Rock a Little. The song was also released as a single in 1986, peaking at No. 60 for two weeks on the Billboard Hot 100.

During the VH1 Storytellers series, Nicks explained that "Has Anyone Ever Written Anything for You?" was written about the death of Joe Walsh's eldest daughter, Emma Kristen, and his subsequent penning of "Song for Emma" for the album So What.^[1]

"Has Anyone Ever Written Anything for You?" appears on the 1991 compilation album Timespace: The Best of Stevie Nicks.^[2]

Reception

Mike DeGagne of AllMusic retrospectively applauded Nicks for her "wholehearted approach" on "Has Anyone Ever Written Anything for You?".^[2] Billboard called it a "low, throaty ballad with acoustic piano and reflective imagery."^[3]

Track listing

UK 7 inch Single – EMI 5574

Side A
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Has Anyone Ever Written Anything for You?"	Stevie Nicks, Keith Olsen	4:38

Side B
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
2.	"I Can't Wait" (Dub Mix)	Eric Pressly, Rick Nowels, Stevie Nicks

UK 12 inch Single – 12 EMI 5574

Side A
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Has Anyone Ever Written Anything for You?"	Stevie Nicks, Keith Olsen	4:38

Side B
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
2.	"No Spoken Word"	Stevie Nicks
3.	"I Can't Wait (Dub Mix)"	Eric Pressly, Rick Nowels, Stevie Nicks

Personnel

Stevie Nicks – lead vocals
Lori Perry Nicks – backing vocals
Carolyn Brooks – backing vocals
Charles Judge – piano, synthesizer
Jamie Sherrif – E-mu Emulator programming
Michael Landau – guitar
David Kemper – percussion

Chart performance

Chart (1986)	Peak position
UK Singles (OCC)^[4]	84
US Billboard Hot 100^[5]	60
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)^[6]	31

References

^ Hay 1998, p. 122.
^ ^a ^b DeGagne 2001, p. 283.
^ "Reviews". Billboard. May 10, 1986. p. 79. Retrieved 2022-08-04.
^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
^ "Stevie Nicks Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
^ "Stevie Nicks Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved October 6, 2023.

Sources

DeGagne, Mike (2001), "Timespace: The Best of Stevie Nicks", All Music Guide: The Definitive Guide to Popular Music (4 ed.), Hal Leonard Corporation, ISBN 9780879306274
Hay, Carla (23 August 1998), "The Eye", Billboard, vol. 110, no. 36, Nielsen Business Media, Inc., ISSN 0006-2510