Bonoff learned of the song through
Glenn Frey, who was the intended producer of her album
Wild Heart of the Young before the job went to
Kenny Edwards. Bonoff said Frey was "a great collector of obscure R&B tunes. He used to play me all these really cool [songs]." Frey mentioned to Bonoff that he had meant to send the
Jackie Moore recording of "Personally" to
Bonnie Raitt as a possible song to record herself, but Raitt hadn't received it. Bonoff recalled, "He was playing it for me and I said: 'Maybe I could [record it].'" Highlighted by a solo by
alto sax virtuoso
Phil Kenzie, Bonoff's version of "Personally" spent 18 weeks on the
Billboard Hot 100 with a number 19 peak: in
Cash Box the track rose as high as #12 on the Top 100 Singles chart.
Billboard ranked "Personally" as the 60th biggest hit of 1982. ==Chart performance==