All By Myself was first recorded by Eric Carmen in 1975, but Céline Dion's version, released on her 1996 album Falling into You, became the one most listeners recognise today. Dion turned the ballad into a showcase for her range, and its long, sustained climax made it a staple of her live shows and vocal compilations. Online, short excerpts circulate as shorthand for loneliness, heartbreak or melodrama, often used ironically as well as sincerely, which has kept the chorus familiar to viewers who may never have heard the full song.