"Working My Way Back to You" is a song made popular by The Four Seasons in 1966 and The Spinners in 1979.
Written by Sandy Linzer and Denny Randell, the song was originally recorded by The Four Seasons in 1966, reaching number nine on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. In the UK Top 50 chart it spent three weeks - all at No. 50. It is the only hit to feature the group's arranger Charles Calello in the temporary role of bassist/bass vocalist, having replaced original member Nick Massi.
The song is about a man who cheated on his girlfriend and also emotionally abused her. When she leaves, he realizes that he did love her and is very remorseful about his past actions. He vows to win her love back. It is in some ways a re-casting of the melody from their previous hit, "Let's Hang On!".
Not to suggest that the Four Seasons' bountiful success was entirely due to graft. Some of their performances in the mid-'60s were like the last word on the whole Doo Wop/street-corner style, like "Working My Way Back to You," a production so soulful that it was later covered note-for-note by a Black group, the Spinners. And, once again, it was macho: "I used to love to make you cry/it made me feel like a man inside," Frankie sang. Their songs spoke to all the struggling working class Joes coming home with lipstick on their collar to the young wife holding the screaming baby: "Joey, you promised!" You know, sometimes he might just have to take a swing. Rocky-type stuff, but at that time it worked. So much so that the Four Seasons enjoyed hit after hit, not officially disbanding until 1970. By then even they wore hippie clothes.
Joe S. Harrington. Sonic Cool: The Life & Death of Rock 'n' Roll p. 88
Characterised by singer Frankie Valli's signature falsetto and the group's doo-wop harmonies, the Four Seasons were one of America's most popular and recognisable groups of the 1960s. Their first hit, "Sherry," released in 1962, was immediately followed by a string of hits, launching the group to a level of success that was only challenged in 1964 by the overwhelming popularity of the BEATLES. The group first formed in 1956, comprising vocalists Frankie Valli (b. Francis Castelluccio, May 3, 1937, Newark, New Jersey), vocalist-guitarist brothers Nick and Tommy DeVito (b. June 19, 1936, Bellville, New Jersey), and bassist Hank Majewski. Initially calling themselves the Variatones, they later changed their name to the Four Lovers and, in 1956, recorded the Otis Blackwell song "You're the Apple of My Eye" for RCA Records. Valli left the group temporarily in 1958 after they were dropped by RCA. He began a successful solo career that was to continue despite his rejoining the group when it became the Four Seasons. Nick DeVito was later replaced by vocalist/keyboard player/songwriter Bob Gaudio (b. December 17, 1942, Bronx, New York) and, in 1960, Majewski was replaced by vocalist-arranger Nick Massi (b. September 19, 1935, Newark, New Jersey). Joined by singer Bob Crewe, and rejoined by Valli, the new line-up renamed themselves after a New Jersey bowling alley, the "Four Seasons."
ReplyDeleteTOP OF THE CHARTS
ReplyDeleteIn 1962, after signing with VeeJay Records, the group released a single, "Sherry," written by Gaudio. It received limited exposure until the band's appearance on Dick Clark's American Bandstand, which propelled the song to No. 1 on the charts. Later that year, they repeated the success of "Sherry" with "Big Girls Don't Cry," also written by Gaudio. Both songs had remained in the No. 1 position for five weeks, assuring each of a platinum rating. In March of 1963, they released "Walk Like a Man," which also topped the charts. Other successful releases that year included "Ain't That a Shame," and "Candy Girl."
Contractual disputes with VeeJay Records in 1964 led to the Four Seasons signing with Philips Records. The change proved profitable as the group landed six songs in the Top 20 that year, including the massive hits "Dawn (Go Away)," and "Rag Doll."
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