Baby Loves That Way

"Baby Loves That Way" is a song written by David Bowie in 1965 and released as the B-side of single " You've Got a Habit of Leaving" under the name Davy Jones with his band at the time, the Lower Third, who were uncredited. Bowie later remade the song during the sessions for his ''Toy'' album in 2000, which was officially released in 2021.

Overview

"Baby Loves That Way" was recorded in early July 1965 at IBC Studios in London. David Bowie, who was still performing under the name Davie Jones, recorded it with his band at the time, the Lower Third. The song was produced by Shel Talmy and engineered by Glyn Johns, who both contributed backing vocals. The song's musical style was influenced by the Kinks and Herman's Hermits. Chris O'Leary describes it as "a three-chord hook-filled beat song". The lyrics focus on a man's unloyal significant other, hints at what Nicholas Pegg calls "the sleazy sexuality" of Bowie's later work.

"Baby Loves That Way" was released as the B-side of " You've Got a Habit of Leaving" on 20 August 1965 under the Parlophone label, with the catalogue number R 5315. The single was solely credited to "Davy Jones" (rather than "Davie"); the Lower Third was credited for their next and final single, "Can't Help Thinking About Me". The song later appeared on the ''Early On (1964–1966)'' compilation in 1991.

''Toy'' version

Bowie re-recorded "Baby Loves That Way" during the sessions for the ''Toy'' project between July and October 2000, along with other tracks he wrote and recorded during the mid-1960s, including "You've Got a Habit of Leaving". The remake contains a slower tempo with a more subdued vocal. The lineup consisted of members of Bowie's then-touring band: guitarist Earl Slick, bassist Gail Ann Dorsey, pianist Mike Garson, musician Mark Plati and drummer Sterling Campbell, along with instrumentalist Lisa Germano on violin and backing vocalists Holly Palmer and Emm Gryner. Co-produced by Bowie and Plati, the band rehearsed the songs at Sear Sound Studios in New York City before recording them as live tracks. Plati stated that he refused to listen to Bowie's original recordings of the tracks, so to prevent the originals from influencing his playing on the new versions. Overdubs were recorded at New York's Looking Glass Studios.

''Toy'' was initially intended for release in March 2001, before it was shelved by EMI/Virgin due to financial issues. So, Bowie departed the label and recorded his next album '' Heathen'' (2002). The remake of "Baby Loves That Way" appeared on the Japanese release of the single " Slow Burn", the two-disc deluxe edition of ''Heathen'' and the UK and European release of the single " Everyone Says 'Hi'". In March 2011, tracks from the ''Toy'' sessions, including "Baby Loves That Way", were leaked online, attracting media attention. The leaked version lacked the opening drum roll and contained studio banter scattered throughout.

Ten years later, on 29 September 2021, Warner Music Group announced that ''Toy'' would get an official release on 26 November as part of the box set ''Brilliant Adventure (1992–2001)'' through ISO and Parlophone. A separate deluxe edition, titled ''Toy:Box'', was released on 7 January 2022, which contains two new mixes of the song: an "alternate mix" and an "Unplugged and Somewhat Slightly Electric" mix, featuring new guitar parts by Plati and Slick. Reviewing ''Toy'', Alexis Petridis of ''The Guardian'' called the remake "a nice enough song that nevertheless betrays its inspiration – Smokey Robinson's 'You Really Got a Hold On Me' – a little too obviously."

Personnel

According to Chris O'Leary:

Original version
* David Bowie – vocals, harmonica
* Dennis Taylor – lead guitar, backing vocals
* Graham Rivens – bass, backing vocals
* Phil Lancaster – drums, backing vocals
* Nicky Hopkins – piano
* Shel Talmy – backing vocals, producer
* Glyn Johns – backing vocals, engineer

''Toy'' version
* David Bowie – vocals, producer
* Earl Slick – lead and acoustic guitar
* Mark Plati – rhythm and acoustic guitar
* Gail Ann Dorsey – bass, backing vocals
* Mike Garson – piano
* Sterling Campbell – drums
* Lisa Germano – violin
* Holly Palmer – backing vocals
* Emm Gryner – backing vocals

References

Sources

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David Bowie songs
Song recordings produced by Shel Talmy
Songs written by David Bowie
1965 songs