"Take Good Care of My Baby" is a song written by

Carole King Carole King Klein (born Carol Joan Klein; February 9, 1942) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who has been active since 1958, initially as one of the staff songwriters at 1650 Broadway and later as a solo artist. Regarded as one ...

and

Gerry Goffin Gerald Goffin (February 11, 1939 – June 19, 2014) was an American lyricist. Collaborating initially with his first wife, Carole King, he co-wrote many international pop hits of the early and mid-1960s, including the List of Billboard number-one ...

. The song was made famous by Bobby Vee, when it was released in 1961.

Bobby Vee versions

While searching for material for Bobby Vee to record, Vee's producer Snuff Garrett heard a demo of Carole King singing "Take Good Care of My Baby". Garrett told publisher Don Kirshner that he wanted the song for Vee, but he believed the song needed an introductory verse. Garrett met with Carole King, and the introductory verse of Vee's version was written. Among the musicians on the record were

Barney Kessel Barney Kessel (October 17, 1923 – May 6, 2004) was an American jazz guitarist born in Muskogee, Oklahoma. Known in particular for his knowledge of chords and inversions and chord-based melodies, he was a member of many prominent jazz groups a ...

Tommy Allsup Thomas Douglas Allsup (November 24, 1931 – January 11, 2017) was an American rockabilly and swing musician. Personal life Allsup was born near Owasso, Oklahoma in 1931, and was an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation. Allsup had a son, ...

, and Howard Roberts on guitar, Clifford Hills on bass, Robert Florence on piano, and Earl Palmer on drums, while Sid Sharp did the string arrangements. The Johnny Mann Singers sang backup. Bobby Vee released "Take Good Care of My Baby" as a single on July 20, 1961, and it was reviewed by ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' in its issue dated July 31, 1961. Vee's recording quickly became popular, spending 15 weeks on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100, reaching No. 1 on September 18, 1961,Hot 100 – Bobby Vee Take Good Care of My Baby Chart History
''Billboard.com''. Retrieved March 11, 2018. and spending three weeks in that position. The song became a major hit internationally as well, reaching No. 1 in Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. The song was ranked No. 12 on ''Billboard''s " Hot 100 for 1961 – Top Sides of the Year" and No. 23 on ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

''s "Top 100 Chart Hits of 1961". The song was the lead track on Bobby Vee's album, ''Take Good Care of My Baby'', which was released in 1962. Vee re-recorded the song as a ballad in 1972. Bronson, Fred (2003).
The Billboard Book of Number One Hits
', Billboard Books. p. 97. Retrieved October 11, 2016. He released under his real name, Robert Thomas Velline, on his 1972 album ''Ain't Nothing Like a Sunny Day'', and as a single in 1973. However, it is his original version, along with Bobby Vinton's, that remain as staples of oldies radio stations.

Chart performance

Bobby Vinton version

In 1968, the song was released by Bobby Vinton as a single and on his album, ''

Take Good Care of My Baby "Take Good Care of My Baby" is a song written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin. The song was made famous by Bobby Vee, when it was released in 1961. Bobby Vee versions While searching for material for Bobby Vee to record, Vee's producer Snuff ...

''. Vinton's version became a hit, spending 8 weeks on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100, reaching No. 33,Hot 100 – Bobby Vinton Take Good Care of My Baby Chart History
''Billboard.com''. Retrieved March 10, 2018. while reaching No. 14 on ''

''s Easy Listening chart,Billboard Top 40 Easy Listening
, ''

'', May 4, 1968. p. 49. Accessed October 9, 2016. No. 19 on ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of the three main music industry trade magazines in the United States, along with '' Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 under the name ''Music Vendor'', but in 1964 it was changed to ''Record Wo ...

''s "100 Top Pops",100 Top Pops
, ''

'', May 4, 1968. Retrieved March 10, 2018. No. 12 on ''Record World''s "Top Non-Rock" chart,Record World's Top Non-Rock
, ''

'', May 11, 1968. p. 30. Retrieved March 10, 2018. No. 36 on Canada's " ''RPM'' 100",RPM 100
, ''

RPM Weekly ''RPM'' ( and later ) was a Canadian music-industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. ''R ...

'', Volume 9, No. 11, May 11, 1968. Accessed October 10, 2016. and No. 16 on Canada's

CHUM Hit Parade The CHUM Chart was a ranking of top 30 (and, until August 1968, the top 50) songs on Toronto, Ontario radio station CHUM AM, from 1957 to 1986, and was the longest-running Top 40 chart in the world produced by an individual radio station. On Janua ...

. Chart No. 585. Vinton's version omitted the introduction, plus the first two lines of the repeated refrain.

Chart performance

Smokie version

In 1980, Smokie released a version of the song, which spent seven weeks on the UK Singles Chart, reaching No. 34, while reaching No. 10 on Austria's Ö3 Hit wähl mit chart, No. 15 on the

Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are bas ...

, and No. 18 in West Germany.Smokie – Take Good Care of My Baby
norwegiancharts.com. Accessed October 10, 2016. It was later released on their 1981 album '' Solid Ground''.

Other versions

Dion recorded a version of the song, which was released on his November 1961 album ''Runaround Sue''. Although Dion's version was released after Bobby Vee's version, Dion's was the first version to be recorded. The song was covered by The Beatles during their audition at

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

on January 1, 1962, with George Harrison on lead vocals. Gary Lewis & The Playboys recorded a cover version, which was released on their 1966 album, ''She's Just My Style''.

Donny Osmond Donald Clark "Donny" Osmond (born December 9, 1957) is an American singer, dancer, actor, television host, and former teen idol. He first gained fame performing with four of his elder brothers as the Osmonds, earning several top ten hits and gol ...

released a version of the song on his 1972 album '' Too Young''. As Dick Brave and the Backbeats, German pop star

Sasha Sacha, Sasha, Sascha, or ''variant'' may refer to: People * Sasha (name), includes list of people with the name and the variants Sascha or Sacha Musicians * Sasha (DJ) (born 1969), born Alexander Coe * Sasha (German singer) (born 1972), born Sas ...

released a version in 2003, which reached No. 21 in Germany and No. 52 on the Ö3 Austria Top 40.

Answer songs

An answer song, titled "I'll Take Good Care of Your Baby", was recorded by Ralph Emery. It was released as a single on Liberty F-55383, in 1961.Reviews of New Singles
, ''

'', October 23, 1961. p. 41. Retrieved October 12, 2016. Another answer song, titled "You Should Know I'm Still Your Baby", was recorded by Sammi Lynn.Cooper, B. Lee; Haney, Wayne S. (1990). ''Response Recordings: An Answer Song Discography, 1950-1990'',

Scarecrow Press Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group is an independent publishing house founded in 1949. Under several imprints, the company offers scholarly books for the academic market, as well as trade books. The company also owns the book distributing compa ...

. p. 151. It was released as a single on Sue Records 45-752, in 1961.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Take Good Care Of My Baby 1961 singles 1968 singles 1973 singles 1980 singles 1961 songs Bobby Vee songs Dion DiMucci songs Bobby Vinton songs The Beatles songs Smokie (band) songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles Number-one singles in Canada Number-one singles in New Zealand Songs with lyrics by Gerry Goffin Songs written by Carole King Song recordings produced by Snuff Garrett Song recordings produced by Billy Sherrill Liberty Records singles Epic Records singles United Artists Records singles RAK Records singles