"Runaround Sue" is a

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm a ...

song (in a modified doo-wop style), originally a US No. 1 Hot 100 hit (No. 4 on the Hot R&B chart) for the singer Dion during 1961, after he split with the Belmonts. It was written by Dion with

Ernie Maresca Ernest Peter Maresca (August 21, 1938 – July 8, 2015) was an American singer, songwriter and record company executive, best known for writing or co-writing some of Dion's biggest hits, including " Runaround Sue" and " The Wanderer". Biog ...

, and tells the story of a disloyal lover. The song ranked No. 351 on the ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' list of "

The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" is a recurring survey compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and industry figures. The first list was published in December 2004 in ...

". In 2002, Dion was inducted into the

Grammy Hall of Fame The Grammy Hall of Fame is a hall of fame to honor musical recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of ...

for "Runaround Sue".

Dion version

Writing and recording

According to Dion, he started to put the song together at an informal party for a friend's birthday, where he started improvising lyrics and encouraged his friends to add doo-wop background harmonies to a clapping rhythm. He then took the idea to his friend, budding songwriter

, and they developed the tune and lyrics together. Having recently split with the Belmonts, Dion then discovered another vocal group, the Del-Satins, and they rehearsed the song. The co-owner of

Laurie Records Laurie Records was a record label established in New York City in 1958 by brothers Robert and Gene Schwartz, and Allan I. Sussel. Among the recording artists on Laurie's roster were Dion and the Belmonts (both together and as separate acts), ...

(Gene Schwartz) liked the song, and it was recorded in summer 1961 at

Bell Sound Studios Bell Sound Studios was an independent recording studio in New York City from 1950 to 1976. At its height, the studio was the largest independent recording studio in the United States, and the site of recording sessions that produced seminal hits by ...

in New York City. The lyrics are sung from the point of view of a man whose former girlfriend, named Sue, was extremely unfaithful. He warns all potential lovers to avoid her at all costs, as Sue "runs around" with every guy she meets and never settles down with any man in particular. He advises: "now people let me put you wise, Sue goes out with other guys" and suggests that potential suitors should "keep away from Runaround Sue". Dion stated in his autobiography ''The Wanderer'', that although his wife's name was Susan, "Runaround Sue" had nothing to do with her. Elsewhere he stated that the name Sue was of a girl he had admired from a distance, and that "her name fit the lyric line perfectly." However, during a 1990 interview with his wife on ''

The Oprah Winfrey Show ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', often referred to as ''The Oprah Show'' or simply ''Oprah'', is an American daytime syndicated talk show that aired nationally for 25 seasons from September 8, 1986, to May 25, 2011, in Chicago, Illinois. Produced ...

'', they presented the story that the song ''was'' indeed about her. In the same autobiography, he stated that the inspiration for the song came from the song " Quarter to Three" by Gary U.S. Bonds, which had recently been released. The musicians included: * Teacho Wiltshire - piano * Buddy Lucas - saxophone * Mickey Baker - guitar *

Bucky Pizzarelli John Paul "Bucky" Pizzarelli (January 9, 1926 – April 1, 2020) was an American jazz guitarist. He was the father of jazz guitarist John Pizzarelli and double bassist Martin Pizzarelli. He worked for NBC as a staffman for Dick Cavett (1971) ...

- rhythm guitar * Milt Hinton - bass *

Panama Francis David Albert "Panama" Francis (December 21, 1918 – November 13, 2001) was an American swing jazz drummer who played on numerous hit recordings in the 1950s. Early life Francis was born in Miami, Florida, on December 21, 1918. His father was ...

- drums

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

All-time charts

Leif Garrett cover

"Runaround Sue" was covered by then 15-year-old Leif Garrett in 1977. The song was the second of four releases from his debut album, all of which became U.S. chart hits. All four songs were covers of major hits from 1959 to 1963, including Dion's two biggest hits. Of the four, "Runaround Sue" was the most successful for Garrett. In early 1978, his version reached No. 13 on ''Billboard'' and No. 18 on '' Cash Box''. The song also reached No. 15 in Canada. On WLS in Chicago, "Runaround Sue" reached No. 1 for one week and was ranked at No. 42 for the year. Garrett was born during the chart run of Dion's original version of "Runaround Sue," in the fall of 1961. Garrett's cover of the song hit the charts the week of his 16th birthday.

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Other cover versions and samples

* An

answer song An answer song, response song or answer record, is a song (usually a recorded track) made in answer to a previous song, normally by another artist. The concept became widespread in blues and R&B recorded music in the 1930s to the 1950s. Answer so ...

"I'm No Run Around", with the same melody but different lyrics, was released in 1961 by Ginger Davis and the Snaps. *

Doug Sheldon Doug Sheldon (born Bernard Bobrow, 22 June 1936, Stepney, London) is a former English pop singer, actor, and novelist. Sheldon was born into a family of carnival businesspeople, and he worked as a barker while receiving training in acting.Bruce ...

's version reached No. 33 in the UK charts in 1961 (tailing behind " The Twist" at No. 32). *

Chubby Checker Chubby Checker (born Ernest Evans; October 3, 1941) is an American rock and roll singer and dancer. He is widely known for popularizing many dance styles, including The Twist dance style, with his 1960 hit cover of Hank Ballard & The Midnight ...

covered the song on his 1962 album ''For Teen Twisters Only''. * In 1963,

Del Shannon Charles Weedon Westover (December 30, 1934 – February 8, 1990), better known by his stage name Del Shannon, was an American musician, singer and songwriter, best known for his 1961 number-one ''Billboard'' hit "Runaway". In 1999, he was induc ...

covered the song on his album ''

Little Town Flirt "Little Town Flirt" is a song by Del Shannon, which he released as a single in 1962 and on the album ''Little Town Flirt'' in 1963. It spent 14 weeks on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, peaking at No. 12, while reaching No. 1 on the Irish Singles ...

''. * In 1963, Yugoslav group Bijele Strijele released the

Serbo-Croatian Serbo-Croatian () – also called Serbo-Croat (), Serbo-Croat-Bosnian (SCB), Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian (BCS), and Bosnian-Croatian-Montenegrin-Serbian (BCMS) – is a South Slavic language and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia an ...

cover of the song, entitled "Svi trče oko Sue". * In 1977, Australian group Ol' 55 covered the song on their album '' Fiveslivejive''. * In 1980, English group

Racey Racey are a British pop group, formed in 1976 in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, England, by Clive Wilson and Phil Fursdon. They achieved success in the late 1970s and early 1980s, with hits such as " Lay Your Love on Me" and "Some Girls". The ...

released a cover version which reached No. 13 on the UK charts. * John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band covered the song in 1983 for the movie ''

Eddie and the Cruisers ''Eddie and the Cruisers'' is a 1983 American musical drama film directed by Martin Davidson with the screenplay written by the director and Arlene Davidson, based on the novel by P. F. Kluge. The sequel '' Eddie and the Cruisers II: Eddie Lives! ...

''. * Gary Glitter covered the song on ''C'mon... C'mon: The Gary Glitter Party Album'' (1997). * G-Eazy sampled the song on his 2011 mixtape '' The Endless Summer''. *

Human Nature Human nature is a concept that denotes the fundamental dispositions and characteristics—including ways of thinking, feeling, and acting—that humans are said to have naturally. The term is often used to denote the essence of humankind, or ...

covered the song on their 2014 album ''

Jukebox A jukebox is a partially automated music-playing device, usually a coin-operated machine, that will play a patron's selection from self-contained media. The classic jukebox has buttons, with letters and numbers on them, which are used to sele ...

''. *

Roberto Carlos Roberto Carlos da Silva Rocha (born 10 April 1973), commonly known as Roberto Carlos, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who now works as a football ambassador. He started his career in Brazil as a forward but spent most of his car ...

recorded a Portuguese version called "Fim de Amor". * Houndmouth covered the song in their performance for

KEXP KEXP-FM (90.3 MHz) is a non-commercial radio station licensed to Seattle, Washington, United States, specializing in alternative and indie rock programmed by its disc jockeys for the Seattle metropolitan area. The station is owned by the no ...

. * An answer song, entitled "Stay-At-Home Sue", was recorded by Linda Laurie. *

The Fratellis The Fratellis are a Scottish rock band from Glasgow, formed in 2005. The band consists of three unrelated members, who perform under pseudonyms: lead vocalist and guitarist Jon Fratelli, bassist Barry Fratelli, and drummer Mince Fratelli. Thei ...

released a cover on the deluxe version of ''

Half Drunk Under a Full Moon ''Half Drunk Under a Full Moon'' is the sixth studio album by Scottish rock band the Fratellis. The album was released on 2 April 2021, having been delayed by a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Background In contrast to the more rock-orient ...

''.

References

External links

The Story behind Runaround Sue
* * {{Authority control 1961 songs 1961 singles 1977 singles Songs written by Ernie Maresca Songs written by Dion DiMucci Dion DiMucci songs Leif Garrett songs Racey songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients Atlantic Records singles Song recordings produced by Michael Lloyd Doo-wop songs Songs about heartache Songs about infidelity Number-one singles in Canada Number-one singles in New Zealand Laurie Records singles