"Walk On By" is a song written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David for singer Dionne Warwick in 1963.[7] Warwick's recording of the song peaked at number 6 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 1 on the Cash Box Rhythm and Blues Chart In June 1964 and was nominated for a 1965 Grammy Award for the Best Rhythm and Blues Recording.
Isaac Hayes recorded the song five years later, in 1969, and his version reached number 30 on the Hot 100 chart and number 13 in the R&B charts.[8] "Walk On By" has since charted numerous times in various countries, with wildly different arrangements, as noted below.
The original version of "Walk On By" by Dionne Warwick was recorded at Bell Sound Studios in New York City,[10] the same late November/early December 1963 session that yielded her hit "Anyone Who Had a Heart". "Walk On By" was the follow-up to that single, released in April 1964 and reaching number 6 on the U.S.Billboard Hot 100 and number 1 on the Cashbox's R&B chart.[11] (Billboard did not print rhythm and blues charts during 1964, the year of the song's peak performance.) The song also reached the top 10 in a run on Billboard's easy listening survey. The song was ranked number 51 on the Rolling Stone list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.[12] "Walk On By" became Warwick's second international million seller, following "Anyone Who Had A Heart" in January 1964. Warwick also recorded a German version of the song, titled "Geh vorbei".[13]
Session drummer Gary Chester[citation needed] played on this recording as did session bassist Russ Savakus.[14] Other musicians included Artie Butler on organ, Paul Griffin on piano, Irwin Markowitz and Ernie Royal on trumpet, Bill Suyker and Allen Hanlon on guitar, Max Pollikoff, Charles McCracken, Eugene Orloff, Julius Held, and George Ockner on violin, Harold Coletta on viola, Lucien Schmit on cello, Paul Winter on saxophone, and George Devens on percussion.
In 2023, Warwick's recording was sampled by Doja Cat for her single "Paint the Town Red". It reached number one on the Hot 100 on the issue dated September 16, 2023, marking the first time Warwick's voice appeared at number one since 1986's Year-end chart performance of "That's What Friends Are For".[15]
United Kingdom (BPI)[18] Sales since November 14, 2004
Silver
200,000‡
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
Bobby Kris and the Imperials version (1965)
The Toronto folk-rock group Bobby Kris and the Imperials released a fairly straight-ahead cover version in late 1965. The single became a major hit in Canada, reaching number 8 in early 1966, but "Walk On By" was the band's only hit.
Isaac Hayes released a cover version of "Walk on By" in 1969 on the album Hot Buttered Soul, transforming the song into a twelve-minute funk vamp. A single edit reached number 30 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart. Hayes' version was ranked No. 312 in the 2021 edition of Rolling Stone's "Top 500 Songs of All Time".[21]
Gloria Gaynor released her disco version on her 1975 album, Experience Gloria Gaynor. It became a hit in South Africa during the fall of the year, reaching #12, and #17 in Germany.
In 1978, the Stranglers recorded a version of "Walk on By" which reached No. 21 on the UK Singles Chart.[25] This six-minute version of the song features extended Hammond organ and guitar solos which Gene Becker of AllMusic likened to the Doors' "Light My Fire".[26] A music video was produced for the single, parodying Michelangelo Antonioni's 1966 film Blowup. As with key sequences of the film, the Stranglers video was filmed largely in London's Maryon Park.[27] The single's chart performance may have been impaired by the fact that an EP featuring the song had been given away with the first 75,000 copies of the band's album Black and White.
In 1983, Australian group Jo Jo Zep covered "Walk on By" in a slow, moody version that featured electronics and synthesisers. The song was lifted from the band's seventh studio album, Cha. The track was a minor hit in Australia, peaking at number 55, but was a major hit in New Zealand, hitting number 6.
In 1990, American singer Sybil, who had scored her biggest hit a year prior with a cover of Warwick's "Don't Make Me Over", also scored a U.S. and UK hit with "Walk On By".
In 1997, UK singer Gabrielle released her version of "Walk on By" as the fifth and final single from her studio album, Gabrielle. It reached number 7 on the UK Singles Chart.
A reviewer from Music Week rated the track five out of five, adding that the song "is given a fine treatment by Gabrielle, whose voice fits perfectly. A guaranteed radio biggie, too."[35]
"Walk on By" was the first single from Cyndi Lauper's 2003 covers album, At Last. It was also included on Lauper's 2004 DVD Live at Last. It was released as a promo only. Remixes of the song reached number 10 on the U.S. dance chart.
Seal released a version of "Walk On By" as a single in 2004. Though the song did not chart in his native UK, it made the lower reaches of the charts in several European countries.
^ abcMolanphy, Chris (March 25, 2022). "Killing Me Softly Edition". Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia (Podcast). Slate. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
^DeMain, Bill (1997). "Burt Bacharach". In Jones, Dylan (ed.). Ultra Lounge: The Lexicon of Easy Listening. New York: Universe Publishing. p. 29.
^Breihan, Tom (February 12, 2019). "The Number Ones: Isaac Hayes' "Theme From Shaft"". Stereogum. Retrieved June 16, 2023. Hayes would take well-known songs, like Burt Bacharach and Hal David's Dionne Warwick hit "Walk On By," and...turn them into existential deep-funk symphonies...
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