Format 7" (45 rpm) Genre Doo-wop | Recorded 1956 Length 2:40 | |
B-side "How Can I Find True Love" Released December 1956 (Fee Bee)/
January 1957 (Dot Records) | ||
"Come Go with Me" is a song written by C. E. Quick (a.k.a. Clarence Quick), an original member (bass vocalist) of the American doo-wop vocal group The Del-Vikings (also spelled Dell Vikings on Dot records releases, with no dash). The song was originally recorded by The Del-Vikings in 1956 and was released on Fee Bee Records. Norman Wright was the lead vocalist on this song. When the group signed with Dot Records in 1957, the song became a hit, peaking at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and becoming the group's highest-charting song. The song was later featured in the films American Graffiti (1973), Diner (1982), Stand by Me (1986) and Joe Versus the Volcano (1990).
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The Beach Boys version
"Come Go with Me" was later covered by American rock band the Beach Boys and was included on their 1978 album, M.I.U. Album. Although not released as a single at the time, the song was included on a Beach Boys compilation album, Ten Years of Harmony, in 1981. After being released as a single to promote the compilation, it rose to #18 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in January 1982. When that compilation was reissued on CD, an alternative take of the song was used. According to Al Jardine, he requested bandmate Brian Wilson to contribute the horn arrangement, devising it on the spot at Sunset Sound Recorders while dressed in a bathrobe.
Other versions
Dion covered a version of the song on his 1962 album, Lovers Who Wander. Released as a single, it reached #48 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1963.
Israeli artist Danny Sanderson sings a Hebrew a cappella version of the song entitled "Bo'ee Motek/בואי מותק" ("Come, my Darling"); this was released on his 1984 album חף מפשע (Not Guilty), on the CBS International label.
In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked the song #449 on its list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. The song was incorrectly listed as having reached #5 on the charts by Rolling Stone. It peaked at #4 in 1957.