Don't Let Him Go

Last updated
"Don't Let Him Go"
Don't Let Him Go cover.jpg
Single by REO Speedwagon
from the album Hi Infidelity
B-side "I Wish You Were There"
ReleasedJune 1981 [1]
RecordedAugust 19, 1980
Genre Hard rock, power pop
Length3:47
Label Epic
Songwriter(s) Kevin Cronin
Producer(s) Kevin Beamish
Kevin Cronin
Alan Gratzer
Gary Richrath
REO Speedwagon singles chronology
"Take It on the Run"
(1980)		"Don't Let Him Go"
(1981)		"In Your Letter"
(1981)
Music video
"Don't Let Him Go" on YouTube

"Don't Let Him Go" is a song written by Kevin Cronin. It was originally released as the opening song for REO Speedwagon's #1 album Hi Infidelity . It was also released as a single, reaching #24 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. [2] "Don't Let Him Go" has appeared on several REO Speedwagon greatest hits albums. [3]

Contents

Cronin recalls "Don't Let Him Go" being the first song he wrote for Hi Infidelity. [4] Like the #1 single from the album, "Keep on Loving You," the lyrics of "Don't Let Him Go" are about breaking up with a longtime girlfriend. [5] According to Joseph Timmons of Seattle Post Intelligencer , the song is a "warning to not take the man you love for granted." [6] Casandra Armour of vintagerock.com described the lyrics as having the singer pleading on behalf of a friend who has "a lot of swag but not much substance" but "just needs a chance to grow." [7] Cronin has said that the song is based on the experiences of all the band members and is basically a plea to all their girlfriends to have patience with them. [4]

Allmusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine remarked on the song's "insistent beat." [8] He and other critics have also pointed out that the song was influenced by Bo Diddley. [8] [9] [10] Cronin himself has stated that it is based on a slightly modified Bo Diddley beat. [4] Author Chuck Eddy described it as a "Bo Diddleyed do-si-do." [9] Armour describes the music as "a jaunty kind of hand-jive peppered with power chords." [7] Pete Bishop of The Pittsburgh Press described "Don't Let Him Go" as a "straight-ahead melodic rocker." [11] Allmusic critic Barry Weber described the song as an "underrated rocker." [12] Record World said that "pounding drums, ringing guitars and synthesizer swooshes surround Kevin Cronin's lead vocal cry." [13]

"Don't Let Him Go" was also included on the compilation albums The Hits and The Essential REO Speedwagon . A live version was included on The Second Decade of Rock and Roll, 1981-1991, Arch Allies: Live at Riverport , and Setlist: The Very Best of REO Speedwagon Live. In 1981, the band performed the song on the television show America's Top 10 . [14]

The band routinely opens its concerts with this song.

Personnel

REO Speedwagon

Charts

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">REO Speedwagon</span> American rock band

REO Speedwagon, or simply REO, is an American rock band from Champaign, Illinois. Formed in 1967, the band cultivated a following during the 1970s and achieved significant commercial success throughout the 1980s. Its best-selling album, Hi Infidelity (1980), contained four US Top 40 hits and sold more than ten million copies.

<i>Hi Infidelity</i> 1980 studio album by REO Speedwagon

Hi Infidelity is the ninth studio album by American rock band REO Speedwagon, released on November 21, 1980, by Epic Records. The album became a big hit in the United States, peaking at number one on the Billboard 200. It went on to become the biggest-selling album of 1981, eventually being certified 10 times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. Of the four singles released, "Take It on the Run" went to number 5 on the Billboard Hot 100, and the band got their first of two number one hits with "Keep On Loving You".

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Keep On Loving You (song)</span> 1980 single by REO Speedwagon

"Keep On Loving You" is a rock ballad written by Kevin Cronin and performed by American rock band REO Speedwagon. It features the lead guitar work of Gary Richrath. The song first appeared on REO Speedwagon's 1980 album Hi Infidelity. It was the first REO Speedwagon single to break the top 50 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, reaching the number-one spot for one week in March 1981. The single was certified platinum for U.S. sales of over one million copies. It peaked at number seven on the UK Singles Chart. "Keep On Loving You" has been a mainstay on 1980s soft rock compilations and has appeared on dozens of 'various artists' compilation albums, as well as several REO Speedwagon greatest hits albums.

<i>You Can Tune a Piano, but You Cant Tuna Fish</i> Album by REO Speedwagon

You Can Tune a Piano, but You Can't Tuna Fish is the seventh studio album by REO Speedwagon, released in 1978. It was their first album to be co-produced by lead singer Kevin Cronin and lead guitarist Gary Richrath. The album was REO's first to make the Top 40, peaking at No. 29. The album sold over 2 million copies in the US, which led it to being certified 2× Platinum.

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"Take It on the Run" is a song by American rock band REO Speedwagon off the band's ninth studio album Hi Infidelity (1980). The song was written by lead guitarist Gary Richrath. "Take It on the Run" was the follow-up single behind the group's number-one hit, "Keep on Loving You". The single went gold on April 17, 1989. "Take It on the Run" has appeared on dozens of "various artists" compilation albums, as well as several REO Speedwagon greatest-hits albums. The 2017 song "Messin' Around" by Pitbull featuring Enrique Iglesias interpolates "Take It on the Run".

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kevin Cronin</span> American singer and musician

Kevin Patrick Cronin Jr. is an American musician and songwriter, who is the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, and pianist for the rock band REO Speedwagon. The band had several hits on the Billboard Hot 100 throughout the 1970s and 1980s, including two chart-toppers written by Cronin: "Keep On Loving You" (1980) and "Can't Fight This Feeling" (1984).

<i>Good Trouble</i> (album) 1982 studio album by REO Speedwagon

Good Trouble is the tenth studio album by REO Speedwagon, released in 1982 as a follow-up to Hi Infidelity. It peaked at #7 on the Billboard charts. The single "Keep the Fire Burnin'" gave the band a #7 hit on Billboard's Pop Singles Chart and a #2 hit on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, their highest-charting hit on this chart.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">REO Speedwagon discography</span>

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<i>The Hits</i> (REO Speedwagon album) 1988 greatest hits album by REO Speedwagon

The Hits is a compilation album from REO Speedwagon. It contains hits such as "Can't Fight This Feeling" and "Keep on Loving You", as well as new tracks "Here with Me" and "I Don't Want to Lose You". "Here with Me" cracked the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100. and the top ten on the Adult Contemporary chart; however, it would be the last single to feature drummer Alan Gratzer and guitarist Gary Richrath, as they each left the band within the year following this album's release. The album has sold over 4 million copies in the U.S. which led it to go 4× Platinum.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Time for Me to Fly (song)</span> 1978 single by REO Speedwagon

"Time for Me to Fly" is a song by American rock band REO Speedwagon, released in 1978 as the second single from the album You Can Tune a Piano, but You Can't Tuna Fish. It was written by lead singer Kevin Cronin and took 10 years to write. The song originally reached number 56 on the Billboard Hot 100, but later reached number 34 on the Digital Songs chart after being used in Netflix's Ozark. It also reached number 90 on the Canadian charts. The song has a BPM of 81 BPM and plays in 4/4 time signature. Cash Box praised the "melodic singing and acoustic guitar work...enveloping chorus and...catchy lyric." Record World said that it is "characteristic of the group's imaginative use of rock's common raw materials."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">One Lonely Night (song)</span> 1985 single by REO Speedwagon

"One Lonely Night" is a song performed by the American band REO Speedwagon. The song is the third single from the band's 1984 album Wheels Are Turnin'. It peaked at No. 19 on the US Billboard Hot 100, making it the second best performing single from the album in the United States, although very far from the success of "Can't Fight This Feeling".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Do' Wanna Know</span> 1984 single by REO Speedwagon

"I Do' Wanna Know" is a song written by Kevin Cronin that was the lead single from REO Speedwagon's 1984 album Wheels Are Turnin'. It was more of a rocker reminiscent of the songs REO Speedwagon had released in the 1970s than the ballads the band had been successful with in the early 1980s. It had limited success on popular music charts, which was blamed for delaying sales of the album until the release of the follow-up single, the ballad "Can't Fight This Feeling." The video to the song was nominated for several awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Live Every Moment</span> 1985 single by REO Speedwagon

"Live Every Moment" is a song written by Kevin Cronin that was first released on the band's 1984 album Wheels Are Turnin'. It was released as the fourth single from the album and reached the top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100.

References

  1. ↑ "Great Rock Discography". p. 685.
  2. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2013). Top Pop Singles 1955-2012. Menomonee Falls, WI: Record Research, Inc. p. 703. ISBN   978-0-89820-205-2.
  3. ↑ "REO Speedwagon, Don't Let Him Go (Appears On)". Allmusic . Rovi Corporation . Retrieved 2015-02-18.
  4. 1 2 3 Wardlaw, Matt (November 21, 2017). "The History of REO Speedwagon's 'Hi Infidelity': Interview". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved 2017-11-25.
  5. ↑ Takiff, J. (November 14, 1982). "REO Speedwagon: Barometer for Performers". Boca Raton News . p. 26.
  6. ↑ Timmons, J. (July 7, 2011). "Music Review: REO Speedwagon - Hi Infidelity [30th Anniversary Edition]". Hearst Communications. Retrieved 2012-06-13.
  7. 1 2 Armour, Casandra. "Hi Infidelity (30th Anniversary Edition)". vintagerock.com. Retrieved 2016-09-24.
  8. 1 2 Stephen Thomas Erlewine. "Hi Infidelity". Allmusic . Retrieved 2012-06-13.
  9. 1 2 Eddy, C. (1997). The Accidental Evolution of Rock'N'Roll: A Misguided Tour Through Popular Music . Da Capo Press. p.  23. ISBN   9780306807411.
  10. ↑ Swenson, J. (1981). The Year in rock, 1981-82. Delilah Books. p. 254.
  11. ↑ "Speedwagon Back on Fast Track". The Pittsburgh Press . February 12, 1985. p. B8. Retrieved 2016-09-24.
  12. ↑ Weber, Barry. "The Hits". Allmusic . Retrieved 2016-09-26.
  13. ↑ "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. June 13, 1981. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-02-27.
  14. ↑ TV Guide . Triangle Publications. 1981. p. 222.
  15. ↑ "CHART NUMBER 1283 – Saturday, August 15, 1981". Archived from the original on 7 November 2006. Retrieved 2015-02-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link). CHUM. Retrieved 18 February 2015.
  16. ↑ "Top Singles – Volume 35, No. 6, September 5, 1981". RPM. RPM Music Publications Ltd. September 5, 1981. Retrieved August 12, 2014.
  17. ↑ "REO Speedwagon – Don't Let Him Go" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 18 February 2015.
  18. ↑ "REO Speedwagon – Don't Let Him Go" (in Dutch). Top 30. Archived from the original on 13 February 2015. Retrieved 18 February 2015. Hoogste notering in de top 30 : 22
  19. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – REO Speedwagon - Don t Let Him Go" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 18 February 2015.
  20. ↑ "REO Speedwagon – Don't Let Him Go" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 18 February 2015.
  21. 1 2 "Artist Chart History – REO Speedwagon". Billboard charts. Retrieved 2016-10-01.
  22. ↑ "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending AUGUST 1, 1981". Archived from the original on 18 September 2012. Retrieved 2015-02-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link). Cash Box magazine. Retrieved 18 February 2015.
  23. ↑ "Song artist 607 - REO Speedwagon". TsorT. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  24. ↑ REO Speedwagon
  25. ↑ "Charts!". Archived from the original on 2015-02-11. Retrieved 2015-02-18.
  26. ↑ "Top Singles – Volume 35, No. 22, December 26, 1981". RPM . Library and Archives Canada. Archived from the original on 20 October 2013. Retrieved 18 February 2015.
  27. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (1999). Pop Annual. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. ISBN   0-89820-142-X.
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