Come Back Baby - part 2

Well, I guess it's been too long since the last post about the roots of the song "Come Back Baby" - one of my all time favorite Folk/Blues songs.

I finally got a hold of the double CD collection of Walter Davis recordings from the Document label...but beyond that, I also sat down to listen to and transcribe the lyrics to a few more versions of the song, following the trail of cover recordings that seems to start about 10 years after Walter Davis recorded his original 2 versions.
Here are the verses sung by some of my favorite artists, as I may have mentioned earlier, the Bert Jansch and Dave Van Ronk versions have been my favorite ones for many years - they have a very delicate but powerful and haunting melodic style both in the vocals and the acoustic guitar.


COME BACK, BABY (Lightnin' Hopkins rec. 1950)

Come back, baby. Baby, please don't go.
Way I love you, you'll never know
Come back, baby. Can't we talk it over one more time.

You know this world darlin', wasn't made in one day.
Why we can't talk it over, 'fore you go away.
Come back, baby. Let's talk it over one more time.

You know it's been a long time, since I seen you smile.
Made me think about, when you was a child.
Come back, baby. Can't we talk it over one more time.

If you ain't coming back baby, darlin' please tell me so
Then I won't have to worry, about you coming back no more.
Come back, baby. Let's talk it over one more time.



COME BACK BABY (Mance Lipscomb - rec 1964)

Come back, baby, Please don't go
The way I love you baby, you'll never know.
Come back, baby, let's talk it over, one more time

My hearts in trouble, head's in misery,
Ain't got nobody talk sweet talk to me,
Come back baby, let's talk it over one more time

Lone, lonesome day,
Seem like tomorrow gonna be the same old way.
Come back baby, can't we talk it over one more time

I left her standing, in the doorway crying
Hated to go, leave that girl behind,
Come back baby, let's talk it over one more time

I love you baby, I cain't help myself
Don't get you, don't want nobody else
Come back baby, let's talk it over one more time

Went up on the mountain, looked down at the sun,
Ain't seen nobody love me like you have done,
Come back baby, let's talk it over one more time

I love you baby, I cain't help myself
Don't get you, don't want nobody else
Come back baby, let's talk it over one more time

Come back baby, can't we talk it over one more time

Come back, baby, Please don't go
The way I love you baby, you'll never know.
Come back, baby, let's talk it over, one more time

Down to the river, couldn't get accross
Jumped on an alligator, thought it was a horse
Come back, baby, let's talk it over, one more time


Bert Jansch does a great version on his 1967 album - Nicola



Please come back baby, please don't go
for the way I love you you'll never know.
So come back baby, let's talk it over, one more time.

Woke up this morning, just past dawn,
Read the note, baby,
Saying you had gone,
Come back, baby, let's talk it over, one more time.

You know I love you, tell the world I do,
For the way I love you, baby,
You'll never know.
So come back, baby, let's talk it over,
One more time.


Dave Van Ronk recorded this a number of times,
and it was a regular part of his performing repertoire throughout his career

Please come back baby, please don't go
for the way I love you you'll never know.
Come back baby, let's talk it over, one more time

I love you baby tell the world I do
I don't want no one else but you
Come back baby, let's talk it over, one more time

Long old train, mean engineer
Took my baby, left me standing here
Come back baby, let's talk it over, one more time

If I could holler like a mountain jack
I'd climb this mountain, call my baby back
Come back baby, let's talk it over, one more time

Hey come back baby, please don't go
for the way I love you you'll never know.
Well come back baby, let's talk it over, one more time

Ray Charles had a top 10 R & B hit with his version in 1955,
Ray embellished the tune with a little traditional blues bridge (the last verse)
which is not found in any of the Folk or Country Blues versions of the song

Come back, baby, Please don't go
For the way I love you baby, how you'll never know
Oh, come back, baby, yeah yeah let's talk it over
oh one more time, oh now now

Well I admit Baby that I was wrong
Don't you know baby, aw you been gone too long
Oh, come back, baby, yeah yeah let's talk it over
oh one more time, oh now now

Say if I could holler like a mountain jack
Yeah yeah oh people I'd call my baby back
Oh come back, baby, yeah yeah let's talk it over
oh one more time, oh now now

Now one of these days baby, and it won't be long yeah
You gonna look for me child you know, and I'll be gone
So come back, baby, yeah yeah let's talk it over
oh one more time, oh now now

Come Back Baby - where did it start?

I have been singing the old Blues standard "Come Back Baby" for more than 25 years, but I never really bothered to research the origin of the song, just collected a number of verses from here and there along the way...

In a recent conversation with my friend Raviv, he mentioned Dave Van Ronk's recording of "Come Back Baby", and said he always thought it was by Ray Charles, since it was credited to him on his recordings, and also on the cover by Dave Edmund's band Love Sculpture. I told Raviv that I was pretty sure the song was older than that, and that sparked an obsessive effort to try and discover the earliest known version.

I have always admired 2 versions of the song in particular - Dave Van Ronk and Bert Jansch. Each of their versions is powerful, simple, elegant, and moving. Van Ronk took a very delicate and slow approach to the song, with a soft 2 note guitar chord opening.
Jansch has a slightly more "snappy" upbeat guitar accompaniment, and that Scottish accent and high slightly nasal voice also adds charm to his version.

So where did it begin? The latest edition of Blues and Gospel Records, 1890-1943 tells me that the earliest known recording of a song titled Come Back Baby was recorded by Whistlin' Alex Moore in 1937, but once I found a recording, I found that his song has no connection or relation to the song I'm familiar with. Next in line was Walter Davis, with 2 recordings, one from July 12, 1940, and the other ("New come Back Baby") from 1941. So at the moment, it looks like this could be the earliest and possibly the original version of the song. My experience with folk music history tells me that it's likely that the song is much older - I just haven't found the proof yet...

Well, I searched high and low, and could not find the 1940 version by Walter Davis, nor a listing of the lyrics... until a DJ contact in Denmark (thank you Kjell!) forwarded my request to a collector in Norway (thank you Rolf!) - who sent me an MP3 copy of the song so that I could transcribe the lyrics. I also managed to locate a lovely 2 CD compilation (the Essential Walter Davis) by Document records and ordered it from the UK - it arrived within a week.


So here are Walter Davis's verses:

"Come Back Baby"
Walter Davis (rec. July 12, 1940)

Oh, come back baby, please don't go
'bout the way I love you you'll never know
Come back baby, cain't we talk it over one more time

My heart is full of sorrow, my eyes is full of tears
Lord We've been together for so many years
Come back baby, cain't we talk it over one more time

You know this world, wasn't made in one day.
Can't we talk it over, just before you go away.
Come back baby, cain't we talk it over one more time

Come back baby don't break up my home
You know I'm gonna miss you after you've gone
Come back baby, cain't we talk it over one more time

I begged you all night , all the night before
Please don't ever leave me, don't ever leave me no more
Come back baby, cain't we talk it over one more time

Now you know babe, you the only one I love,
Lord I just as soon to be dead, gone to the lord above
Come back baby, cain't we talk it over, one more time

I'll get into other versions in the next blog entry...