"Dawn (Go Away)" is a song written by Bob Gaudio and Sandy Linzer and recorded by the Four Seasons[3] in November 1963.[4]
The song hit No. 3 in the early part of 1964. According to Billboard, it was the 25th biggest hit single of the year, placing behind "Rag Doll", another Four Seasons hit, which was No. 24.[5]
Background
It was recorded as the Four Seasons were involved in a royalty dispute with Vee-Jay Records. As the lawsuit proceeded, the group recorded "Dawn" and a handful of other songs and withheld the master tapes from Vee-Jay, which then claimed breach of contract. The dispute was not settled until 1965, a year after the Four Seasons officially left Vee-Jay.
The group signed with Philips Records, a subsidiary of Mercury Records, shortly thereafter. "Dawn (Go Away)" was released in January 1964. It took four weeks to climb the BillboardHot 100 chart to No. 3 on February 29, 1964,[6] prevented from going higher by the Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" and "She Loves You", which became the top two singles of 1964. "Dawn" remained at No. 3 for three weeks, then dropped to make way for two further Beatles singles ("Twist and Shout" and "Please Please Me"). During its six-week run in the Top Ten, only Beatles hits ranked above it in the chart.[7]
Cash Box said that the song "is delivered with that stompin', falsetto-highlighted money-making touch of the Four Seasons" and praised the arrangement and conducting by Charles Calello.[8]
Originally written as a folk song, arranger Charles Calello sped it up and, at Valli's suggestion, added a galloping rhythm guitar borrowed from Kai Winding's version of "More". Drummer Buddy Saltzman accented the recording with bombastic around-the-kit fills and ghost notes without using any cymbals.[9]
The single version, with a two-line sung introduction, was never recorded in true stereo. Early "stereo" album releases were rechanneled (with the high and low frequencies on one channel and the midrange on the other); later stereo issues, from the Edizione d'Oro greatest hits album onward, include different takes of the recording. One begins with a short drum intro, featuring a louder and more frantic drum backing by Saltzman, and slightly different vocals. Both versions are listed as 2 minutes 11 seconds long, but the stereo "Dawn" is 2 minutes 30 seconds, and the mono version with the "Pretty as midsummer's morn. They called her Dawn" intro is 2 minutes 45 seconds.[10]
"Dawn (Go Away)" was the only Philips single crediting the Four Seasons that did not have the notation "featuring the 'sound' of Frankie Valli".
References
^Frankie Valli & The 4 Seasons (1991-11-19), Greatest Hits, Volume 1, Internet Archive, Warner Special Products, retrieved 2023-01-30{{citation}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^"Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons Sessionography Part 4". That 'Four Seasons' Sound. 2012. Retrieved July 24, 2020. November 1963, as they pursued their law suit against the soon to be defunct Vee-Jay label, saw their first milestone recording which would launch their new sound and hits....but not at Philips studios as they prepared to sign contracts, but at Atlantic Studios. Charlie Calello had his biggest part to date in arranging the song..."We recorded "Dawn (Go Away)" at Atlantic Studios. That was our first opportunity to work on 8 track. It was an extreme luxury to have the bass and drums on their own track. It was amazing. "
