Stay (Maurice Williams song)

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"Stay"
Single by Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs
B-side"Do You Believe"
Written1953
ReleasedAugust 1960
Recorded1960
GenreDoo-wop
Length1:36
LabelHerald
Songwriter(s)Maurice Williams
Producer(s)Phil Gernhard

"Stay" is a doo-wop song written by Maurice Williams and first recorded in 1960 by Williams with his group the Zodiacs.[1] Commercially successful versions were later also issued by the Hollies, the Four Seasons and Jackson Browne.

Maurice Williams original version[edit]

The song was written by Williams in 1953 when he was 15 years old. He had been trying to convince his date not to go home at 10 o'clock as she was supposed to. He lost the argument, but as he was to relate years later, "Like a flood, the words just came to me."

In 1960, the song was put on a demo by Williams and his band, the Zodiacs, but it attracted no interest until a ten-year-old heard it and impressed the band members with her positive reaction to the tune.[citation needed] The band's producer, Phil Gernhard, took it along with some other demos to New York City and played them for all the major record producers that they could access. Finally, Al Silver of Herald Records became interested, but insisted that the song be re-recorded as the demo's recording levels were too low. They also said that one line, "Let's have another smoke" would have to be removed in order for the song to be played on commercial radio. After the group recorded the tune again, it was released by Herald Records and was picked up by CKLW. It entered the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 on October 3, 1960, and reached the number one spot on November 21, 1960. It was dislodged a week later by Elvis Presley's "Are You Lonesome Tonight?". On the Herald recording, Williams sang lead and Henry Gaston sang the falsetto chorus.

The original recording of "Stay" remains the shortest single ever to reach the top of the American record charts, at 1 minute 36 seconds. By 1990, it had sold more than 8 million copies. Its popularity revived when the Dirty Dancing soundtrack included it.

Chart history[edit]

The Hollies version[edit]

In November 1963, the song was released by British band the Hollies, whose version reached No. 8 on the UK Singles Chart. It remained on the chart for a total of 16 weeks.[9] The song is from their debut album Stay with The Hollies.

The Four Seasons version[edit]

"Stay"
Single by the Four Seasons
B-side"Goodnight My Love" (from the album Big Girls Don't Cry and 12 Others) (second release)
ReleasedDecember 1963
Recorded1963
GenreRock, doo-wop
Length1:52
LabelVee-Jay
Songwriter(s)Maurice Williams
Producer(s)Bob Crewe
The Four Seasons singles chronology
"Dawn (Go Away)"
(1963) 		"Stay"
(1963) 		"Ronnie"
(1964)

The Four Seasons' version was first released on their June 1963 album The 4 Seasons Sing Ain't That a Shame and 11 Others; it was later released as a single in December 1963. Vee Jay originally released it as the B-side of "Peanuts" in December, but when disc jockeys started to "turn the single over" to play "Stay" on the air, the record company superseded the single with a new one with "Stay" as the A-side and "Goodnight My Love" as the new B-side.[10] It peaked at number 16 on the US Billboard Hot 100[11][12] in April 1964.

Jackson Browne version[edit]

"Stay"
Single by Jackson Browne
from the album Running on Empty
B-side"Rosie"
Released1978
Recorded1977
VenueMerriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, Maryland
GenreSoft rock[13]
Length3:28
LabelAsylum
Songwriter(s)Maurice Williams
Producer(s)Jackson Browne
Jackson Browne singles chronology
"Running on Empty"
(1978) 		"Stay"
(1978) 		"You Love the Thunder"
(1978)

A version of the song with revised lyrics is the last track on Jackson Browne's 1977 album Running on Empty. The song, which follows on the heels of Browne's "The Load-Out" begs the audience to stay for an encore and includes an extensive playout. It includes backing contributions from David Lindley and Rosemary Butler. Billboard described this version as "spirited and gospel-like".[14] Cash Box said that it has "effective guitar and keyboard solos and an easy beat" and "pleasing lead vocals", and that "David Lindley draws appreciation from the audience with his teasing falsetto".[15] Record World said that "David Lindley's falsetto vocals and guitar lend an able hand, and the live quality is appealing."[16]

Browne, Butler and Lindley each contribute a similar verse in turn in ascending vocal ranges. It was released as a single and reached number 20 in the U.S. as well as number 12 in the UK.

Charts[edit]

Chart (1978) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report) 58
Canada RPM Top Singles[17] 19
New Zealand (RIANZ)[18] 10
UK[19] 12
US Billboard Hot 100[4] 20
US Billboard Adult Contemporary 47
US Cash Box Top 100 22

Dreamhouse version[edit]

"Stay"
Single by Dreamhouse
from the album Sha-La-La and Dreamhouse
Released1995 (UK/Europe), 1998 (US)
GenreReggae fusion, dance-pop
Length3:25
LabelChase Records, Ariola, Trauma
Songwriter(s)Maurice Williams
Producer(s)Gary Miller
Dreamhouse singles chronology
"Stay"
(1995) 		"Hay Que Linda"
(1996)

British reggae fusion pop/dance trio Dreamhouse released their version of "Stay" as their debut single in 1995, which reached No. 62 on the UK Singles Chart.[20] In the United States, it was released in 1998 as the lead single from the U.S. album Dreamhouse.[21] In a positive review for the 13 June 1998 issue of Billboard magazine, the song was featured in the "New & Noteworthy" section, saying "This wildly appealing working-class UK trio is poised to seriously penetrate the stateside market with an instantly infectious dance rendition of Maurice Williams' pop chestnut... Pop music doesn't get much more obvious than this single, which is destined to become the guilty top 40 pleasure of the summer season."[22]

Cyndi Lauper version[edit]

"Stay"
Single by Cyndi Lauper
from the album At Last
Released2004
GenrePop
Length3:15
LabelSony
Songwriter(s)Maurice Williams
Cyndi Lauper singles chronology
"Until You Come Back to Me (That's What I'm Gonna Do)"
(2004) 		"Stay"
(2004) 		"Time After Time"
(2005)

"Stay" was the third and final single from Cyndi Lauper's 2003 album At Last. It was a promo-only single, released only in the U.S., Australia and France. The video that accompanied it is rarely seen but is commercially available as a special feature on the DVD, Live at Last. The single peaked at No. 64 on the French Singles Chart.[23]

Other versions[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Maurice Williams & The Zodiacs - Stay / Do You Believe at Discogs". Discogs.com. 1960. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
  2. ^ "flavour of new zealand - search lever". Flavourofnz.co.nz. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  3. ^ "Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. January 11, 1961. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  4. ^ a b Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
  5. ^ a b "The Top 100 R&B Singles of 1960 - RYM/Sonemic". Rateyourmusic.com. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  6. ^ "Cash Box Top 100 12/10/60". Tropicalglen.com. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  7. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1999). Pop Annual. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. ISBN 0-89820-142-X.
  8. ^ "Top 100 Hits of 1960/Top 100 Songs of 1960". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  9. ^ "HOLLIES | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Official Charts.
  10. ^ Tom Neely, Goldmine Price Guide to 45 RPM Records, 5th edition (KP Books, 2005) ISBN 0-87349-840-2
  11. ^ "Billboard Hot 100 - April 4, 1964". Billboard. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  12. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits: Eighth Edition. Record Research. p. 238.
  13. ^ "Soft Rock Music Songs". AllMusic.
  14. ^ "Top Single Picks" (PDF). Billboard. June 3, 1978. p. 110. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  15. ^ "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. June 3, 1978. p. 24. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
  16. ^ "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. June 3, 1978. p. 1. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
  17. ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. August 26, 1978. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  18. ^ "flavour of new zealand - search rianz". www.flavourofnz.co.nz.
  19. ^ "Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. July 1, 1978. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  20. ^ "DREAMHOUSE | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Official Charts.
  21. ^ Prato, Greg. "Dreamhouse - 'Dreamhouse' - Review". Allmusic (Rovi Corporation).
  22. ^ "Singles - New & Noteworthy". Billboard. Vol. 110, no. 24. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. June 13, 1998. p. 23.
  23. ^ "infodisc.fr Note : You must select Cyndi Lauper" (in French). infodisc.fr. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  24. ^ "No Nukes '79". brucespringsteen.net. December 24, 2018. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
  25. ^ "P.D.Q. Bach - Abduction of Figaro COMPLETE OPERA". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 14, 2021. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
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