I remember hearing it as a kid, and I loved it as much then as now. Edmunds first heard this song on his car radio back in 1970 while in Britain. He was going to cover Let’s Work Together but it had just been covered by Canned Heat. He heard this song and thought…the backing track to both songs is so close, so he did this one.
I first saw Dave Edmunds in the film Stardust when it was shown as a late-night TV movie. He was part of the fictional Stray Cats in the film with Keith Moon as the drummer. The movie was a sequel to That’ll Be The Day.
This song is stripped-down rock at its best. Dave Edmunds released this song in 1970, and it peaked at #4 on the Billboard 100, #1 in the UK, #3 in Canada, and #3 in New Zealand. It sold over 3 million copies. During the instrumental break, Edmunds paid homage to several recording artists by shouting their names: “Fats Domino, Smiley Lewis, Chuck Berry, Huey Smith.”
Dave had more tracks added to the song, but changed his mind and stripped it down and released it. It was the best decision. It was written by Dave Bartholomew and Earl King and released by Smiley Lewis in 1955, and it went to #2 on the R and B Charts.
I Hear You Knocking
You went away and left me long time ago
Now you’re knocking on my door
I hear you knocking, but you can’t come in
I hear you knocking, go back where you been
I begged you not to go but you said goodbye
And now you’re telling me all your lies
I hear you knocking, but you can’t come in
I hear you knocking, go back where you been, oh yeah
Fats Domino, Smiley Lewis, Chuck Berry, Huey Smith
You better get back to your used-to-be
‘Cause you’re kinda love ain’t good for me
I hear you knocking, but you can’t come in
I hear you knocking, go back where you been
I told you way back in Fifty-two
That I would never go with you
I hear you knocking but you can’t come in
I hear you knocking, go back where you been
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Any Day with DE music is bound to be a better one. Thanks for posting this I am so glad I got to see him, even just that one time.
Thanks Randy. It was great hearing this song again.
I like what you have been doing Max with giving us a live version and a studio cut on your posts, and I usually go for the live, but the studio version has sounds on it that can’t be duplicated live, so I am all for the studio on this song.
Thanks Jim….and I agree with you on this one. The original has a certain sound…I would say a Sun Record kind of sound that isn’t there live.
Good point Jim- you get the drive and the emotion of the live track but the purer sound of the studio version. Take your pick!
I usually prefer the live versions, as I like the energy that comes from being played in front of an audience, but the studio does give you some options that you can’t take on stage with you.
Awesome! 😎
It must be covers day at PowerPop. I have mixed feelings about white artists covering work by Black musicians. Is it exploitation/minstrelsy, or bringing attention to work overlooked by white audiences? I like both of today’s covers (“I Hear You Knockin'” and “Ain’t That Peculiar”). Maybe I’m just a sucker for slide guitar. Plus, I like the vocal treatment on the recorded version of “Knockin'”.
Smiley Lewis’s version of this song was immortalized on 1956’s “The Flying Saucer (Part One)”. The record sampled current/recent hits with slightly altered versions of the artists’ names (e.g. Laughing Lewis instead of Smiley Lewis). The B-side was Part Two, with more of the same. Was this the origin of sampling?
He changed the time signature in it to a basic 4/4. His voice sounds like it’s coming from an AM radio…I love that effect. It reminds me of Sun Records.
I’m not sure about the sampling. I love his version of it though…
Now what happened in the 50s I hated…Pat Boone doing what he did. They did it as soon as it was released…which I didn’t like at all. I’ve seen interviews though with Little Richard saying he didn’t mind because he wrote a lot of those songs so he got paid…the good thing is…time works in their favor. Who did Tutti Fruiti? I bet maybe one out a thousand says Pat Boone…no…scratch that… one out of a million. I’m NOT a Boone fan…of course I just used him as an example.
Pat Boone is one of the worst (best) examples of that. White bread all the way, even changing the lyrics to remove double entendres or the scandal of Uncle John almost getting caught with Long Tall Sally by Aunt Mary (he removes “Aunt”).
About as square as you can get.
Good morning! I always liked his voice.
It sounds like it’s coming out of an AM radio…I love it as well.
Lol…I can dig that Max.
it’s a great for sure, and you’re right the low-fi production really helps on it as does that bit of echo on his voice. It makes you wonder why, in terms of the public, he disappeared after this record. It really opened the door for him, but he never got in , even less than his buddy Nick Lowe
Yea and he had some great albums as well Dave like Tracks On Wax. It’s amazing when you see the loads of artists he worked with like The Stray Cats and others.
Ooh, I had totally forgotten about that song, Let’s Work Together! Thanks!
It’s been used in several movies and shows, hasn’t it?
Yes it has Sheila…Lets Work Together is such a cool song along with this one. They both have the same chord structure.
Ah, chord structure. I didn’t think of that, Max!
Fyi, I nominated you for a Sunshine Blogger Award (see my latest post). Hope you will play along!
Thanks!
I really liked those early singles he did with his backing band; Rockpile
I love Rockpile as well…I wish they would have released more but they did I guess…by playing on each other’s albums.
how’s this for a memory, I remember buying this on a 45 rpm single!…I was blown away. still am,
I think I remember him popping up at one of the Princess Trust Concerts and rockin’ the Wanderer..he knew every riff
That is cool when you can remember that.
He is outstanding on that type of music…I mean he is on top of it….I always think of him as a musician/historian.
Edmunds, and Nick Lowe are like a lot of Brit musicians who mine certain genres…Shakin; Stevens leans that way into (sorry) Americana/Rockabilly……Spider and Status Quo seem the same way, while not as versatile, they found a riff and stuck to it no matter what……by the way, thanks to you I’m now digging into all things J Geil Band before the era of Love Stinks and Centerfold…anyband with a guy named Magic Dick has to be listened to…
Hey I know about those labels…use them…you have to almost!
I’m reading Peter Wolf’s autobiography…what a cool dude. Glad you are listening to some of their stuff. They were a wonderful soul/blues/rock band before Centerfold. I love Must Of Got Lost.
I have always loved this song. Dave’s version is my favorite
Mine as well Keith!
It’s a hella good song, outside of any context. It gets me tapping my toe and singing along. The guitar is superb!
Yes it is…that guitar and his voice sounding like an AM radio gets my attention everytime.
Another 45 my big brother turned me on to. It fairly pounded out of the poor straining speakers of his El Cheapo stereo.
Your big brother did well with this one. This is one song where sound quality doesn’t mean as much…it still comes through.
Great song, Max. And it’s funny, literally after I saw the title of your post and right before I began reading, my first thought was, ‘I heard this on the radio while growing up in Germany’! 🙂
lol! Just like me…I grew up on it as well. Yea it’s a great one by him. The one that I guess got him recognized the most. For me…it sounded like it could have been a Sun Record in a way.
A CB favorite. DE is one of the best. Another carrier of the roots torch.
Love this one… Along with ‘Spirit in the Sky’, I feel like the riff and crunchy guitars make this one of the very first glam hits of the 70s.
You know…I never would have put that together but now that you said some…I see that. I thought of Sun Records before.
It’s something in the way the guitars crunch, and the filtered vocals. Sun records makes sense too, as a lot of glam referenced old rock n roll.
great record, I didnt get to hear it until xmas 1971 a year late, and loved it. A year later I was buying Baby I Love You, totally impressed by his one man band studio ability to do a Phil Spector.
Oh thanks….I never heard his take on that song before. I’m listening to it now.