Moody Blues – Go Now

I have always liked the song because it’s such a timeless song. This was before Justin Hayward and John Lodge joined the band.

The singer was Denny Laine who quit the Moodies in 1966 and was replaced by Justin Hayward. The Moody Blues started to open up for the Beatles in 1965. The two bands got close and Paul McCartney was a big fan of this song released the year earlier. Laine later ended up playing with Paul McCartney and Wings until 1980. During the 1976 Wings tour Paul stepped aside so Denny could sing this song.

What a mood this song creates. This was before the Moody Blues went searching for the lost chord…or evolved into an Art Rock type of band. They were just a beat group at this stage but the song’s arrangement pointed to a different direction. I would safely say this song was the most important one of their career because it broke them internationally. Without this song who knows what would have happened to them?

Ray Thomas and Justin Hayward tried singing it a few times live but as their music changed they dropped the song. The lineup that did this song was Graeme Edge (drums, backing vocals), Denny Laine (lead vocals, guitar), Mike Pinder (piano, backing vocals), Ray Thomas (backing vocals), Clint Warwick (bass, backing vocals). It was produced by Alex Murray.

The song was written by Larry Banks and Mike Milton Bennett and first released in 1964 by Bessie Banks. Her version did peak at #40 on the Cashbox R&B single charts. Bessie would be songwriter Larry Banks’s ex-wife. She said: “I remember 1963 Kennedy was assassinated; it was announced over the radio. At the time, I was rehearsing in the office of Leiber and Stoller. We called it a day. Everyone was in tears. “Come back next week and we will be ready to record ‘Go Now'”; and we did so. I was happy and excited that maybe this time I’ll make it. ‘Go Now’ was released in January 1964, and right away it was chosen Pick Hit of the Week on W.I.N.S. Radio. That means your record is played for seven days. Four days went by, I was so thrilled. On day five, when I heard the first line, I thought it was me, but all of a sudden, I realized it wasn’t. At the end of the song it was announced, “The Moody Blues singing ‘Go Now’.” I was too out-done. This was the time of the English Invasion and the end of Bessie Banks’ career, so I thought. America’s DJs had stopped promoting American artists”

The song peaked at #10 on the Billboard 100 #2 in Canada, and  #1 in the UK in 1965.

Denny Laine: “It came in one of these suitcases full of records from America. This guy, James Hamilton, he was a friend of B. Mitchel Reed, who was a DJ, and he would send this stuff across. So I picked that one out especially because Mike Pinder was a piano player. (chuckles) We’d always get the gig where the piano would be out of tune and we’d get the slow handclap because they were waiting to tune the piano… (laughs) Anyway, we did ‘Go Now’ because it was a song with a piano in it.”

Go Now

We’ve already said “goodbye”
Since you gotta go, oh you’d better
Go now, go now, go now (go now, ooh)
Before you see me cry?

I don’t want you to tell me just what you intend to do now
‘Cause how many times do I have to tell you darlin’, darlin’
I’m still in love with you now
Whoa oh oh oh

We’ve already said “so long”
I don’t want to see you go, oh you’d better
Go now, go now, go now (go now, ooh)

Don’t you even try?
Tellin’ me that you really don’t want it to end this way
‘Cause darlin’, darlin’, can’t you see I want you to stay, yeah

Since you gotta go, oh you’d better
Go now, go now, go now (go now, ooh)
Before you see me cry
I don’t want you to tell me just what you intend to do now
‘Cause how many times do I have to tell you darlin’, darlin’
I’m still in love, still in love with you now
Ooh ooh ooh
I don’t want to see you go but darlin’, you better go now

…

Author: Badfinger (Max)

Power Pop fan, Baseball, Beatles, old movies, and tv show fan. Also anything to do with pop culture in the 60s and 70s... I'm also a songwriter, bass and guitar player.

51 thoughts on “Moody Blues – Go Now”

  1. I have never listened to the Bessie Banks original, it’s great and as was not uncommon with Invasion groups they pretty much kept the same arrangement. As much as we all loved the British bands the flip side was the end or at least stifling of many American artists that were current. The benefit of some of the covers of songs a year or more old was in many cases an increased awareness of some great and overlooked music. Really enjoyed your take at looking at both sides of the cover of “Go Now”.

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    1. Oh the American artists were killed and done…except Motown and some of Stax. They somehow survived as did the Beach Boys but they were newer….

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      1. It was a gut punch for sure but interestingly American acts did very well on the UK Singles chart during this time. Not as well as the Invasion but better than most realize I think. Your post is food for thought as always.

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      3. You are certainly right about the popularity of the 50’s music in the UK. I had to look this up from a past post but while we’re on the topic of the British Invasion I had actually calculated it. I think the big picture shows a much greater impact but I found it informative to have a look at the numbers. Just the #1 Invasion hits were 28% of the songs from the start in early 1964 to the end of 1969. Of course prior to the Invasion foreign acts maybe represented two or three percent of the annual top 40 in the US. So as we all know it was a major shock but I found it interesting to look at the empirical data. There were 33 UK acts in the top 40 in the US on Billboard/Cashbox in 1965. That same year in the UK there were 46 American acts in the top 40. The big difference in this case (1965 again) was the #1 chart position with Invasion acts hitting #1 for 28 weeks in the US and conversely US acts with 11 weeks at #1 in the UK. There have never been as many American acts in the UK Top 40 before or since. Sorry for that Max but like I said, your post was food for thought.

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      4. I LOVE stats like this…that is why I like baseball lol…same principle. Keep them coming as much as you want.
        Wow…that is a huge huge jump on #1 hits! I know Capitol would turn down most that was British at first listen. Motown had to take a lot of those top 40 slots with American Acts.

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      8. Yes… after rock died out in 59 for the most part…the radio started to play Paul Anka, Pat Boone, and middle of the road guys…I swear they were trying to kill it….but then came Motown, Beach Boys, and then the knockout punch…The Beatles.

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  5. I listened to all three of these again here…and I’m gonna go with a three-way tie for favorite, Max. I (still) hear stuff to like about each one of these versions. It is indeed a timeless tune.

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    1. I really liked Bessie Banks version of it… the Moody Blues didn’t change hardly anything. I like them all as well…thanks Bruce for listening.

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  8. The flip side of the Brit Invasion being seen as curtailing American acts is that all through the Fifties all the focus was on the American acts- out came sweat-soaked leg-twerking Elvis, the Brits put out pale wet and watery Clone Cliff. Out comes Pat Boone, soon they wheel out Val Doonican. Why? We all no there will only ever be one wildly talented, revered and untouchable Pat Boone.🙄

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    1. Boone…Mr Versatile! Or…spawn of the devil…whichever you want to use!
      I’m not a big believer in conspiracty theories but I do think an attempt to kill rock and roll…or at least dampen it was done.

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      1. Conspiracy theory in one way; the money men- and almost always men in those Mad Men days- liked it when they had the easy going crooners and Johnny Rays, they were all nice suited bow-tie wearing clean cut guys. Just like them. But some gold suited greasy haired lip curling kid kicking up a ruckus shaking things up they did not know or like. So if you were running a radio or TV station you ignored the new and kept on with the tired and old for as long as you could.
        Look at how Ed Sullivan only put on rock acts because the very early first wave of baby boomer kids were telling their TV executive dads where the excitement and interest was. They had to ‘change their tune’ once the ratings and money came pouring in.

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      2. Yes…I totally agree. It seemed like after what happened to Jerry Lee, Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry (prison), and Elvis in the army…that cleared the decks for that degenerate music.
        Funny how everything changes when the money starts a rollin’

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  11. Thought I had left a reply but maybe didn’t hit ‘send’. Anyway, a good song, always liked it though it never sounded like the MB to me. Probably because Hayward hadn’t yet joined them. But it does show what a talent Laine was. No wonder McCartney got him in for his new band as soon as the Beatles went belly up.

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      1. Oops! Well the way the WP reader works on my phone (think the same on the PC) your posts come up with 2 related ones , usually same artist, below. I must’ve clicked on the reply to one of those! Oh well, Laine’s talent is worth mentioning twice…

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  12. ❤ ❤ ❤ Good write up on a great song. Never heard the original but know and love the MB cover. That's saying something that Paul & Linda let Denny sit at the piano and pour his heart out on it. So interesting Bessie's quote how she got shoved aside. I remember reading somewhere (don't ask me where) that British musicians at that time were surprised that the original black music was not accepted from black musicians but when the Brits brought it back over we loved it. It's true!

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    1. The Brits introduced not only blues but soul also to America…and it was already here! After that… it became popular. I’ve heard Smokey say it before also…all of those older blues players would admit their debt…also before that happened…their UK tours did better than touring America.

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      2. Thank you Lisa that means a lot!….Randy and I got into a deep conversation in this post about the time between 59-64 (Paul Anka, Pat Boone, Fabio etc….)…I dont believe in many conspiracy theories but I swear they were trying to kill rock and roll. I think Obbverse believes some also.

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  14. I knew the Wings version best, and didn’t know the Bessie Banks version at all – which is the one I prefer – at least for today! I really like the brass in it. Also it’s a bit rougher and not so clinical which as you know I often prefer.

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  15. Pingback: Moody Blues – Go Now – MobsterTiger

  16. My mother says when she was young back in the 60s the kids at school sang a parody that included lyrics like “Then she got mad and hit me in the … go-nads, go-nads, go-nads!” I can’t NOT think of that when I hear this song.

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