Walk Away Renée
"Walk Away Renée" is a song written by Michael Brown, Bob Calilli, and Tony Sansone for the band the Left Banke, released as a single in July 1966. Steve Martin Caro is featured on lead vocals. It spent 13 weeks on the US charts, with a top spot of No. 5.[3] The song has been widely considered a quintessence of the baroque pop genre.[4] As musician Marshall Crenshaw explained, "There's something about 'Walk Away Renee' that's one of the most powerful songs I've ever heard, just in terms of provoking an emotional reaction."[5]
| "Walk Away Renée" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
One of label variants of the US single | ||||
| Single by the Left Banke | ||||
| from the album Walk Away Renée/Pretty Ballerina | ||||
| B-side | "I Haven't Got the Nerve" | |||
| Released | July 1966 | |||
| Recorded | March 1966[1] | |||
| Studio | World United Studios, New York City[1] | |||
| Genre | Baroque pop[2] | |||
| Length | 2:43 | |||
| Label | Smash | |||
| Songwriter(s) |
| |||
| Producer(s) |
| |||
| The Left Banke singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
In 2005, Rolling Stone placed it at No. 220 in the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.[6] The track returned to nationwide charts with cover versions by The Four Tops (1967) and Rick Price (1993).
Background
Michael Brown has stated that the song is one of a number he wrote about Renée Fladen (later Fladen-Kamm), the then-girlfriend of the Left Banke's bassist Tom Finn and object of Brown's affection. She was associated with the band for a few weeks, and was described as a free-spirited and tall blonde. Brown wrote it one month after he met her.[7] "Walk Away Renée" was one of a series of love songs the infatuated Brown wrote for his muse.[8] Other works about her include the band's second hit "Pretty Ballerina" and "She May Call You Up Tonight". After decades of obscurity, she was identified in 2001 as a noted singer, vocal teacher, and artist on the West Coast.[9]
According to band member Tom Finn:
A bunch of teens got an apartment together around Tin Pan Alley, in the Broadway area, and Renee lived there part time when she wasn't living with her mother. Most of the kids were like half runaways in those days, and there was a "crash pad" there, as we used to call it. I guess I brought her to the studio one day where Michael met her and fell in love with her.[10]
Brown says of his unrequited love for Renée:
I was just sort of mythologically in love, if you know what I mean, without having evidence in fact or in deed ... But I was as close as anybody could be to the real thing.[11]
Renée was looking on during the recording of the song, and her presence nearly prevented its completion. In an interview, Brown stated:
My hands were shaking when I tried to play, because she was right there in the control room ... There was no way I could do it with her around, so I came back and did it later.[12]
However, co-writer Tony Sansone has given a different version of the origin of the song and contends that he is the primary writer. Sansone has stated in interviews that he wrote the lyrics, and he randomly chose the name Renée because the Beatles used the name "Michelle" in their hit song of the same name; he likewise chose a French name, Renée.[13][14]
Composition
The song features a flute solo played during the instrumental bridge of the middle portion of the song. Brown got the idea for the flute solo from the Mamas & the Papas song "California Dreamin'" which had been recorded in November 1965, but was not an immediate hit until early 1966.[15] The arrangement for "Walk Away Renée " also includes a lush string orchestration, a jangling harpsichord part, and a descending chromatic bass melody. Its production was credited to World United Productions, Inc., but the session was produced by brothers Bill and Steve Jerome, along with Brown's father, jazz and classical violinist Harry Lookofsky, who also led the string players.[1][16] The session took place in March 1966.[1]
Personnel
Musicians
- Al Rogers — drums
- John Abbott — bass
- George (Fluffer) Hirsh — guitar
- Mike Brown — harpsichord
- Friends — strings
- Jackie Kelso [uncredited] — flute
- John Abbott – arranger
- Steve Martin Caro — lead vocal
- George Cameron & Tom Finn — backing vocals
Technical[16]
- Steve Jerome — engineer
- Harry Lookofsky — producer, strings
- Steve Jerome — producer
- Bill Jerome — producer
Chart performance
Four Tops cover
| "Walk Away Renée" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solid centre variant of the UK single | ||||
| Single by the Four Tops | ||||
| from the album Reach Out | ||||
| B-side | "Your Love Is Wonderful" | |||
| Released | January 18, 1968[22] | |||
| Label | Motown | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Michael Brown, Bob Calilli, Tony Sansone | |||
| Producer(s) | Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier | |||
| The Four Tops singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
The Four Tops' recording was featured on their 1967 album Reach Out and is the second most successful cover version,[23] having reached #15 on the soul singles chart,[24] #14 on the Billboard Hot 100, and charting higher than The Left Banke in Canada at #2 on the RPM Magazine charts. Overseas, it peaked at #3 on the UK Singles Chart and #5 in the Irish Singles Chart in January 1968,[25][26] The Andantes provided backing vocals on this Motown release in unison with the other Tops.
Personnel
- Lead vocals by Levi Stubbs
- Background vocals by Obie Benson, Duke Fakir, Lawrence Payton, and The Andantes
- Instrumentation by The Funk Brothers
Chart performance
Weekly charts | Year-end charts
|
Rick Price version
| "Walk Away Renee" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Rick Price | ||||
| from the album Heaven Knows | ||||
| B-side | "We've Got Each Other" | |||
| Released | May 1993 | |||
| Genre | Pop, soft rock | |||
| Length | 4:26 | |||
| Label | Columbia Records | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Michael Brown, Bob Calilli, Tony Sansone | |||
| Producer(s) | Chris Lord-Alge | |||
| Rick Price singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
In May 1993, "Walk Away Renée" was released by Australian singer songwriter Rick Price as the fifth single from his debut studio album Heaven Knows. The song peaked at #21 in Australia.
Weekly charts
| Chart (1993) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[33] | 21 |
| Germany (Official German Charts)[34] | 52 |
References
- ^ a b c d e Hyde, Bob (1985). The History Of The Left Banke. Rhino. RNLP 123.
- ^ Stanley, Bob (September 21, 2007). "Baroque and a soft place". The Guardian.
- ^ . Rolling Stone. December 9, 2004. Archived from the original on February 26, 2009. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
- ^ Guerrieri, Matthew (January 22, 2016). "Via Spector and Serendipity, the Harpsichord Invaded Pop". The Boston Globe. Retrieved May 10, 2021.
- ^ Hurt, Edd. "Marshall Crenshaw: The Cream Interview". Nashville Scene. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- ^ . Rolling Stone. December 9, 2004. Archived from the original on June 25, 2008. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
- ^ Walk Away Renee April 27, 2007, at the Wayback Machine from leftbanke.nu
- ^ Simons, Dave (2004). Studio Stories: How The Great New York Records Were Made : From Miles To Madonna, Sinatra To The Ramones. Backbeat Books. p. 168. ISBN 0-87930-817-6.
- ^ Mary Devlin (2001). Medieval Music, Magical Minds. p. 21.
Renée Fladen-Kamm, my longtime vocal coach and vocal director of the Sherwood Consort, is a highly trained and skilled light lyric soprano, who has performed not only early music but opera as well—most often Mozart, who was partial to the ...
- ^ Tom Finn, , posted to a Left Banke fan website created by Charlemagne Fezza circa 2006.
- ^ Michael Brown,
- ^ "The Left Banke". Classic Bands. Retrieved May 6, 2008.
- ^ Just Walk Away Renée. September 23, 2012. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021 – via YouTube.
- ^ Stagnaro, Angelo. "50 Years Ago, This Catholic Wrote a Song That Made the Beatles Jealous | Daily News". NCRegister.com. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
- ^ . NPR. Archived from the original on February 18, 2011. Retrieved April 29, 2011.
- ^ a b Session Notes For Walk Away Renee/Pretty Ballerina LP April 20, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 6822." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 15 January 2021.
- ^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-2002
- ^ . Archived from the original on May 30, 2015. Retrieved January 8, 2018.
- ^ "Top 100 Hits of 1966/Top 100 Songs of 1966". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
- ^ "Top 216 Hits of 1966". hitsofalldecades.com. Retrieved June 14, 2021.
- ^ "Walk Away Renee / Your Love Is Wonderful - Four Tops". 45cat. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
- ^ Studwell, William E.; Lonergan, David (1999). The Classic Rock and Roll Reader: Rock Music from Its Beginnings to the Mid-1970s. Routledge. p. 148. ISBN 0-7890-0151-9.
- ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 212.
- ^ a b Whitburn, Joel. (2008). Top Pop Singles 1955–2006. Record Research Inc. p. 317. ISBN 978-0-89820-172-7.
- ^ Brown, Tony.; Warwick, Neil (2004). The Complete Book of the British Charts. Omnibus Press. p. 426. ISBN 1-84449-058-0.
- ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 100179." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 15 January 2021.
- ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Walk Away Renee". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 15 January 2021.
- ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 15 January 2021.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – The Four Tops – Walk Away Renee". GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 15 January 2021. To see peak chart position, click "TITEL VON The Four Tops"
- ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". www.collectionscanada.gc.ca.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (1999). Pop Annual. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. ISBN 0-89820-142-X.
- ^ "Rick Price %5BAU%5D – Walk Away Renee". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
- ^ "Rick Price – Walk Away Renée" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 15 January 2021.