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Baby Now That I've Found You

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"Baby, Now That I've Found You"
Single by The Foundations
from the album From the Foundations
B-side"Come on Back to Me"
ReleasedMid-1967 (UK)[1]
GenrePop-soul[2]
Length2:44
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Tony Macaulay[3]
The Foundations singles chronology
"Baby, Now That I've Found You"
(1967) 		"Back on My Feet Again"
(1968)
Official audio
"Baby Now That I've Found You" on YouTube

"Baby, Now That I've Found You" is a song written by Tony Macaulay and John Macleod,[3] and performed by the Foundations. Part of the song was written in the same bar of a Soho tavern where Karl Marx is supposed to have written Das Kapital.[4] The lyrics are a plea that an unnamed subject not break up with the singer.

Background

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According to Roy Delo of the group, The Ways and Means who were managed by Ron Fairway, they were offered the chance to record "Baby Now That I've Found You". They already had some success with their single, "Sea of Faces". One day Tony Macaulay came around and got out a guitar. They heard the song and said "yeh, it’s a nice catchy song, but it's not the sort of song for us", and to their later regret, turned it down. So the song was given to The Foundations.[5]

Ron Fairway is the man who is credited with first discovering The Foundations.[6] He became co-manager of the group.[7] Barry Class was the man with the money while Fairway was the man with the connections, whose job was to find gigs for the band.[8][9]

Issues

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Following the success of the single there would be issues involving two men formerly associated with the band, Ron Fairway and Raymond Morrison.[10][11]

Rock historian Roger Dopson described what took place between Ron Fairway and Barry Class as a behind the scenes struggle. Fairway was allegedly pushed out, leaving Class as the sole manager.[12] Fairway made an attempt to sue the band, alleging that he was wrongfully dismissed as the group's co-manager. The band claimed he had resigned of his own accord. The December 2 issue of New Musical Express wrote that it was likely to be several months before the case would be heard.[13] According to the 8 November issue of Melody Maker, Class stated that it was a friction of personalities which had been going on for about four months.[14]

Raymond Morrison founded The Ramong Sound which evolved into The Foundations.[15][16] As per the July 27 issue of Melody Maker, Raymond (Ray) Morrison had taken out legal action against The Foundations. During the court hearing that took three hours, Morrison claimed that he had discovered the talent of the group. He was unsuccessful in his bid to put freeze on a portion of the group's earnings. Morrison had served a six month sentence and had been released in July 1967. The case was heard by Judge Stamp who said in reference to the song, "Baby, Now That I've Found You", "I cannot understand how it can be suggested that a song which came into existence after Mr. Morrison had severed his connection with the group can be one in which he can have any share or interest". He also dismissed a similar motion against the Pye label.[17]

Original recording and the Foundations

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On 25 August, 1967 the Foundations released the song as their debut single. It was a sleeper,[18] and for ten weeks it wasn't doing anything.[19] Unlike The Ways and Means' single, "Sea of Faces" which was played on and became a hit on pirate radio stations, Radio City and Radio Caroline, "Baby, Now that I've Found You" wasn't played on them.[20][21] Luckily for The Foundations, their song wasn't being played on the pirate stations at that stage. The newly launched BBC Radio 1 was avoiding those singles that were being played on the pirate stations.[22]

Chart performance and success

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After receiving airplay on BBC Radio 1, it met with great success.[23] Having moved up from the previous week's no. 2 spot, "Baby, Now That I've Found You" replaced The Bee Gees' single, "Massachusetts" in the no. 1 spot of the Melody Maker Pop 30 chart.[24] The Foundations now had their picture on the front page of the November 11 issue of Melody Maker.[25] It was still at no. 1 the following week,[26] confirming the two weeks at the top of the UK Singles Chart status.[27] It was also noted in the Melody Maker magazine that week that Ron Fairway was no longer director of Class Management. This left Barry Class in sole charge of things.[28]

The 25 November 1967 issue of Disc and Music Echo wrote that The Foundations had qualified for the Silver Disc award for British sales of the disc reaching 250,000.[29]

The record would become a number 11 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US. [30] The song also reached number 1 on the Canadian RPM magazine charts on 10 February 1968.[citation needed]

The B side "Come On Back to Me" made the Record World, One Stop Top Ten chart in the Consolidated One Stop Detroit, Michigan section. It was no. 5 on the week of February 10, 1968.[31]

The 10 February 1968 issue of Billboard ran a picture of three of the band members and Louis Benjamin, head of Pye Records presenting a gold record to them. This was to mark the million sales of their debut single. Also in the picture was the group's manager Barry Class.[32]

Other recordings

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Another version of the song was recorded by the Foundations in 1968, featuring Colin Young, Clem Curtis' replacement. This was on a Marble Arch album that featured newer stereo versions of their previous hits.[4]

In 1977, RCA Records release the Dan Schafer remake of the Foundations' hit single, working with producers Bruce Goldberg and Don Davis for the RCA Victor distributed 'Tortoise International' label based out of Detroit.

RCA/Tortoise International single 1977

Clem Curtis, the original lead singer of the band, recorded his own version which was released on the Opium label OPIN 001 as a 7" single and a 12" version OPINT001 in 1987.[33] In the late 1980s, Clem Curtis and Alan Warner teamed up to recut "Baby, Now That I've Found You" and "Build Me Up Buttercup", as well as other hits of the Foundations.[4]

Chart performance

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Alison Krauss version

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"Baby, Now That I've Found You"
Single by Alison Krauss
from the album Now That I've Found You: A Collection
Released18 July 1995
Recorded1994
GenreBluegrass, country
Length3:49
LabelRounder
Producer(s)Alison Krauss
Union Station
Alison Krauss singles chronology
"When You Say Nothing at All"
(1995) 		"Baby, Now That I've Found You"
(1995) 		"Baby Mine"
(1996)

In 1995, American bluegrass-country singer Alison Krauss released the song as a single from her compilation album Now That I've Found You: A Collection. Her version appeared in the Australian comedy film, The Castle.[45] It peaked at number 49 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart.[46] The song won the 1996 Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance. In 2024, Rolling Stone ranked the song at #135 on its 200 Greatest Country Songs of All Time ranking.[47]

Charts

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Weekly charts

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Chart (1995) Peak
position
Canada Country Tracks (RPM)[48] 46
UK Singles (OCC)[49] 95
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[50] 49

Awards and nominations

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Award Category Result
38th Grammy Awards Best Female Country Vocal Performance Won

Use in film

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The Foundations' recording of the song appeared on the soundtrack to the film Shallow Hal. The Alison Krauss version was featured in the 1997 Australian comedy, The Castle.[45] Her rendition was also featured in the end credits of the 2001 film Delivering Milo.

References

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  1. ^ "Rockasteria: The Foundations – Baby, Now That I Found You (1967-76 uk, excellent multi blended solid soul, with tight grooves and bluesy feeling, double disc set)". Rockasteria.blogspot.com. 20 July 2012. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  2. ^ Unterberger, Richie (1 January 1997). "Various Artists - Soulful Pop (1996)". In Bogdanov, Vladimir; Erlewine, Michael; Erlewine, Stephen Thomas; Unterberger, Richie; Woodstra, Chris (eds.). AllMusic Guide to Rock. San Francisco: Miller Freeman, Inc. p. 1091.
  3. ^ a b c Rice, Jo (1982). The Guinness Book of 500 Number One Hits (1st ed.). Enfield, Middlesex: Guinness Superlatives Ltd. p. 112. ISBN 0-85112-250-7.
  4. ^ a b c Dopson, Roger. Baby, Now That I've Found You, Sequel Records NEECD 300 (1st ed.). UK: Sequel Records.
  5. ^ The Strange Brew - The Ways and Means
  6. ^ It's Psychedelic Baby Magazine, July 22, 2011 - Pluto interview with Paul Gardner & Alan Warner
  7. ^ Melody Maker, November 11, 1967 - Page 1 Foundations hit top spot
  8. ^ The Strange Brew - The Ways and Means
  9. ^ It's Psychedelic Baby Magazine, July 22, 2011 - Pluto interview with Paul Gardner & Alan Warner
  10. ^ New Musical Express, December 2, 1967 - Page 10 FOUNDATIONS SUED
  11. ^ Melody Maker, July 27, 1968 - Page 4 MORRISON CLAIM
  12. ^ The Foundations, Baby Now That I've Found You Sequel Records CD NEECD 300, liner notes by Roger Dopson]
  13. ^ New Musical Express, December 2, 1967 - Page 10 FOUNDATIONS SUED
  14. ^ Melody Maker, 18 November 1967 - Page 1 Foundations rocked by management split
  15. ^ Noise 11, March 28, 2017 - R.I.P. Clem Curtis of The Foundations 1940-2017 by ROGER WINK
  16. ^ It's Psychedelic Baby Magazine, July 22, 2011 - Pluto interview with Paul Gardner & Alan Warner
  17. ^ Melody Maker, July 27, 1968 - Page 4 MORRISON CLAIM
  18. ^ Disc and Music Echo, October 21, 1967 - Page 10 FOUNDATIONS -EIGHT NAMES FROM NOWHERE
  19. ^ Billboard, April 26, 1969 - Page 60 Barry Class * continued from page 43
  20. ^ The Pirate Radio Hall of Fame - The City Sixties, The City Sixty, 1st - 8th January 1967
  21. ^ Radio London Ltd - Radio Caroline Countdown Of Sound, Last week 44, This week 41 Sea Of Faces, Ways & Means
  22. ^ Song Facts - Baby, Now That I've Found You by The Foundations
  23. ^ "Official Singles Chart UK Top 100 – 22nd February 2014 | The UK Charts | Top 40". Theofficialcharts.com. Archived from the original on 8 April 2008. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
  24. ^ Melody Maker, November 11, 1967 - Page 2 MELODY MAKER POP 30 1 (2) BABY NOW THAT I'VE FOUND YOU ...... Foundations, Pye
  25. ^ Melody Maker, November 11, 1967 - Page 1 Foundations hit top spot
  26. ^ Melody Maker, November 18, 1967 - Page 2 MELODY MAKER POP 30 1 (1) BABY NOW THAT I'VE FOUND YOU ...... Foundations, Pye
  27. ^ "Official Singles Chart UK Top 100 – 22nd February 2014 | The UK Charts | Top 40". Theofficialcharts.com. Archived from the original on 8 April 2008. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
  28. ^ Melody Maker, November 18, 1969 - Page 1 Foundations rocked by management split
  29. ^ Disc and Music Echo, November 25, 1967 - Foundations: Silver Disc, new single date
  30. ^ "Official Singles Chart UK Top 100 – 22nd February 2014 | The UK Charts | Top 40". Theofficialcharts.com. Archived from the original on 8 April 2008. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
  31. ^ Record World, February 10, 1968 -Page 37 record world ONE STOP TOP TEN, CONSOLIDATED ONE STOP Detroit, Michigan
  32. ^ Billboard, February 10, 1968 - Page 40 International News Reports, PYE RECORDS (London) chief Louis Benjamin presents a gold disk to three members of the Foundations
  33. ^ "Clem Curtis & The Foundations – Baby Now That I've Found You (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs. 1987. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
  34. ^ a b c d e f "Songs from the Year 1967". Tsort.info. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  35. ^ "RPM Top 100 Singles - February 10, 1968" (PDF).
  36. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Baby Now That I've Found You". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  37. ^ "Springbok Radio SA Top 20". Retrieved 14 March 2018.
  38. ^ "Top 100 1967". top-source.info. Retrieved 17 June 2016.
  39. ^ [Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-2002]
  40. ^ "Cash Box Top 100 2/17/68". Tropicalglen.com. 17 February 1968. Archived from the original on 12 August 2014. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  41. ^ "Top 100 1967 – UK Music Charts". Uk-charts.top-source.info. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  42. ^ "RPM Top 100 Singles of 1968 - January 6, 1969" (PDF).
  43. ^ "Top 100 Hits of 1968/Top 100 Songs of 1968". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  44. ^ "Cash Box YE Pop Singles – 1967". Tropicalglen.com. 23 December 1967. Archived from the original on 30 September 2018. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  45. ^ a b "The Castle (1997) : Soundtracks". IMDb. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
  46. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2013). Hot Country Songs 1944–2012. Record Research, Inc. p. 184. ISBN 978-0-89820-203-8.
  47. ^ "The 200 Greatest Country Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. 24 May 2014.
  48. ^ "Top RPM Country Tracks: Issue 2758." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. 18 September 1995. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
  49. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  50. ^ "Alison Krauss Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 January 2011.
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