♫ Come Softly To Me ♫

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Tonight I thought it would be fun to go back … I mean, wayyyyyyyyyy back.  The year was 1959 … I was 8 years old and already a stubborn wench, though perhaps not quite as bad as I am today.  I remember this song well, so obviously it was played on the radio a lot, for that and my mother warbling Frank Sinatra tunes was my only exposure to music at that point.

This song was recorded by The Fleetwoods, composed of Gretchen Christopher, Barbara Ellis, and Gary Troxel, the three of whom also wrote it.  The original title was “Come Softly”, but was changed en route to its becoming a hit. Bob Reisdorf, the owner of Dolphin Records, which in 1960 changed to Dolton Records, was responsible for the title change. He thought that “Come Softly” might be too obvious and considered risqué, so he had it changed to Come Softly to Me. The title phrase never appears in the song’s lyrics.

Recording the song at home, the group sang it a cappella with the rhythmic shaking of Troxel’s car keys. The tape was then sent to Los Angeles where the sparse instrumental accompaniment was added, including an acoustic guitar played by Bonnie Guitar, herself a successful singer-songwriter (Dark Moon) and Reisdorf’s in-house record producer.

Released in 1959, this song hit #1 in the U.S., #6 in the UK, and #17 in Italy.

Come Softly To Me
The Fleewoods

Mm dooby do, dahm dahm, dahm do dahm ooby do
Dahm dahm, dahm do dahm, ooby do
Dahm dahm, dahm do dahm, ooby do
Dahm dahm, dahm ooh dahm
Mm dooby do

(Come softly, darling)
(Come softly, darling)
(Come softly, darling)
(Come softly, darling)

(Come softly, darling)
(Come to me, stay)
(You’re my obsession)
(For ever and a day)

I want, want you to know
I love, I love you so
Please hold, hold me so tight
All through, all through the night

(Speak softly, darling)
(Hear what I say)
(I love you always)
(Always, always)

I’ve waited, waited so long
For your kisses and your love
Please come, come to me
From up, from up above

(Come softly, darling)
(Come softly, darling)
I need, need you so much
Wanna feel your warm touch

Mm dooby do, dahm dahm, dahm do dahm ooby do
Dahm dahm, dahm do dahm, ooby do
Dahm dahm, dahm do dahm, ooby do
Dahm dahm, dahm ooh dahm

Mm dooby do, dahm dahm, dahm do dahm ooby do
Dahm dahm, dahm do dahm, ooby do
Dahm dahm, dahm do dahm, ooby do
Dahm dahm, dahm ooh dahm

Writer/s: GARY TROXEL, BARBARA ELLIS, GRETCHEN CHRISTOPHER
Publisher: Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

34 thoughts on “♫ Come Softly To Me ♫”

    • Okay, the dinner and music I can provide, but the blonde? No no no … go for a brunette … they have more … um … never mind! Glad you enjoyed the music, Michael! xx

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  4. Very much a song of its time, and sounds like another, but I can’t work out what it is! I’ve seen the American Graffiti movie and don’t recall this being in it, despite the image on the video.

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  6. I remember this quite well. Did it not do so good in Canada? It certainly had airplay in Winnipeg. I don’t remember my much older brothers buying the record, but they always turned up the music when it came on in the car.
    But this brings up a very odd question. When did they put radios in cars?

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      • Probably not, but that being said, the first Canadian groups to really make a big splash on the charts were well known around the world. First the Four Lads, from Toronto, hit it big with Istanbul (Not Constantinople) in 1953, only to be outdone by two ex-members of an earlier incarnation who with two others hit it even bigger in 1954, The Crew Cuts with Sh-Boom. All eight singers were part of the same high school choir in Toronto, and they put Canada on the pop charts for good. I found the history of The Crew Cuts to be quite entertaining. https://archive.macleans.ca/article/1954/12/1/sh-boom-the-crazy-career-of-the-crew-cuts except for the very last line of the article. Their manager was making a joke, but whether it had anything to do or not with the current state of affairs, which I doubt, it was a prophetic utterance of an ugly name. As it turned out, The Four Lads had more hits than The Crew Cuts, but in Canada, The Crew Cuts are fondly remembered as the first Canadians to hit #1 on the American charts.
        Obviously this is apropos of nothing in your post, but, as usual, you take me on different musical journeys. Aside from Hank Williams’ Kaw-li-ga, Sh-Boom is the second-oldest song I can remember actually hearing with my own ears. I was all of 4 years old when it came out.

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  7. Pingback: Come Softly To Me. | Ramblings of an Occupy Liberal

      • Now you’re flattering me and it won’t get you anywhere….. 😉 Where from would I have the ‘wisdom’ at 30’ ? It was gained under much duress, tears, suffering and finally the knowledge that we HAVE our freedom even if it wasn’t the one we knew in our 20s….

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        • Oh, I don’t know … I never really questioned it … you just seem so full of life, so passionate! Yes, I hear you … I think most of our knowledge comes from strife and heartbreak. Times have changed … the world has changed … but I’m not giving up on the fight for freedom and justice, even though I know my contribution is limited. You have to try, though …

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          • …. and you most certainly do! Thank you for that and your quest for a better life for those ‘after us’. And yes, I agree, time is more precious now than it was at 20 – but I find also that I can enjoy it much more, or let’s say, more consciously.
            And we never give up!

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