Gaudio describes the song as "the one that almost got away" untilWindsor, Ontario, radio stationCKLW (a station also serving theDetroitmetro on the American side of the border) intervened. In 1967, the record's producers urged Paul Drew, program director at the station, to consider the tune forrotation. For much of the 1960s and 1970s, CKLW was credited with launching hit records via its powerful signal, blanketing theGreat Lakes region. Drew did not warm to the song at first, but accepted an invitation to hear it live at the Roostertail, where Valli was performing a weeklong stint with the Four Seasons. Drew liked what he heard and added the song to his station's playlist. "The switchboards lit up, and the rest, as they say, is history", Gaudio recalled.[8]
Valli recalled in 2014 that "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" was the first step in the fulfillment of his goal to sing music that did not require him to usefalsetto: "I didn't want to sing like that my whole life. Once we established the sound, the plan was that eventually I would do solo [records] and some things I really wanted to do. I was very lucky to make the transition to 'My Eyes Adored You' and 'Swearin' to God', which had none of that." Valli also recalled that the record had been mothballed by The Four Seasons' record company for a year because of their fear that The Four Seasons (who had already lostNick Massi in 1965) were breaking up, to which Valli insisted that he had no intentions of ever leaving The Four Seasons.[9]
"Can't Take My Eyes Off You" has been recorded in many other arrangements, many of which have charted in different countries.
The original recording, from an arrangement by Gaudio andArtie Schroeck, was made atA & R Studio 2 (formerly Columbia Studio A), at 799 7th Avenue inNew York City, with Crewe producing andPhil Ramone engineering.
Billboard described the single as "strong rhythm ballad material from the pen of Bob Crewe and Bob Gaudio with an exceptional Valli vocal combined with an excitingArtie Schroeck arrangement."[11]Cash Box called the single a "smooth, gentle, softly spoken romancer".[12]
Lauryn Hill's version of the song was recorded in 1997, while she was eight months pregnant with her first child.[35][36] It was first featured in the movieConspiracy Theory (1997), as was the Frankie Valli version. While the song was not featured on the soundtrack, a radio jockey atKMEL inSan Francisco put the song on aCD and began playing it;[37] more radio stations followed suit, causing adomino effect around the U.S.,[38][39] ultimately leading the song to peak at number two on theRhythmic Top 40 chart, despite Hill's label not releasing the song as a single.[40][41] Due to the popularity of the song it was added as ahidden track onThe Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.[42]
The song has been recorded by many artists. Among the most notable examples are the following:
In late 1967,the Lettermen recorded the "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" as a medley with "Goin' Out of My Head", which was featured on their albumThe Lettermen!! ...And Live! that same year. Their rendition reached number 7 on the U.S.Billboard Hot 100 and number 2Easy Listening.[53]
In 1968,Andy Williams' version from his 1967 albumLove, Andy made it to number 5 on the UK singles chart and number 8 on theIrish Singles Chart.[54] The arranger and producer was Nick DeCaro and the conductor was Eddie Karam.[55] In 2002 he recorded a new version of the song for his compilation albumThe Essential Andy Williams, as a duet with British actress and singerDenise van Outen, which reached number 23 in the UK singles charts.[56]
Maureen McGovern released her cover for herself-titled album as a single in 1979 (number 27 on the US Adult Contemporary chart in 1979; number 5 Canadian AC in 1980).[58]
In 1992, Dutch singersGerard Joling andTatjana Šimić recorded a duet version of the song (including a rap segment by Darrell Bell) for Joling's albumEye to Eye, which peaked at number 5 in the Dutch Top 40 charts.[60]
In 2019,Surf Mesa released atropical house cover of the song called "ILY (I Love You Baby)", featuring vocals by Emilee Flood for the EPAnother Life. Upon being re-released in 2020, it became a top 40 hit in many countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom. Unlike other cover versions, this cover is based solely around the chorus of the original Frankie Valli composition, and was renamed to reflect that.[65]
