| "I Can't Quit You Baby" | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Single byOtis Rush | |
| B-side | "Sit Down Baby" |
| Released | 1956 (1956) |
| Recorded | c. July 1956 |
| Studio | Boulevard Recording, Chicago |
| Genre | Blues |
| Length | 2:56 |
| Label | Cobra |
| Songwriter | Willie Dixon |
| Producer | Willie Dixon |
"I Can't Quit You Baby" isblues song written byWillie Dixon and first recorded byChicago blues artistOtis Rush in 1956.[1] It is a slowtwelve-bar blues ensemble piece, with lyrics about the consequences of an adulterous relationship which is difficult to end.
"I Can't Quit You Baby" was Rush's first recording andCobra Records' debut single. It became a record chart hit as well as ablues standard. Rush updated the song in 1966 with a modified arrangement, which was adapted byLed Zeppelin for their 1969 debut album.
According to biographer Mitsutoshi Inaba "the song subject is the consequences of adultery and the feeling that a man cannot give up a relationship":[2]
I can't quit you, baby
But I've got to put you down for awhile
You know I can't quit you, baby
But I've got to put you down for awhile
Well, you messed up my happy home, babe
Made me mistreat my only child[3]
In his autobiography, Willie Dixon explained that "I Can't Quit You Baby" was written about a relationship Rush was preoccupied with at the time; Dixon used this to draw out an impassioned performance by Rush.[3] Despite being solely credited to Dixon, Rush felt that the song's identity is very much his own:
Willie would just hum the sound, he never played anything, you know. He would try to give me some phrases how the song go and I pretty much did it on my own, the way it sounded. The way I sang the song and the way I played my guitar is what I wanted to play.[2]
Inaba added: "Otis' passionate vocal melody with alternations of natural voice, falsetto, shouts, and growls, is his singing style indeed".[2] The song is notated in the key ofA major in 12/8 time with a "slow blues" tempo.[4] Rush's original version consists of four twelve-bar vocal sections with lead guitarfills. It was Rush's first recording and took place in Chicago around July 1956.[5] Accompanying Rush on lead guitar and vocal areBig Walter Horton on harmonica,Red Holloway on tenor sax,Lafayette Leake on piano,Wayne Bennett on second guitar, Dixon on bass, andAl Duncan on drums.[5]
"I Can't Quit You Baby" was a vehicle for arranger-producer Dixon to launch Rush andCobra Records, as it was the first single for both.[3] In this regard, it was a success, reaching number six onBillboard'sRhythm & Blues Records chart in 1956.[6]
Otis Rush revisited "I Can't Quit You Baby" several times over the years. His 1966 re-recording for the 1966 blues compilationChicago/The Blues/Today! Vol. 2[7] uses an altered arrangement with an unusual turnaround (tonic chord followed by a half-step above the tonic chord).[8][9] Subsequent cover versions usually use the chord substitutions found in Rush's Vanguard rendition.[8]
| "I Can't Quit You Baby" | |
|---|---|
| Song byLed Zeppelin | |
| from the albumLed Zeppelin | |
| Released | January 12, 1969 (1969-01-12) |
| Recorded | October 15, 1968[10] |
| Studio | Olympic, London[10] |
| Genre | Blues rock |
| Length | 4:42 |
| Label | Atlantic |
| Songwriter | Willie Dixon |
| Producer | Jimmy Page |
English rock bandLed Zeppelin recorded "I Can't Quit You Baby" for their 1969 debut albumLed Zeppelin.[11] According to music journalistCub Koda, their rendition is "a note-for-note copy of Otis Rush's" 1966 Vanguard version,[12] although with different instrumentation and dynamics.[13] It also incorporates abreak during the guitar solo whereJimmy Page plays a four-bar unaccompanied set-up before relaunching into the solo. Although biographer Keith Shadwick notes Page's fluff on the turnaround coming out of the solo, he concludes the song "ends up as one of the most successful pieces on the first album, with no flat spots and a perfectly symmetrical form, all within the classic blues tradition".[13]
Led Zeppelin regularly performed "I Can't Quit You Baby" in concert from 1968 to early 1970.[14] Two live versions from 1969 are included on the 1997BBC Sessions. A performance of the song on January 9, 1970, atRoyal Albert Hall is included on the 2003Led Zeppelin DVD (an edited version of this performance was released on the 1982Coda album). In 1970, the song was dropped from Led Zeppelin's typical concert lineup as they incorporated material fromLed Zeppelin III into their shows, with "I Can't Quit You Baby" essentially being replaced by "Since I've Been Loving You". It was however revived as part of the "Whole Lotta Love" medley during some Led Zeppelin concerts in 1972 and 1973.[14] The song was rehearsed by the surviving members of Led Zeppelin for the May 14, 1988,Atlantic Records 40th Anniversary Celebration, but was not performed during the event.[14]
In a contemporary review for theCoda album,Kurt Loder ofRolling Stone found theCoda version of "I Can't Quit You Baby", "tossed off a sound check [in 1970]", "perfectly captures the bluesmania of the period, complete with a classically overwrought guitar solo."[15]
According to Jean-Michel Guesdon and Philippe Margotin:[10]
"I Can't Quit You Baby" is ablues standard[1] that has been recorded by more than 30 artists.[16] Rush's original Cobra single was inducted into theBlues Foundation Hall of Fame in 1994 that noted "a Willie Dixon production revealing Rush as an extraordinary talent with an impassioned approach."[5]
