The Dells
first recorded and released “Stay In My Corner” in 1965. It’s relatively
unremarkable, checking in at a tidy 2:58. It reached a modest #23 on the
Billboard R&B chart, and did not crack the Hot 100.
A couple
years later, the group was looking for some additional songs to fill out their
debut LP after moving to the Cadet record label, so they rearranged and
re-recorded the song. Unexpectedly, the album cut started getting so much radio
airplay despite its length (over six minutes) that they put it out as a single.
It wound up being their biggest hit ever, reaching #1 on the R&B chart and
nudging into the top 10 of the Hot 100. I first remember hearing it when we
were down at the Jersey shore in the summer of ’68. (To my shock, Dave Marsh’s
listing of “Stay In My Corner” in his book of great singles references the
original 1965 version.)
Of course,
this ranks as my all-time favorite not because it’s a great story, but because
it’s a great song. Although the Dells were a traditional R&B vocal group,
the song is anything but traditional, with a coda that has to be heard to be
believed. I’m convinced that somewhere in the world there exists a musical
dictionary where there’s a link to this song next to the definition of “soul”.
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