Back in 1972, Vegas crooner Wayne Newton had the biggest hit of his long career with "Daddy Don't You Walk So Fast." The song reached No. 4 on the Billboard chart.
This heartbreaking tune, written by Geoffrey Stephens and Peter Callander, tells the story of a couple's pending separation and how it affects their young daughter. It is told from the dad's point of view.
The first verse:
"The love between the two of us was dying
And it got so bad I knew I had to leave
But halfway down that highway when I turned I saw
My little daughter running after me crying"
And the daughter, apparently sensing something is wrong, pleads:
"Daddy, don't you walk to fast
Daddy, don't you walk so fast
Daddy, slow down 'cause you're makin' me run
Daddy, don't you walk so fast"
In the next verse the narrator says he's hurrying to catch a train and that the little girl doesn't know that he doesn't plan to return.
And then he hears her heartfelt cry:
"Daddy, slow down 'cause you're making me run
"Daddy, don't you walk so fast"
At that point the father, possibly feeling the guilt of breaking his daughter's heart, changes his mind:
"If only for the sake of my sweet daughter
I just had to turn back home right there and then
And try to start a new life with the mother of my child
I couldn't bear to hear those words again..."
And those tearful words are repeated as the child beckons him to slow down, closing with:
"Oh Daddy, don't you walk so fast."
Newton wasn't the first person to record the song. It was first released in Britain by Daniel Boone, who had another hit called, "Beautiful Sunday." Fellow Englishman Tony Christie also had a nice cover of the song.
I'm sure some folks contemplating divorce back then, when they heard this song, had second thoughts about their actions.
"Daddy, Don't You Walk So Fast" lyrics
This heartbreaking tune, written by Geoffrey Stephens and Peter Callander, tells the story of a couple's pending separation and how it affects their young daughter. It is told from the dad's point of view. The first verse:
"The love between the two of us was dying
And it got so bad I knew I had to leave
But halfway down that highway when I turned I saw
My little daughter running after me crying"
And the daughter, apparently sensing something is wrong, pleads:
"Daddy, don't you walk to fast
Daddy, don't you walk so fast
Daddy, slow down 'cause you're makin' me run
Daddy, don't you walk so fast"
In the next verse the narrator says he's hurrying to catch a train and that the little girl doesn't know that he doesn't plan to return.
And then he hears her heartfelt cry:
"Daddy, slow down 'cause you're making me run
"Daddy, don't you walk so fast"
At that point the father, possibly feeling the guilt of breaking his daughter's heart, changes his mind:
"If only for the sake of my sweet daughter
I just had to turn back home right there and then
And try to start a new life with the mother of my child
I couldn't bear to hear those words again..."
And those tearful words are repeated as the child beckons him to slow down, closing with:
"Oh Daddy, don't you walk so fast."
Newton wasn't the first person to record the song. It was first released in Britain by Daniel Boone, who had another hit called, "Beautiful Sunday." Fellow Englishman Tony Christie also had a nice cover of the song.
I'm sure some folks contemplating divorce back then, when they heard this song, had second thoughts about their actions.
"Daddy, Don't You Walk So Fast" lyrics
Wayne Newton
Daniel Boone
Tony Christie
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