Before The Moody Blues recorded it, this was an obscure soul single for Bessie Banks, who released it in 1964. Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller produced her recording, and it was written by her husband Larry Banks. It is a heart-rending song where the singer has just broken up with his lover, and can't bear to see her anymore.
The best-known version was recorded by the Moody Blues and released the same year. "Go Now!" (adding an exclamation mark) was made popular internationally later in 1964 when the Moody Blues, an English beat group from Birmingham, recorded it, with Denny Laine on guitar and lead vocals. When Laine first heard Bessie Banks's version, he immediately told the rest of the band that they needed to record the song.
This was The Moody Blues' second single, the first being the unsuccessful "Lose Your Money." Their next few releases did not fare as well and the lead singer on this track, Denny Laine, whose pained vocals added so much to the single, left the band to set up his own Electric String Band in 1966. He later joined forces with Paul McCartney in Wings. The Moody Blues re-formed a short time later with new members Justin Hayward and John Lodge, who became the primary songwriters in the group.
Denny Laine recalled to Gibson.com how the band came to cover this song: "It came in one of these suitcases full of records from America. This guy, James Hamilton, he was a friend of B. Mitchel Reed, who was a DJ, and he would send this stuff across. So I picked that one out especially because Mike Pinder was a piano player. (chuckles) We'd always get the gig where the piano would be out of tune and we'd get the slow handclap because they were waiting to tune the piano… (laughs) Anyway, we did 'Go Now' because it was a song with a piano in it."
At the time the single was released, it was being promoted on television with one of the first purpose-made promotional films in the pop era, produced and directed by their co-manager Alex Wharton (the father of DJ Sonny Wharton). The song reached No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart in late January 1965. In the US, ‘Go Now!’ did not enter the Billboard Hot 100 until mid-February 1965; it peaked at No. 10 and No. 2 in Canada. Billboard described the song as having a "rare beat" and "interesting gospel-like piano support." The next chart successes for The Moody Blues were ‘Nights in White Satin’ and ‘Tuesday Afternoon’ in 1968.
Labels – Tiger, Blue Cat
Songwriters – Larry Banks, Milton Bennett
Producers – Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller
SONG LYRICS
We've already said goodbyeSince you've got to go
Oh you'd better go now
Go now, Go now
Go now
Before you see me cry
I don't want you to tell me just what you intend to do now
'Cause how many times do I have to tell you, darling, darling
I'm still in love with you now?
We've already said so long
I don't want to see you go
Oh you'd better go now
Go now, Go now
Go now
Don't you even try...
Telling me that you really don't want me to end this way
'Cause darling, darling
Can't you see I want you to stay?
Since you've got to go
Oh you'd better go now
Go now, Go now
Go now
Before you see me cry
I don't want you to tell me just what you intend to do now
'Cause how many times do I have to tell you, darling, darling
I'm still in love, still in love with you now?
I don't want to see you go
But, darling, you'd better go now