Run Joey Run
Encyclopedia
"Run Joey Run" is a teenage tragedy song
performed by soft rock
singer David Geddes
. It was a U.S.
Top 5 hit which peaked at #4 in the fall of 1975.
"Daddy, please don't -- it wasn't his fault. He means so much to me!
"Daddy, please don't: we're gonna get married; just you wait and see."
Geddes sings from first person narrative in the character of the titular young man. Joey recalls the events leading up to a recent tragedy in which his girlfriend Julie is unintentionally gunned down by her own father, who intended to kill Joey after learning that Julie was pregnant with Joey's child. Joey himself admits that he repeatedly relives the tragedy in his mind every time he tries to sleep.
Late one night, Julie called Joey warning him not to visit; Julie and her dad had a fight that turned violent when Julie revealed that she was pregnant (this was only implied in the lyrics due to censorship issues in 1975). Though Julie's father furiously swore his own vengeance, Joey, ignoring his own peril, immediately rushes over to Julie's home; Julie, with a bruised face, tearfully rushes to Joey's arms.
Moments later Julie's father, armed with a gun, sneaks up behind the two of them. Just as he pulls the trigger Julie steps into his line of fire and sacrifices herself to spare Joey's life. Julie's last words as she lay dying in Joey's arms were a repeat of the opening (also used between the first and second verses), but Julie expires before she can sing the last five words, "just you wait and see". The song ends with a reprise of the chorus, ("Run Joey run Joey run...").
According to Casey Kasem
's "American Top 40
", David had recorded several singles for major record labels; none of them were successful. He decided to leave the music business and return to school. David was attending law school at Wayne State University
in Detroit
when he was called by producer Paul Vance to record a song that Vance and Perricone had written. Perricone, who had previously arranged a couple of recordings that Davis Geddes had made with a group called the Rock Garden, remembered David's voice from his earlier records and played the recordings for Vance, who thought that David would be perfect for their new song. David flew to New York City to record the vocals for the song, and then returned to Detroit to begin his third year of law school. Several months later, the song, "Run Joey Run", began to race up the Billboard Hot 100
. David dropped out of law school with only one semester to go and re-entered the music business.
episode "Bad Reputation
".
Teenage tragedy song
The "teenage tragedy song", also known as death rock, "tear jerker" or a "splatter platter", is a style of ballad that was most popular between the late 1950s and early 1960s...
performed by soft rock
Soft rock
Soft rock is a style of music which uses the techniques of rock music to compose a softer, more toned-down sound. Soft rock songs generally tend to focus on themes like love, everyday life and relationships. The genre tends to make heavy use of acoustic guitars, pianos, synthesizers and sometimes...
singer David Geddes
David Geddes
David Cole Idema , best known by the stage name David Geddes, is a soft rock singer who had a U.S. Top 5 hit with "Run Joey Run" in 1975, which peaked at #4 in October 1975.-Early life:...
. It was a U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Top 5 hit which peaked at #4 in the fall of 1975.
Story
The song opens with a female voice pleading with her father:"Daddy, please don't -- it wasn't his fault. He means so much to me!
"Daddy, please don't: we're gonna get married; just you wait and see."
Geddes sings from first person narrative in the character of the titular young man. Joey recalls the events leading up to a recent tragedy in which his girlfriend Julie is unintentionally gunned down by her own father, who intended to kill Joey after learning that Julie was pregnant with Joey's child. Joey himself admits that he repeatedly relives the tragedy in his mind every time he tries to sleep.
Late one night, Julie called Joey warning him not to visit; Julie and her dad had a fight that turned violent when Julie revealed that she was pregnant (this was only implied in the lyrics due to censorship issues in 1975). Though Julie's father furiously swore his own vengeance, Joey, ignoring his own peril, immediately rushes over to Julie's home; Julie, with a bruised face, tearfully rushes to Joey's arms.
Moments later Julie's father, armed with a gun, sneaks up behind the two of them. Just as he pulls the trigger Julie steps into his line of fire and sacrifices herself to spare Joey's life. Julie's last words as she lay dying in Joey's arms were a repeat of the opening (also used between the first and second verses), but Julie expires before she can sing the last five words, "just you wait and see". The song ends with a reprise of the chorus, ("Run Joey run Joey run...").
Reception
"Run Joey Run" was released in the late summer of 1975, by October the song had peaked at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. It would be Geddes' only Top 10 hit; his only other hit would barely pierce the Top 20 one month later.According to Casey Kasem
Casey Kasem
Kemal Amin "Casey" Kasem is an American radio personality and voice actor who is best known for being the host of the nationally syndicated Top 40 countdown show American Top 40, and for voicing Shaggy in the popular Saturday morning cartoon franchise Scooby-Doo.Kasem, along with Don Bustany and...
's "American Top 40
American Top 40
American Top 40 is an internationally syndicated, independent radio program created by Casey Kasem, Don Bustany, Tom Rounds and Ron Jacobs. Originally a production of Watermark Inc...
", David had recorded several singles for major record labels; none of them were successful. He decided to leave the music business and return to school. David was attending law school at Wayne State University
Wayne State University
Wayne State University is a public research university located in Detroit, Michigan, United States, in the city's Midtown Cultural Center Historic District. Founded in 1868, WSU consists of 13 schools and colleges offering more than 400 major subject areas to over 32,000 graduate and...
in Detroit
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
when he was called by producer Paul Vance to record a song that Vance and Perricone had written. Perricone, who had previously arranged a couple of recordings that Davis Geddes had made with a group called the Rock Garden, remembered David's voice from his earlier records and played the recordings for Vance, who thought that David would be perfect for their new song. David flew to New York City to record the vocals for the song, and then returned to Detroit to begin his third year of law school. Several months later, the song, "Run Joey Run", began to race up the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
. David dropped out of law school with only one semester to go and re-entered the music business.
Glee cover
The song was covered in the GleeGlee (TV series)
Glee is an American musical comedy-drama television series that airs on Fox in the United States, and on GlobalTV in Canada. It focuses on the high school glee club New Directions competing on the show choir competition circuit, while its members deal with relationships, sexuality and social issues...
episode "Bad Reputation
Bad Reputation (Glee)
"Bad Reputation" is the 17th episode of the American television series, Glee. The episode premiered on the Fox network on May 4, 2010. It was directed by Elodie Keene, and written by series creator Ian Brennan. In "Bad Reputation", cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester is publicly ridiculed when a...
".
Charts
| Peak position |
Chart |
|---|---|
| Irish Singles Chart Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured... |
45 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
61 |
| Canadian Hot 100 Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007... |
45 |