In 1960, the group known as The Four Lovers evolved into The Four Seasons. Its initial line-up featured Frankie Valli as the lead singer, Bob Gaudio (formerly of The Royal Teens) on keyboards and tenor vocals, Tommy DeVito on lead guitar and baritone vocals, and Nick Massi on bass guitar and bass vocals. Massi was replaced in 1965 by Charles Calello, who was in turn replaced later in 1965 by Joe Long on bass guitar and bass vocals.
Frankie Valli and Tommy DeVito had previously performed with Nick DeVito (Tommy's twin brother) alongside Hank Majewski as the aforementioned Four Lovers. As stated before, the Four Seasons released their first hit, titled "Sherry", in 1962. Under the guidance of producer and songwriter Bob Crewe, The Four Seasons followed up "Sherry" with several well-remembered hits, including "Big Girls Don't Cry", "Dawn", "Walk Like a Man", "Candy Girl" and "Save It for Me". Nick Massi left the Four Seasons in 1965 and was replaced by Joe Long, who became the mainstay on bass and backup vocals until 1976. Several more Top 10 singles followed, including "Let's Hang On", "Working My Way Back To You", "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" and "C'mon Marianne"; but by late 1967, the group's popularity was deteriorating, as public interest moved towards rock with a harder edge and more socially conscious lyrics. The group would, however, enjoy a brief revival in their popularity in the mid-1970s, with the hits "Who Loves You", "Swearin' to God" and their last number one hit "December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)". Don Ciccone was a member of the Four Seasons in 1976 and was lead vocal on several songs, such as "Slip Away", "Let's Get It Right" and "Rhapsody". He played lead guitar.
The Four Seasons (group members 1961-1965) were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990 and the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1999. Jersey Boys, a musical play based on the lives of The Four Seasons, directed by Des McAnuff (The Who's Tommy, 700 Sundays) premiered at his La Jolla (California) Playhouse and opened on Broadway on November 6, 2005 to generally positive reviews. It won 2006 Tony Awards for Best Leading and Featured Actor in a Musical won by John Lloyd Young & Christian Hoff, Best Light Design in a Musical and Best Musical.
The group's music was one of many influences to the Jersey Shore sound of the 1970's and 1980's. However, by the 1980s, Frankie Valli was the only original group member left. Frankie Valli still tours today, performing many of The Four Seasons classic songs. Nick Massi died in 2000 of cancer. Despite Joe Long's extensive contributions to The Four Seasons, Joe Long remains the only member of the group's “definitive line-up” not inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, most likely because he was not in the original group. Much controversy still exists over this decision, especially in light of the many top-10 hits the group had during his tenure.
Working My Way Back To You
Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With a burnin' love inside
Yeah, I'm workin' my way back to you, babe
And the happiness that died
I let it get away
Payin' every day
When you were so in love with me
Thought I could have my cake and eat it too
But how I cried over losin' you
See me cryin' now, but I ain't about to go
Livin' my life without you
For every day I made you cry
I'm payin', girl, 'til the day that I die
I keep working my way back to you, babe
With a burnin' love inside
Mmh, I'm workin' my way back to you, babe
And the happiness that died, I let it get away
Payin' every day
I used to love to make you cry
It made me feel like a man inside
But if I'd been a man in reality
You'd still be here, babe, lovin' me
Now the nights are long and lonely
And I ain't through strugglin', I just miss you so
And you're too proud you won't give in
But when I think about all I can win
I keep working my way back to you, babe
With a burnin' love inside
Mmh, I'm workin' my way back to you, babe
And the happiness that died, I let it get away
Payin' every day
Yeah, yeah yeah
Working my way back to you, babe
With a burnin' love inside
Mmh, I'm workin' my way back to you, babe
And the happiness that died, oh how I cried
Working my way back to you, babe
With a burnin' love inside
Oh, I'm workin' my way back to you, babe
The lyrics of Working My Way Back To You by Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons tell the tale of a man who had a love he took for granted. He played around and thought he could have his cake and eat it too, but ended up losing the love of his life. Now he's paying for his mistakes by working his way back to her, trying to rekindle the happiness that he let die.
The lyrics are filled with regret and a burning desire to make things right. The singer acknowledges his mistakes and the pain he caused his former love. He's willing to pay for his errors and wants nothing more than to win her back. It's a classic tale of love lost and the struggle to make things right again.
Line by Line Meaning
Working my way back to you, babe
I am putting in effort to come back to you.
With a burnin' love inside
I have a strong feeling of love burning inside me.
And the happiness that died
I want to bring back the happiness that is lost.
I let it get away
I am responsible for losing what we had.
Payin' every day
I am facing the consequences of my actions every day.
When you were so in love with me
You loved me deeply at one time.
I played around like I was free
I took advantage of your love and acted like I had no commitments.
Thought I could have my cake and eat it too
I wanted the benefits of the relationship without the responsibilities.
But how I cried over losin' you
I regret losing you and it makes me sad.
See me cryin' now, but I ain't about to go
Although I am emotional, I am not going to give up on winning you back.
Livin' my life without you
Life without you is unbearable.
For every day I made you cry
I caused you pain every day.
I'm payin', girl, 'til the day that I die
I will continue to face the consequences for the rest of my life.
I used to love to make you cry
I took pleasure in hurting you.
It made me feel like a man inside
Making you cry gave me a false sense of power and masculinity.
But if I'd been a man in reality
I realize that my previous behavior was not manly or responsible.
You'd still be here, babe, lovin' me
If I had been a better person, you would still be with me, loving me.
Now the nights are long and lonely
Without you, my nights are difficult and isolated.
And I ain't through strugglin', I just miss you so
I am still struggling, but I miss you and want you back.
And you're too proud you won't give in
You are also struggling, and your pride is preventing you from giving in to me.
But when I think about all I can win
I believe that I can win back your love and regain what we lost.
Yeah, yeah yeah
An expression of affirmation and positivity.
Oh how I cried
I cried a lot when I lost you.
Lyrics © Ultra Tunes, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Denny Randell, Sandy Linzer
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@user-ww7ec2ot4n
Lyrics;
Working my way back to you babe
With a burning love inside
Yeah, I’m working my way back to you babe
And happiness that died, I let it get away
Paying everyday
When you were so in love with me
I played around like I was free
Thought I could have my cake and eat it too
But how I cried over losing you
See me hanging on
But I ain’t about to go living my life without you
Every day I made you cry
I’m paying girl, til the day that I die
I keep working my way back to you babe
With a burning love inside
I’m working my way back to you babe
And happiness that died, I let it get away
Paying everyday
I used to love to make you cry
It made me feel like a man inside
But if I’d been a man in reality
You’d still be here babe, loving me
Now the nights are long
And I only ain’t too strong babe, I just miss you so
And you’re too proud, ya won’t give in
But when I think about all I’ve been in
I keep working my way back to you babe
With a burning love inside
I’m working my way back to you babe
And happiness that died, I let it get away
Paying everyday
Yeah, yeah, yeah
Working my way back to you babe
With a burning love inside
I’m working my way back to you babe
And happiness that died, oh, how I cried
Working my way back to yo babe…
@dalebrion4876
Thanks Dad for giving me good taste.
@ameliajones234
My Dad made me listen to this when I was a kid. Now I love it.
@dusa605
THIS is music
@user-hb9hi8np1f
ye boiii my dad always played frankie valli songs in the car and at home and now i listen to them a lot :)
@dmon3331
Same. Have my dad to thank for all this great music
@spellboundty
My dad listened to Tommy James And The Shondells, Four Seasons, and Beach Boys when I was real young. Time capsule music right here.
@dusa605
Frankie had one of those voices that are just perfect and let’s show the background singers and band some love. Those harmonies make me want to put on a leather jacket lol
@jmrodas9
Well, go ahead and put on a leather jacket. You shall remember old times later if you dress the way you used to. I wear jeans and my canvas jacket at home and with tennis shoes to remember better those times I was young.
@dusa605
gumshoesoul at that time in New Jersey it actually might lol
@dusa605
NINJAGUAR growing up I thought that was the original lol. I rock with both