Now or Never
Little Dooley Lyrics


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Hey there, daddy, make up your mind,
'Cause I've been waitin' such a long long time!

Now baby or never, 'cause I've been so good to you.
Now baby or never, 'cause I've been so lonesome too.
Now baby or never, if I mean anything to you!

Now baby or never, 'cause you've wasted so much time.
Now baby or never, 'cause you can't make up your mind.
Now baby or never, and it ain't no fault of mine!

It's gotta be yes or no!
It's either I stay or go;
You can't leave me on the shelf,
You gotta commit yourself!
It's either you will, baby, or won't
Fall in love with me.

Gonna call you once more on the telephone,
I give you till twelve and I'll be gone!

Now baby or never, 'cause I've been so good to you.
Now baby or never, 'cause I've been so lonesome too.
Now baby or never, if I mean anything to you!

Now baby or never, 'cause you've wasted so much time.
Now baby or never, 'cause you can't make up your mind.
Now baby or never, and it ain't no fault of mine!

It's gotta be yes or no!
It's either I stay or go;
You can't leave me on the shelf,
You gotta commit yourself!
It's either you will, baby, or won't
Fall in love with me.

I waited last night for you to call,
You give me no consideration at all!

It's now baby or never, 'cause I've wasted so much time.
Now baby or never, and you must make up your mind.
Now baby or never, and it ain't no fault of mine!

It's gotta be yes or no!
It's either I stay or go;
You can't leave me on the shelf,
You gotta commit yourself!
It's either you will, baby, or won't
You do, baby, or don't,




Ether you will, baby, or won't
Fall in love with me.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Little Dooley's song It's Got to Be Now or Never is a desperate plea from a person in a relationship who is tired of being in limbo. The singer of the song is addressing their partner to make a decision, either to commit to the relationship or let them go. The repeated line of "now baby or never" emphasizes the urgency of the situation and the frustration of waiting for so long without any resolution.


The singer asserts that they have been good and loyal to their partner and have waited patiently for them to make up their mind. At the same time, they have also been lonesome and neglected, and they need a clear answer to move on from this uncertain state of the relationship. The use of the lines "It's gotta be yes or no" and "You gotta commit yourself" emphasizes the need for a definitive answer and not just a vague response that leaves the singer hanging.


The final verse of the song reveals that the singer has grown tired of waiting for their partner to make a decision and has set a deadline for them to call and make up their mind. The repeated lines of "either you will, baby, or won't" and "fall in love with me" reinforce the ultimatum the singer is giving their partner.


Overall, the lyrics of Little Dooley's song highlight the frustration and impatience of waiting for someone to decide on the fate of a relationship. The singer is urging their partner to make a clear decision, so they can either move forward together or move on separately.


Line by Line Meaning

Hey there, daddy, make up your mind, 'Cause I've been waitin' such a long long time!
Please make a decision because I have been waiting for so long.


Now baby or never, 'cause I've been so good to you. Now baby or never, 'cause I've been so lonesome too. Now baby or never, if I mean anything to you!
You have to decide now because I have been good to you and I am lonely. If I mean anything to you, you have to make a decision now.


Now baby or never, 'cause you've wasted so much time. Now baby or never, 'cause you can't make up your mind. Now baby or never, and it ain't no fault of mine!
You have to make a decision now because you have wasted so much time and you can't make up your mind. It's not my fault that you can't decide.


It's gotta be yes or no! It's either I stay or go; You can't leave me on the shelf, You gotta commit yourself! It's either you will, baby, or won't Fall in love with me.
You have to give me a definite answer. You need to commit yourself and either fall in love with me or not.


Gonna call you once more on the telephone, I give you till twelve and I'll be gone!
I will call you one more time, and if you don't make a decision by midnight, I will leave.


I waited last night for you to call, You give me no consideration at all!
I waited for you to call, but you didn't even give me any consideration.


Now baby or never, 'cause I've wasted so much time. Now baby or never, and you must make up your mind. Now baby or never, and it ain't no fault of mine!
You have to make a choice now because I have wasted so much of my time. It's not my fault that you can't decide.


It's either you will, baby, or won't You do, baby, or don't, Ether you will, baby, or won't Fall in love with me.
You have to make up your mind about whether or not to fall in love with me because it's a binary choice. You either will or won't.




Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: CURTIS LEWIS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Comments from YouTube:

Dj Randy B The Classics Master

Even now in 2021 this is a smooth underrated 1970's r&b GEM!
This was a time when R&B got mininial airplay on Pop stations
Peace to the late great world's best arranger Bobby L. Martin for this lush orchestrated Sound
and Little Dooley doing his Thing.

Dj Randy B The Classics Master

Nate Keith
God bless him he wrote a classic

james lear. 5308

Really love this song I grew up on it man bring back memories good ones

Steven Stewardson

Oh yes awesome such sweet 🍬 soul sound KTF ladies and gentlemen ! ! !

Silas Miller

Always been my JAM.....

Binita Walia

superb philly sound... ohhhh, those memories & those lush strings... ;o)

Nate Keith

Binita Walia my father wrote this songs Tommy Keith I'm his son Nate Keith

Throbbin Robin Funk & Soul

This brings my wife fleetingly back to the land of the lving, I can feel her smell her, I love you 4eva baby girl XXXXX

Throbbin Robin Funk & Soul

Nate Keith what a memory, as a little boy IO recall it, Im sure it clipped the charts in the UK., but there was a lot of people playing what we dall 'Northern Soul' over here, mainly on tapes from nightclubs, then the records-now as an adult many years later I play all kinds of soul myself-if you have more of the story Nate Im magiclard@yahoo.com blessings Sean

Freddie Brown

November covid-19 2021
Oh my God! what a treat, hopefully for some a new undiscovered soul-classic
From back in the day. ... Can you pick it?

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