Barrett sang lead for The Valentines from 1954 to 1957. Ronnie Bright, who later joined The Cadillacs and The Coasters, sang bass. Barrett co-wrote two songs with Carl Hogan (also from The Valentines). One was "Be Sure My Love" which was recorded by The Dubs on Gone Records in 1958, and another "So Much" was recorded by Little Anthony & The Imperials on End Records in 1958 and by The Attributes. On The Chantels' single "Maybe" in 1958, Barrett played piano, bass, and drums. He also produced several of The Chantels' records.
Barrett's first single was a cover of The Fleetwoods' "Come Softly To Me", which used The Chantels as backup singers. He cut the record "Some Other Guy" in 1962 which was modeled on Ray Charles' "What'd I Say" and was assured immortality, if not a hit single, following cover versions performed by The Beatles and other Liverpool groups of the time. A clip of The Beatles performing the song at The Cavern was shown on television in Britain in mid 1962 before they'd signed with Parlophone, and has been included on many videos and DVDs.
There is also a record by Richard T. Barrett called "Try To Be Happy" b/w "Your Gentle Heart" released on Maarc Records #1542 in 1962. This may be a different singer.
In 1998, Ben Vereen portrayed Richard Barrett in the film about Frankie Lymon called "Why Do Fools Fall In Love."
Some Other Guy
Richie Barrett Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Is taking my love away from me, oh now
Some other guy, now
Is taking away my sweet desire, oh now
Some other guy, now
Just threw water, hold my hand, oh now
I'm the lonely one, as lonely as I can feel, all right
Is tippin' up behind me like a yellow dog, oh now
Some other guy, now
Has taken my love just like I'm gone, oh now
Some other guy, now
Has taken my love away from me, oh now
I'm the lonely one, as lonely as I can feel, all right
Oh oh oh oh
Some other guy
Is making me very, very mad, oh now
Some other guy, now
Is breaking my padlock off my pad, oh now
Some other guy, now
Took the first girl I've ever had, oh now
I'm the lonely one, as lonely as I can feel, all right now
Oh oh oh oh
I'm talking to you, right now
The lyrics of "Some Other Guy" by Richie Barrett depict the feelings of heartbreak and betrayal that come after one's romantic partner leaves them for someone else. The song starts with the singer lamenting over the fact that "some other guy" is taking away his love and sweet desire. He feels lonely and abandoned as he watches his lover move on with someone else. The phrase "just threw water, hold my hand" could be an idiom for getting rid of something with ease or nonchalance, indicating that his lover left him without much thought or care for his feelings.
The song's melancholic tone continues as the singer describes his anger towards the new man in his lover's life. The use of the phrase "like a yellow dog" could be an insult towards the new guy, portraying him as a coward or a cheat. The singer then talks about how the new guy has taken away his first love ever and has broken his heart. The repetition of the phrase "I'm the lonely one, as lonely as I can feel" emphasizes the singer's sense of isolation and despair.
Overall, the lyrics of "Some Other Guy" express the feelings of a man who has been left heartbroken by his lover's departure. He feels bitter and betrayed, longing for the love and companionship he once had.
Line by Line Meaning
Some other guy, now
Someone else is now taking my love away from me.
Is taking away my sweet desire, oh now
My passion is being taken away by this other guy.
Just threw water, hold my hand, oh now
The person threw water at me and now I need someone to comfort me.
I'm the lonely one, as lonely as I can feel, all right
I am very lonely and this song is about how I feel.
Is tippin' up behind me like a yellow dog, oh now
This person is sneaking up on me like a sly dog.
Has taken my love just like I'm gone, oh now
This person took my love as if I never existed.
Has taken my love away from me, oh now
Once again, someone has taken my love from me.
Is making me very, very mad, oh now
I am getting extremely angry because of this situation.
Is breaking my padlock off my pad, oh now
Someone is breaking into my home and violating my privacy.
Took the first girl I've ever had, oh now
This person took away the first girl I ever had a relationship with.
I'm talking to you, right now
I am addressing the listener directly and telling them my story.
Writer(s): Leiber Jerry, Barrett Richard
Contributed by Bella M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@oldredbarnman
Some other guy now, is taking my love away from me, oh now
Some other guy now, is taking away my sweet desire, oh now
Some other guy now, just threw water on my fire, oh ah
I'm the lonely one, as lonely as I can be all now
(Some other guy) Yeah now, Is tippin up behind me like a yellow dog, oh now
(Some other guy) Yeah now, is takin our love just like a hog, oh now
(Some other guy) Yeah now, is takin my love away from me, oh ah
I'm the lonely one, lonely as I can be all now
(Some other guy) Is making very, very mad, oh now
(Some other guy) Yeah now, is breaking the padlock off my pad, oh now
(Some other guy) Yeah now, went and took the first girl I've ever had, oh ah
I'm the lonely one, lonely as I can be ah now na nah na , wooh ooh ooh now child
Don't ya hear me know child, I'm a talkin to you now wooh ooh yeah now
@Beatlemaniac1983
I've known the Beatles version for decades, but I like this one more, it's more raw, somehow, I can't decipher half the lyrics, and it's cool.
@countrypaul
This is the original version by the writer. Richie (better known by his full name, Richard) Barrett was discovered as the lead voice of The Valentines and then was the pianist and producer for The Chantels. He was a fixture of the '50s-'60s New York music scene and a diversified and talented musician. He sounds a lot like Ray Charles here, which makes sense since so many NYC musicians worked off each other's influences, and Ray Charles was a label-mate on Atlantic. What a great track! I wonder what the musician roster looked like - if these aren't the Raeletts these women could certainly double for them!
@firestrikeriii5043
Not
@zapdunga12
He co wrote the song with prolific songwriters Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller
@JimDeferio
Barrett is NOT the original writer. Leiber & Stoller were gifted song writers who wrote many saongs that black singers sang. Obviously Barrett added a bit to this song and so had his name placed on the writing credits. It like Taylor swift who has 2-3 men write her songs and then she apparently adds a bit and so gets her name added to the writing credits.
@kacema7048
Four lads from Liverpool brought me here :)
@lety04
Same!!!!❤❤❤❤😍😍😍😍
@lety04
@Nelson Robert Willis no I'm pretty sure the person who posted this comment meant The Beatles' versions of this song(there are two:the BBC one they did for "Easy Beat" and the "Anthology" video performance of them playing it at The Cavern)
@lety04
@Nelson Robert Willis right😅
@bluenose007
Better than the Beatles cover