Brothers William and Wilbert Hart formed the group with Richard Daniels, and Randy (Rudy) Cain in high school in the early 1960s. Richard Daniels one of the founding members would be drafted just before the groups first major success.
Soon, they became known throughout the Philadelphia area, signing with Cameo Records. At Cameo, Stan Watson introduced them to the man who made them famous, producer Thom Bell, then working with Chubby Checker. Bell dreamed of creating a Philadelphia version of Motown and struck gold with the Delfonics, whose first album, released on Watson's own Philly Groove record label, featured the hit "La-La (Means I Love You)", in 1968. Four more Bell-produced albums appeared in the next few years: The Sexy Sound of Soul, The Delfonics Super Hits, The Delfonics and Tell Me This Is a Dream. Among the Delfonics' popular hits were "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)", "For the Love I Give to You", "Ready or Not Here I Come (Can't Hide from Love)" and "Hey Love". Prior to the release of "La-La (Means I Love You)", they had a hit with "He Don't Really Love You" on the small Moonshot label.
Philadelphia soul was smoother than traditional soul, strongly influenced by Phil Spector's "Wall of Sound" production, but solidly based in the doo-wop sounds of the 1950s. Randy Cain left the group in 1971, and in 1973 had a hand in formulating Blue Magic when he brought singer-songwriter Ted Mills in to do some writing for W.M.O.T. (We Men of Talent), and the remaining future members of Blue Magic came in for an audition. The rest, as they say, is history. Cain was replaced by Major Harris; by then, however, Thom Bell had moved on to produce The Stylistics and later, The Spinners. The Delfonics swiftly produced another album, Alive and Kicking, produced by Stan Watson. However, in the absence of Thom Bell, the Delfonics' career declined sharply, and with the exception of the aforementioned Hey Love and the minor hits "When You Get Right Down to It", "I Don't Want to Make You Wait" and "I Told You So", success eluded them after 1975. ("For the Love I Give to You", although popular, was never released as a single.) Most of their songs at this point were written by lead singer William Hart.
Major Harris left and had major success with the song "Love Don't Let Me Wait". Wilbert Hart also left around this time, leaving William Hart as the only original member. New members were brought in, and the group continued for some time. The group then broke up and reformed with William Hart, Randy Cain, and Major Harris. (Wilbert Hart formed his own Delfonics group; the members were Wilbert, Eban Brown (falsetto lead), and Dr. S. Love.) Dr. Salaam Love has performed with both William and Wilbert Hart for the last twenty five plus years. Although often in the background he is more than qualified to take lead when asked. His claim to Fame is his vocal versatility. Randy Cain left for a second time, and was replaced by Frank Washington of The Futures.
Their music enjoyed a mild renaissance in the mid-1990s when New Kids On The Block had a hit with "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)". "La La Means I Love You" and "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind)" played a pivotal role in the film Jackie Brown. In the film, one of the characters is so struck by the music, he goes out and buys The Delfonics Greatest Hits cassette the following day. Their songs appeared in numerous movies and "Ready or Not Here I Come (Can't Hide from Love)" served as the basis of two hit hip hop singles: it was the chorus for The Fugees' 1996 hit "Ready or Not", and Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott and Timbaland sampled the string and horn intro for Elliott's hit 1997 "Sock It to Me". The Notorious B.I.G.'s last hit, "Playa Hata" released that same year, was a take-off on "Hey Love." The Delfonics also provided backing vocals on the track "After the Smoke has Cleared" on the 1996 hip hop album Iron Man by Ghostface Killah. In 2004 Ghostface also sampled "La-La Means I Love You" for his song "Holla" from his album The Pretty Toney Album. "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)" was also sampled on Cam'ron's hit single "Hey Ma".
The current line-up of the Delfonics is William Hart, Garfield Fleming (baritone lead), and Johnny ("JJ") Johnson. Wilbert also has a group, sometimes called "The Delphonics", "The New Delfonics" or simply billed as "Wilbert Hart". Eban Brown went on to become the lead singer of The Stylistics, and Frank Washington is now the lead singer of The Spinners. The current line-up of the group is featured in concert on the DVD's "The Big Show" and "'70's Soul Jam," whereas Wilbert Hart's group is featured on the DVD "Old School Soul Party Live!," which was part of the PBS "My Music" series. Major Harris is also featured on the recently re-released DVD "Blue Magic/Margie Joseph/Major Harris Live!", which was recorded during their prime in 1975.
I Don't Want to Make You Wait
The Delfonics Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It's possible, my love, I could be wrong
And it's possible that the things I'll do take long
Like always being late and always breaking our date
You can't even concentrate and I don't want to make you wait
I don't want to make you wait
And it's possible, I could slow down and see
It's possible that love you will give to me
Is real, listen but still, I'm always doing you wrong
And you just tag along, gee, you must be strong
I don't want to make you wait
I don't want to make you wait
I said I'm always doing you wrong
And you just tag along
Gee, you must be strong
And I don't wanna do you wrong
I don't want to make you wait
I don't want to make you wait
I don't want to make you wait
I don't want to make you wait
I don't want to make you wait
The Delfonics's song "I Don't Want to Make You Wait" is a soulful ballad that tells the story of a man who knows he's been taking his lover for granted but doesn't want to make her wait any longer for him to change his ways. The repetition of "baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, baby" as the opening line creates a mood of tenderness and intimacy. The singer of the song admits that he's been wrong and frequently breaks their dates. He acknowledges that his lover finds it hard to concentrate because of his behavior, but he doesn't want to keep her waiting for him to change.
The lyrics are an expression of remorse and a plea for another chance. The refrain "I don't want to make you wait" is repeated several times after each verse, highlighting the urgency of the situation. The singer hopes that his lover will give him a chance to slow down and show her the love she deserves. He knows that he has been doing her wrong, but he's astounded by her strength and resilience in sticking with him despite everything.
Overall, "I Don't Want to Make You Wait" is a poignant song about love, repentance, and the need for patience and forgiveness in any relationship. It showcases The Delfonics's signature sound of soaring falsettos, lush harmonies, and orchestral arrangements that defined the Philly soul genre of the 60s and 70s.
Line by Line Meaning
Baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, baby
Repetitive phrase used to convey affection towards a loved one.
It's possible, my love, I could be wrong
Admitting the possibility of being incorrect about a situation, referring to their relationship.
And it's possible that the things I'll do take long
Acknowledging how the person's actions may take longer to come to fruition in their relationship.
Like always being late and always breaking our date
Describing some of the faults in their relationship, such as one person always being late or cancelling plans.
You can't even concentrate and I don't want to make you wait
Realizing that their partner is losing interest or patience and wanting to avoid causing them more inconvenience.
I don't want to make you wait
Repeating the desire to avoid causing the partner to wait or be inconvenienced.
And it's possible, I could slow down and see
Considering the idea of slowing down and taking a closer look at their relationship.
It's possible that love you will give to me
Hoping that the partner will still show love and affection towards them despite their faults.
Is real, listen but still, I'm always doing you wrong
Acknowledging that the partner's love is genuine, but still recognizing their own mistakes and flaws in the relationship.
And you just tag along, gee, you must be strong
Noticing how the partner is still sticking with them through their shortcomings and expressing admiration for their strength.
I said I'm always doing you wrong
Repeating how they are aware of their mistakes and wrongdoings towards their partner.
And you just tag along
Recognizing the partner's loyalty and willingness to stay in the relationship despite the difficulties.
Gee, you must be strong
Expressing admiration for the partner's strength in dealing with the hardships of the relationship.
And I don't wanna do you wrong
Reiterating the desire to avoid hurting or wronging their partner.
I don't want to make you wait
Repeatedly stating the desire to avoid causing inconvenience or delay to the partner in the relationship.
I don't want to make you wait
Repeating the same sentiment as before to emphasize the sincerity of their words.
I don't want to make you wait
Continuing to stress the importance of avoiding inconvenience or delay to the partner.
I don't want to make you wait
Repeating the same idea one final time to really drive the point home.
I don't want to make you wait
Final repetition of the same sentiment for emphasis and finality.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: WILLIAM HART, WILLIAM A. HART
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind