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.
Somebody Loves You
The Delfonics Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
This I swear is true, girl
So you think no one cares, oh, boy
What a down thing to think of
And if you give me a chance
(If you give me a chance)
I will give you true love
And every day, I watch you
I just can't do without you
You're so doggone pretty
I got to have you and I've gotta say
Somebody loves you, girl
This I swear is true, girl
Somebody loves you, girl
This I swear is true, girl
Now that you understand
(Now that you understand)
Won't you please take my hand
And let us now fall in love
(Let us now fall in love)
You're the one I always dream of
And every day, I watch you
I just can't do without you
You're so doggone pretty
I got to have you and I've gotta say
Somebody loves you, girl
This I swear is true, girl
Somebody loves you, girl
This I swear is true, girl
You're so beautiful
I'm saying words that's, oh, so true
Look at me, baby
Somebody loves
And every day, I watch you
I just can't do without you
You're so doggone pretty
I got to have you and I've gotta say
Somebody loves you, girl
This I swear is true, girl
Somebody loves you, girl
This I swear is true, girl
Oh, oh, oh
Somebody loves you, girl
This I swear is true, girl
The Delfonics' "Somebody Loves You" is a love song that assures its subject that there is someone who cares for them deeply. The lyrics convey a sense of urgency as the singer implores the girl to give him a chance to love her truly. He recognizes that she may feel unloved and undervalued, but he knows that she is worth the effort. The repetition of the phrase "this I swear is true, girl" reinforces the singer's sincerity, declaring his love for her and pledging to be faithful.
The singer's love is rooted in his admiration of her beauty, which he refers to as "doggone pretty." His attraction extends beyond physical beauty, as evidenced by his declaration that she is "the one I always dream of." His love is so profound that he cannot imagine life without her, watching her daily and saying "I just can't do without you." The song's title, repeated in the chorus, reinforces the central message: that the girl is loved and valued by someone who is willing to give her "true love" if she will only take his hand and "let us now fall in love."
Overall, "Somebody Loves You" is a heartfelt declaration of love, celebrating the beauty and worth of its subject and reassuring her that she is not alone.
Line by Line Meaning
Somebody loves you, girl
The singer is absolutely sure that someone out there loves the girl he's singing to.
This I swear is true, girl
The singer is so certain of his previous statement that he swears it's true.
So you think no one cares, oh, boy
The singer addresses the girl's doubts about being loved and expresses his surprise at such negative thoughts.
What a down thing to think of
The singer expresses his disapproval of the girl's negative thoughts.
And if you give me a chance
(If you give me a chance)
I will give you true love
The singer offers the girl a chance to let him love her with all his sincerity.
Now that you understand
(Now that you understand)
Won't you please take my hand
The singer asks the girl to take his hand now that she understands that someone loves her.
And let us now fall in love
(Let us now fall in love)
You're the one I always dream of
The singer expresses his desire to fall in love with the girl and his belief that she's the one he's always dreamed of.
You're so beautiful
I'm saying words that's, oh, so true
Look at me, baby
Somebody loves
The singer compliments the girl's beauty and reiterates that his previous statement is true.
Oh, oh, oh
Somebody loves you, girl
This I swear is true, girl
The singer once again declares that somebody loves the girl and swears that it's true.
Lyrics © RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC
Written by: THOM BELL, WILLIAM HART
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@bignah139
I just turned 57. The Delphonics was such an intricate part of my childhood. All we did was sit around and sing. Being from Philly, we had our stoops outside and we sang all night (couldn’t leave off that stoop) so we had Stylistics Marvin Stevie Blue Magic The Dramatics Whispers everybody in 4 part harmony in concert on that stoop!!!
The great memories of my life.
I’m a singer/songwriter TODAY and I love it til death. I’m in love with music. 💕
@drb215
Philly in the house!!!
@lakeeshakelly632
We're from Newark in Jersey my father still sing to this day
@tonyg150582nd
My youngest child, Chelsey Gallegos, was killed in a terrible auto accident three months ago here in Colorado. As a young girl she would listen to my album collection. She loved the music of the 70's. The highlight of her life was a trip we took to New York to see the Stylistics live. The Delfonics, Stylistics, Dramatics and others are all so timeless.....Love you Chelsey.....
@alicia8210able
wow...my heart goes out to you. ..beautiful story.
@kurtadams3021
God bless you brother . stay strong
@briannabyrd5443
God bless you!
@fishingparadisecalifornia7764
tears for my brother heaven is where we all go
@lvncsr6166
So sorry for your loss. She's in heaven and she is smiling down at you.
@1anaconda89
One of the BADDEST ballads of ALL time !! To those who never heard this , I pity them. God's blessing is all over
this.