Rock Me Baby is the second solo album release from David Cassidy. It was produced by Wes Farrell for Bell Records, and released in 1972. The album introduced some rock, soul and R&B flavors in a calculated move by Cassidy to expand beyond his teen idol image.[2] AllMusic's Al Campbell wrote that the blue-eyed soul album was officially produced by Farrell, but the song selections and styles showed that Cassidy was also making decisions.[1]

Rock Me Baby
Studio album by
ReleasedOctober 1972
StudioWestern Recorders, Hollywood, California
GenreRock, R&B, blue-eyed soul
Length37:09
LabelBell, re-released on Arista
ProducerWes Farrell
David Cassidy chronology
Cherish
(1972)
Rock Me Baby
(1972)
Dreams Are Nuthin' More Than Wishes
(1973)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]

Cassidy's cover of the Young Rascals song "How Can I Be Sure" was included in the album, having peaked at number 3 on the US Adult Contemporary chart in June 1972 and #25 on the US Billboard Hot 100.[3] It enjoyed greater success in the UK, holding number 1 status for two weeks in September.[4]

The album's title track gained US airplay in early September 1972, rising to number 38 in mid-October.[5] It was the album's high-energy opening track, a dip into brash glam rock.[1] Following on "Rock Me Baby"'s heels, the album climbed to number 41 in the US through November–December,[6] and then it entered the UK album charts very strongly at number 2 in late February 1973, starting a 17-week run for a total of 20 weeks on the chart.[7]

The album contains one song written by Cassidy called "Two Time Loser", and a song he co-wrote with Kim Carnes titled "Song for a Rainy Day". The song "Rock Me Baby" was recorded around the same time by UK group Brotherhood of Man, but they shelved their release when Cassidy had a hit with it.[8]

The album was reissued on Compact Disc by Arista Records in 2003.

Track listing

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  1. "Rock Me Baby" (Johnny Cymbal, Peggy Clinger) 3:31
  2. "Lonely Too Long" (Eddie Brigati, Felix Cavaliere) 3:24
  3. "Two Time Loser" (Cassidy) 3:18
  4. "Warm My Soul" (Joerey Ortiz) 3:00
  5. "Some Kind of a Summer" (Dave Ellingson) 3:42
  6. "(Oh No) No Way" (Peggy Clinger, Johnny Cymbal, Wes Farrell) 2:38
  7. "Song for a Rainy Day" (Kim Carnes, Cassidy) 4:05
  8. "Soft As a Summer Shower" (Adam Miller) 3:24
  9. "Go Now" (Larry Banks, Milton Bennett) 3:08
  10. "How Can I Be Sure" (Eddie Brigati, Felix Cavaliere) 3:10
  11. "Song of Love" (Adam Miller) 3:34

Production

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  • Produced By Wes Farrell
  • Reissue Produced By Rob Santos
  • Engineer: Bob Kovach
  • Assistant Engineer: Winston Wong
  • Digital Transfers: Tim Hunt
  • Mastering: Elliott Federman

Personnel

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Technical

Charts

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Year-end charts

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Chart (1973) Position
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[9] 11

References

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  1. ^ a b c allmusic review
  2. ^ Dafydd Rees; Luke Crampton, eds. (1999). Rock Stars Encyclopedia. DK Pub. p. 181. ISBN 9780789446138.
  3. ^ "David Cassidy". Billboard.
  4. ^ "How can i be sure | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". OfficialCharts.com.
  5. ^ "David Cassidy". Billboard.
  6. ^ "David Cassidy". Billboard.
  7. ^ "rock me baby | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Official Charts.
  8. ^ Brotherhood of Man Dutch website. "Biography - Release of "Rock Me Baby" pulled". Archived from the original on 6 October 2008. Retrieved 12 March 2010.
  9. ^ "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. 1973. Archived from the original on 23 May 2021. Retrieved 2 April 2022.