Walk On By” is a song written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David for singer Dionne Warwick in 1963. The original version of “Walk On By” by Dionne Warwick was recorded at Bell Sound Studios in New York City, the same late November/early December 1963 session that yielded her hit “Anyone Who Had a Heart”. “Walk On By” was the follow-up to that single, released in April 1964 and reaching number 6 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and number 1 on the Cashbox‘s R&B chart. (Billboard did not print rhythm and blues charts during 1964, the year of the song’s peak performance.) The song also reached the top 10 in a run on Billboard’s easy listening survey. The song was ranked number 51 on the Rolling Stone list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. “Walk On By” became Warwick’s second international million seller, following “Anyone Who Had A Heart” in January 1964. Warwick also recorded a German version of the song, titled “Geh vorbei”.
Isaac Hayes released a cover version of “Walk On By” in 1969 on the album Hot Buttered Soul, transforming the song into a twelve-minute funk vamp. A single edit reached number 30 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart. Hayes’s version was ranked No. 312 in the 2021 edition of Rolling Stone‘s “Top 500 Songs of All Time”. Hayes’s version was sampled in 1992 by Compton’s Most Wanted in “Hood Took Me Under”; in 1994, by The Notorious B.I.G. in “Warning”; in 1995, by Faith Evans in “No Other Love”, from the album Faith; 2Pac in “Me Against The World”, in 1998 by McGruff in “Harlem Kidz Get Biz”; in 1999, by MF DOOM in “Dead Bent”; in 2000, by Wu-Tang Clan in “I Can’t Go to Sleep”; in 1996, by Hooverphonic in “2 Wicky”; in 2005, by Hip Hop Pantsula in “Let Me Be”, from his album YBA 2 NW; and in 2016 in Beyoncé’s “6 Inch”.
In 1978, the Stranglers recorded a version of “Walk on By” which reached No. 21 on the UK singles chart. This six-minute version of the song features extended Hammond organ and guitar solos which Gene Becker of AllMusic likened to the Doors’ “Light My Fire”. A music video was produced for the single, parodying Michelangelo Antonioni’s 1966 film Blowup. As with key sequences of the film, the Stranglers video was filmed largely in London’s Maryon Park. The single’s chart performance may have been impaired by the fact that an EP featuring the song had been given away with the first 75,000 copies of the band’s album Black and White.
The Average White Band cut a lightly disco-tinged version (featuring reggae and funk underpinnings) that charted in 1979.In 1982, “Walk On By” was covered by the funk duo D Train who had a UK and US R&B/dance hit with the song in a boogie/funk version. In 1983, Australian group Jo Jo Zep covered “Walk On By” in a slow, moody version that featured electronics and synthesisers. The song was lifted from the band’s seventh studio album, Cha. The track was a minor hit in Australia, peaking at number 55, but was a major hit in New Zealand, hitting number six. In 1989, “Walk On By” was covered by singer Melissa Manchester. Her version of the song hit number six on the US Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. In 1990, American singer Sybil, who had scored her biggest hit a year prior with a cover of Warwick’s “Don’t Make Me Over”, also scored a UK hit with “Walk On By”. It was produced by Eddie O’Loughlin and released by PWL Records, as the third single from her second album, Sybil (1989).
In 1997, UK singer Gabrielle released her version of “Walk On By” as the fifth and final single from her studio album, Gabrielle. It reached number seven on the UK singles chart. A reviewer from Music Week rated the track five out of five, adding that the song “is given a fine treatment by Gabrielle, whose voice fits perfectly. A guaranteed radio biggie, too.” “Walk On By” was the first single from Cyndi Lauper’s 2003 covers album At Last. It was also included on Lauper’s 2004 DVD Live at Last. It was released as a promo only. Remixes of the song reached number 10 on the U.S. dance chart. Seal released a version of “Walk On By” as a single in 2004. Though the song did not chart in his native UK, it made the lower reaches of the charts in several European countries.
