You Better Run Single: 1966

Fontana's Raw Rascals Cover

Released as a 7-inch vinyl single in the UK on December 2, 1966, on Fontana Records (catalogue: TF 767), The 'N Betweens’ “You Better Run” — their ferocious cover of The Young Rascals’ 1966 US hit — was backed with the original “Evil Witchman.” This raw garage-punk assault — featuring Noddy Holder (vocals), Dave Hill (guitar), Jim Lea (bass), and Don Powell (drums) — was produced by Kim Fowley. No chart entry, but the first recording by the future Slade line-up. A cult pre-glam treasure.

Single Overview

Release Details

Label: Fontana Records.

Format: Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM, Single.

Full Track Listing

Side A

You Better Run (2:30) – Written-By: Eddie Brigati, Felix Cavaliere (The Young Rascals)

Side B

Evil Witchman (2:10) – Written-By: Fowley, Powell, Hill, Holder, Lee

Production and Context

Produced by Kim Fowley. “You Better Run” – Rascals cover with roller-coaster bass riff. “Evil Witchman” – original composition. Recorded 1966 — the first studio outing for the future Slade line-up (then The 'N Betweens).

Singles Released and Chart Performance

No UK chart entry.

Legacy and Collectibility

“You Better Run” / “Evil Witchman” is the embryonic Slade — raw garage-punk before glam. Original UK Fontana pressings fetch £100–£300+ on eBay/Discogs (higher for clean copies). Verify catalogue TF 767. Streams limited (often on Slade compilations). This single is a must-have for Slade completists and ‘60s garage collectors.

Do you have You Better Run in your vinyl stack? Ready to run with pre-Slade? Share in the comments!

Sources

Information is drawn from my personal knowledge and supplemented by web sources, including Discogs, 45cat, AllMusic, Rate Your Music, Wikipedia, BBC Official Charts Company, Billboard Chart History and YouTube

What’s the next classic vinyl you’d like to feature? Share in the comments!

"You Better Run" is a song by the Young Rascals. Written by group members Eddie Brigati and Felix Cavaliere, it was released as the band's third single in 1966 and reached the top 20 in the United States. This song is noted for its repeated roller coaster musical chords in the bass guitar, going from C to B-flat to C to E-flat to B-flat to C.

A review in a 1966 issue of Billboard magazine described the song as a "big-beat wailer" and a "strong follow-up to 'Good Lovin''." In the book Pioneers of Rock and Roll, author Harry Sumrall wrote that the song represented the apex of the band's sound and complimented guitarist Gene Cornish's "slashing chords." AllMusic's Matthew Greenwald called it "a classic garage rocker with a punkish energy [that] showcased the band's live chops to a great effect, as well as Felix Cavaliere's awesome soul-inflected vocals."

Music journalist Fred Bronson noted that "You Better Run" was a commercial disappointment, having peaked at number 20 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 after their previous single, "Good Lovin'," had reached number one. The Cavaliere and Gene Cornish composition "Love Is a Beautiful Thing" was the single's B-side.

"Evil Witchman" was a Fowley, Powell, Hill, Holder, and Lee composition.

info courtesy of Wikipedia