"What You Won't Do for Love" is a song by American singer-songwriter Bobby Caldwell. It was released in September 1978 as the lead single from his eponymous debut album (1978). It was written by Caldwell and Alfons Kettner, and produced by Ann Holloway. The song has been covered and sampled numerous times, including by Tupac Shakur in the posthumous 1998 hit "Do for Love".

Background and release After gaining a reputation in Miami clubs as a talented musician, Caldwell was signed to an exclusive contract with TK Records in 1978 by TK Records president Henry Stone. Heading to the studio, Caldwell recorded his first album, which was given a redo after Stone felt the album was good but "didn't have a hit". Caldwell returned to the studio and came up with the final product, which included "What You Won't Do for Love". The song's horn arrangement was written and recorded by Miami arranger Mike Lewis. The song is in the key of F-sharp minor (although the pitch of the commercial track is slightly flat – i.e., below concert pitch – perhaps due to tape machine speed variation).

Caldwell wanted the song to be the sixth track on the album since he figured his debut album's second track, "My Flame", which featured him playing guitar, would be the hit. However, TK Records felt confident that "What You Won't Do for Love" would be the breakout hit. When it was released to R&B radio, TK Records did their best to hide Caldwell's racial identity, hoping not to alienate their predominantly African American audience. However, when Caldwell began making performances live onstage, demand only increased.

Chart performance The song would become Caldwell's most successful single and also his signature song, reaching number nine on the US Billboard Hot 100, number six on the Hot Selling Soul Singles chart, and number ten on the Easy Listening chart. In Canada the song reached number 16 on the pop charts, and number 24 on the AOR charts.

According to the broadcast of American Top 40 for the week ending February 3, 1979, the week in which the song debuted at No. 38 on the Top 40, a heart-shaped pressing of the single was the most expensive single up to that point. The heart-shaped single was originally released as a promotional item only, but public demand led to 50,000 copies being pressed in time for Valentine's Day 1979 with a retail price of $7.98—about the price of a full LP album at the time."American Top 40," Week Ending February 3, 1979, replayed February 8, 2014, SiriusXM Radio

After Caldwell's death on March 14, 2023, "What You Won't Do for Love" saw an increase in popularity. In the United Kingdom, the song charted at number 86 on the Singles Downloads Chart Top 100 on March 17, 2023.

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1978–1979)PeakpositionCanada Top Singles (RPM)16Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)24US Billboard Hot 100Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - 9US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)10US R&B (Billboard)6US Cash Box Top 100Cash Box Top 100 Singles, March 24, 197910

Chart (2023)Rank

Year-end charts Chart (1979)RankCanada Top Singles (RPM)128US Billboard Hot 100Musicoutfitters.com59US Cash Box Top 100Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 29, 197988

Certifications

Roy Ayers version American jazz-funk composer and producer Roy Ayers released his version on his 1979 album No Stranger to Love.

Charts Chart (1980)Peakposition

Go West version

English pop duo Go West recorded a version of "What You Won't Do for Love" on their third studio album, Indian Summer (1992), and released it as a single on January 4, 1993 by Chrysalis Records.

Charts Weekly charts Chart (1993)PeakpositionAustralia (ARIA) N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column represents the release's peak on the national chart.122Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)54Europe (European Hit Radio)19Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)31UK Airplay (Music Week)5US Billboard Hot 10055US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)3US Top 40/Mainstream (Billboard)36US Cash Box Top 10050

Year-end charts Chart (1993)RankCanada Top Singles (RPM)100Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)36US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)27

Boyz II Men version Vocal R&B group Boyz II Men released a cover of the song on their 2004 album Throwback, Vol. 1, featuring rapper MC Lyte.

Charts Chart (2004)PeakpositionUS Hot R&B Singles (Billboard)60

In popular culture The song plays over the ending of the Black-ish episode "Love, Boat" to both punctuate a romantic scene as well as make reference to an earlier line in the episode where Dre recalls the time he comforted his mother after she learned Bobby Caldwell was white.

In 2024, the song gained a resurgence of popularity after a TikTok video was released with a video of chocolate-covered strawberries went viral. At that time, when it is edited, it received over 50 million likes and over 450 million views, making it one of the most liked TikTok videos. This caused the song to surge to number #1 on the TikTok Billboard Top 50 for one week.

References