Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes vs. Simply Red | Head 2 Head

In the 46th edition of Head 2 Head (2024), Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes and Simply Red contend for the best rendition of “If You Don’t Know Me By Now.”

Welcome to Head 2 Head! On Head 2 Head, we pit at least two musicians performing the same song and compare their performances.  After deliberation, we decide which performance is the best or moves us more subjectively.  In the 46^th edition of Head 2 Head (2024), Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes and Simply Red contend for the best rendition of “If You Don’t Know Me By Now”. So, without further ado, let the Head 2 Head commence! 

1. Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, “If You Don’t Know Me By Now”

Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes (Ft. Teddy Pendergrass) // Epic // 1972 

“All the things / That we’ve been through / You should understand me / Like I understand you.” Sing it, Teddy Pendergrass (1950 – 2010)! The late soul singer brings his dynamic and expressive baritone to the high-flying Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes classic, “If You Don’t Know Me By Now”.  “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” is the fourth track from Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes (Ft. Teddy Pendergrass), released in 1972.  It marks the soul collective’s best-charting song on the pop charts. It peaked at no. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100.  Expectedly, on the R&B charts, “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” reached no. 1. Penned and produced by the iconic duo Gamble & Huff (Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff), “Know” is one of the all-time classics in the soul catalog.

Pendergrass’ ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ vocals play a huge role in the success of “If You Don’t Know Me By Now.”  He masterfully brings lyrics and melody to life.  The verses are terrific.  So is the varying pre-chorus, where first, Teddy sings, “Oh, don’t get so excited / When I come home a little late at night / ‘Cause we only act like children / When we argue fuss and fight.” Oh, snap! In the second pre-chorus, he makes a valid point: “What good is a love affair / When we can’t see eye to eye?” The centerpiece is the chorus, which features sublime background vocals by The Blue Notes and top-notch ad-libs and vocal riffs from Pendergrass:

“(If you don’t know me by now)

If you don’t know me by now

(You will never, never, never know me)

You will never, never, never know me

(If you don’t know me by now)

If you don’t know me, baby

(You will never, never, never know me)

No, you won’t.”

Beyond songwriting and vocal performance, the musical accompaniment is stunning. This comes as no surprise with Gamble & Huff at the helm.  This is Philly soul at its finest.  The rhythm section! The dramatic, lush strings! The ambiance! Hard to imagine anyone topping the original version of “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” by Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, right?

2. Simply Red, “If You Don’t Know Me By Now”

A New Flame // Warner Music UK Ltd. / Simplyred.com Ltd. // 1989

“If you don’t know me by now / You will never, never, never know me.” Those iconic lyrics hail from the beloved soul classic, “If You Don’t Know Me By Now”.  “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” was the highest charting hit by soul collective Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, featuring the dynamic, soulful baritone of Teddy Pendergrass.  Topping this soul landmark is a tall task.  However,  English soul and pop band Simply Red, led by Mick Hucknall, marvelously covered it. “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” in the hands of Hucknall and company outperformed the original on the pop charts.  The revival cover reached no. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Simply Red was nominated for three Grammys throughout their career. One of those nominations came for Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal for “If You Don’t Know Me By Now.” The ninth track from their 1989, A New Flame, is special. Hucknall and company contemporized “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” for a new audience.  While the cover retains soulfulness, the sound is more representative of the 1980s with ‘poppier’ instrumentation.  The keys are key to the musical accompaniment, differentiating it from the Philly soul original.  The sound is more ‘adult contemporary’ pop and R&B – more blue-eyed soul. Hucknall has a starkly different voice than Pendergrass but commands “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” sublimely in his own right.  He sounds clear and smooth, singing expressively without daring to over-sing. His ad-libs tend to be more subtle but highlight the beauty and pureness of his instrument – finesse. Likewise, the harmonized background vocals singing the titular lyrics, originally performed by The Blue Notes, are clean, clear, and sweet.  It is arduous to cover such a big song like “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” but Simply Red was highly successful – an understatement.

Appears in 🔻:

• Simply Red, If You Don’t Know Me By Now: Covers No. 47 (2024)

The Verdict 👨🏿‍⚖️ 

So, who did “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” the best? Was it the original, gold-certified single by Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes or the gold-certified revival cover by Simply Red?  It’s a matter of preference, I suppose.  If you lean into soul music most, you probably prefer the original, with its lush orchestration and dynamic, gritty lead vocals by Teddy Pendergrass who was the damn man.  If you are more pop-oriented, you may be taken by the well-rounded, refined take by Simply Red.  It’s good and, understandably, ran up the charts!  But, in my opinion, the version to beat is the original.  Admittedly, TP is one of my all-time favorite singers, particularly in his heyday, so out-singing him is an elephantine task. Both renditions exhibit high-quality, top-notch musicianship, however.

Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes vs. Simply Red: Head 2 Head No. 46 (2024) [📷: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Epic, Simplyred.com Ltd., Warner Music UK Ltd.; Hernán Toro, Los Muertos Crew, RDNE Stock project, Thomas Ronveaux from Pexels]