Song: Do I Love You (Indeed I Do)
Artist: Bruce Springsteen
Original artist: Frank Wilson
Do I Love You is a Northern Soul number released by Frank Wilson in 1965 on the Soul
label, a subsidiary of Motown.
Perhaps at this point it would be wise to concede that I know little about Northern Soul.
I’m a Londoner and this song came out when I was in my early teens and too young to
get into nightclubs so Northern Soul never really entered my consciousness.
Research tells me that Northern Soul was in its heyday in the late 1960s through to the
mid-70s and, although it hit the doldrums, it has never totally gone away. The genre has
many loyal fans to this day. If you are a resident of my second home – Pattaya,
Thailand – you will be aware that every couple of months or so enthusiasts organise
Northern Soul parties which, I’m reliably informed, are well attended.
Back when I lived in Pattaya full time I went to one or two of these gatherings. The
music was very good, but I’m not sure the same could be said for the dancing.
Describing Northern Soul dancing is not easy. It is certainly very athletic featuring flips,
spins and kicks that look like someone is attempting a drop-goal in rugby. Maybe it is
easier just to show you a clip. It’s not quite Saturday Night Fever, but the dancers are obviously having fun. Love the flares, by the way.
The most valuable soul single ever, Frank Wilson’s Do I Love You (Indeed I Do) was sold for £25,742 in 2009 on Motown’s Soul label. It was bought by soul specialist John Manship, and sold on in August 2020 for £100,000.
Bruce Springsteen included it on his 2022 album, Only the Strong Survive, and released
it as a single which reached No 14 in the iTunes chart. The album comprised cover
versions of R&B and soul songs.
The Boss said that in putting the work together he “wanted to make an album where
[he] just sang” and tried to “do justice to the great American songbook of the ’60s and
’70s”.
Maybe true fans of Northern Soul will not appreciate the Springsteen version below, but
I think he has breathed new life into it.
