Baby Come Back

The apotheosis of "I made a terrible mistake and now I want you back" songs, "Baby Come Back" was rooted in real heartbreak. It was written by Player founders Peter Beckett and J. C. Crowley. Beckett is from Liverpool, England (home of The Beatles), but moved to Los Angeles to join a band called Skyband, which broke up after one album. By the time he formed Player with Crowley, his wife had left him and returned to England. Crowley was also going through a breakup, so channeled their feeling into the song. Beckett sang lead on the track.

"Baby Come Back" earned Player a record deal. After Peter Beckett and J. C. Crowley, who were both singer-guitarists, wrote the song, they added bass player Ronn Moss and pitched it to producers. The production team of Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter heard its hit potential straight away and took it to RSO Records, which signed the band. Adding drummer John Friesen to the lineup, they recorded their debut album before they ever played live together. "Baby Come Back," released as the first single, was a huge hit, going to #1 in January 1978 and staying for three weeks.

Player is almost exclusively known for this song, but their follow-up single, "This Time I'm in It for Love," made a respectable showing, going to #10 in America. The group had a few more minor hits before breaking up in 1982. After the demise of Player, Beckett joined Australia's Little River Band, who included "Baby Got Back" on a live album. Beckett also wrote "Twist Of Fate" for Olivia Newton-John and "After All This Time" for Kenny Rogers. Player bassist Ronn Moss became a very popular star on the CBS Soap Opera The Bold And The Beautiful, playing the character Ridge Forrester from 1987–2012. Crowley left Player after their second album and went on to write songs recorded by Smokey Robinson, Johnny Cash, The Little River Band and many others. He released a solo album in 1988 entitled Beneath The Texas Moon; the title track appeared in Clint Eastwood's move Pink Cadillac.