Ready or Not Here I Come

Recorded in Philadelphia for the sessions that produced Sound of Sexy Soul, with Thom Bell and Stan Watson overseeing the production. It was issued by Philly Groove as catalog number 154 in late 1968. The single became one of the Delfonics’ defining Philly-soul hits, reaching No. 35 on the Billboard Hot 100, No. 14 on the R&B chart, and No. 41 in the UK. It helped establish the lush, romantic Thom Bell sound that made the group a major late-1960s act. The song remained widely heard through later reinterpretations and interpolations, including the Fugees’ “Ready or Not,” the Jackson 5’s cover, and Missy Elliott’s sampling of its intro. Its refrain became one of the most recognizable hooks in soul and hip-hop crossover history.