Betcha By Golly, Wow

“Betcha by Golly, Wow” is a song written by Thom Bell and Linda Creed, originally titled “Keep Growing Strong” and recorded by Connie Stevens under the Bell label in 1970. Stevens’ recording runs two minutes and thirty seconds. The composition later became a hit when it was released by the Philadelphia soul group the Stylistics in 1972 under its better known title, “Betcha by Golly, Wow”.

One year after Stevens’ original version was released, the Stylistics recorded a more successful cover version as an R&B ballad under the name the song is best known, “Betcha by Golly, Wow”. It was the third track from the Stylistics’ 1971 debut self-titled album; released as a single in 1972, it reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Billboard ranked it as the No. 18 song for 1972. It also climbed to No. 2 on the Billboard R&B chart, and reached No. 13 on the UK Singles Chart in July 1972. The single sold over one million copies globally, earning the band a gold disc. The award was presented by the RIAA on April 17, 1972. It was the band’s second gold disc. There are two mixes of the song; the 3:17 version released as a single is the one most familiar to listeners, while the 3:48 album version has an instrumental break prior to the song’s finale.