"(I Don't Know Why) But I Do" is an R&B song written by Paul Gayten and

Bobby Charles Robert Charles Guidry (February 21, 1938 – January 14, 2010), known as Bobby Charles, was an American singer-songwriter. Early life An ethnic Cajun, Charles was born in Abbeville, Louisiana, United States, and grew up listening to Cajun mus ...

(as Robert Guidry), and performed by

Clarence "Frogman" Henry Clarence Henry II (born March 19, 1937), known as Clarence "Frogman" Henry, is an American rhythm and blues singer and pianist, best known for his hits " Ain't Got No Home" (1956) and " (I Don't Know Why) But I Do" (1961). Career Clarence Henry ...

Original version

It was Henry's biggest U.S. hit, reaching No. 4 in early 1961. The

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

on the single release was "Just My Baby and Me". On its initial release in December 1960, the U.S. release on the Argo record label was titled "I Don't Know Why". However, about ten weeks later, Argo announced that due to confusion arising from the song being mistaken for the 1931 song called "I Don't Know Why (I Just Do)", they changed the name of this song to "But I Do". The UK release on the Pye label and the Australian release on the

Coronet A coronet is a small crown consisting of ornaments fixed on a metal ring. A coronet differs from other kinds of crowns in that a coronet never has arches, and from a tiara in that a coronet completely encircles the head, while a tiara doe ...

label were both titled "But I Do". The UK version spent 19 weeks in the charts and peaked at No. 3 in the first week of May 1961.Rice T, Rice J, Read M & Gambaccini P, Guinness Book of Hits of the 60s. Guinness, London, 1984, p.75 () The song was made popular again after its use in a 1993 UK television commercial for the

Fiat Cinquecento The Fiat Cinquecento (Type 170) (, ) is a front engine front-wheel-drive, four passenger, three door hatchback city car, manufactured and marketed by Fiat from 1991 to 1998 over a single generation. It was manufactured at Fiat Auto Poland, whi ...

, appearances in the 1994 film ''

Forrest Gump ''Forrest Gump'' is a 1994 American comedy-drama film directed by Robert Zemeckis and written by Eric Roth. It is based on the 1986 novel of the same name by Winston Groom and stars Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, Gary Sinise, Mykelti Williamson ...

'', the 1999 film ''

Mickey Blue Eyes ''Mickey Blue Eyes'' is a 1999 romantic comedy crime film directed by Kelly Makin. Hugh Grant stars as Michael Felgate, an English auctioneer living in New York City who becomes entangled in his soon-to-be father-in-law's mafia connections. Sev ...

'', and a 2019 commercial for

Expedia Expedia Inc. is an online travel agency owned by Expedia Group, an American online travel shopping company based in Seattle. The website and mobile app can be used to book airline tickets, hotel reservations, car rentals, cruise ships, and ...

and its ability to provide dog-friendly hotel accommodations.

Chart history

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Bobby Vinton cover

Bobby Vinton Stanley Robert "Bobby" Vinton (born April 16, 1935) is a American former singer and occasional actor, who also hosted his own self-titled TV show in the late 1970s. As a teen idol, he became known as "The Polish Prince", as his music paid tri ...

covered "But I Do" in 1972. His version reached No. 82 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and No. 71 on the ''Cash Box'' chart in early 1973. It also reached #27 on the Adult Contemporary chart. The song also charted in Canada on both the Pop chart (#72) and Adult Contemporary (#23) chart, where it made its best showing.

Chart history

Other versions

* Irish girl group

the Nolans The Nolans are an Anglo-Irish girl group who formed in Blackpool in 1974 as the Nolan Sisters, before changing their name in 1980. Often referred to as Ireland's ''First Family of Music'', they were the first Irish performing family to achiev ...

covered the song in 1974. It was their debut single, but did not chart. * Dutch duo Lion had a local success with a cover of "But I Do" with "You've Got a "Woman" as the B-side in 1975. *

Tom Jones Tom Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Tom Jones (singer) (born 1940), Welsh singer * Tom Jones (writer) (1928–2023), American librettist and lyricist *''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'', a novel by Henry Fielding published in ...

covered the song on his 1981 LP ''Darlin' / The Country Side of Tom Jones''. It was also released as a single but did not chart. *

Charley Pride Charley Frank Pride (March 18, 1934 – December 12, 2020) was an American singer, guitarist, and professional baseball player. His greatest musical success came in the early to mid-1970s, when he was the best-selling performer for RCA Re ...

covered "But I Do" in 1996 on his album ''Classics with Pride''.

References

"''Billboard''"
Billboard ''Hot 100 airplay and sales charts''. Retrieved June 11, 2006. 1961 singles American songs Ronnie Milsap songs Clarence "Frogman" Henry songs Bobby Vinton songs The Walker Brothers songs 1974 debut singles The Nolans songs Songs written by Bobby Charles Songs written by Paul Gayten 1961 songs Argo Records singles {{1960s-single-stub