I Gotcha Now

"I Gotcha Now" is a song written by Lynsey de Paul and released as a single by Zakatek (Lenny Zakatek) on the Bell Records label on 2 March 1973.[1][2][3] The release of the single received interest from the British music press.[4][5] The song features a pounding piano (possibly played by de Paul), fuzz guitar and "I Am the Walrus"-esque strings.[6][7] De Paul's own demo of the song, with the title "Got You Here Now" and recorded at Orange Studios, London, by David Humphries in early 1973 resurfaced in 2022 and features a xylophone in place of the piano break in the middle of the song.[8] The B-side is also a de Paul song, "So Good To You",[1][9] and both songs were recorded at 10cc's Strawberry Studios with Eric Stewart, the lead guitarist and singer of The Mindbenders and later a member of 10cc, being the co-engineer.[10][11] De Paul recorded her own version of "So Good To You" and released it in October 1973 as the flip side to her single "Won't Somebody Dance with Me".[12][13] In Japan, this was the A-side of the release.[14] Both songs were however, originally written by de Paul for Zakatek (as was the follow-up single "Get Your Gun"),[15] after she co-discovered him together with the actor Dudley Moore,[16][17] her boyfriend at the time. However, some years later de Paul revealed that she had offered "I Gotcha Now" to Slade.[18][19] Lenny Zakatek discussed recording the song in an interview given to Black Music & Jazz Review.[20]

"I Gotcha Now" was released on CD for the first time in 2018 on the compilation album Mixed Up Minds Part Thirteen: Rock & Pop From the British Isles, 1969-1973,[21][22] and also on the 2006 album, PopCycles Volume 4.[23] The song is still played on the radio, most recently by KDVS based in Davis, California,[24] KOOP in Austin, Texas[25] and Jersey City's WFMU on the program "Wired Up!".[26]