Never Let Her Slip Away

"Never Let Her Slip Away" is a song written by American musician Andrew Gold, who recorded it for his third album, All This and Heaven Too (1978). The single reached number five on the UK Singles Chart and number 67 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1978. Queen frontman Freddie Mercury contributed harmony vocals to the song, as an uncredited background singer. A 1992 cover version by British dance outfit Undercover was also an international hit.

Background
As revealed in his liner notes for All This and Heaven Too, Gold wrote "Never Let Her Slip Away" about meeting actress and Saturday Night Live cast member Laraine Newman who was his girlfriend when he composed the song. Besides Freddie Mercury's, other background vocals were provided by J. D. Souther and Timothy B. Schmit, and the saxophone was played by Ernie Watts.

In popular culture
In 1995, British comedians Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer performed a cover of the song on their show The Smell of Reeves and Mortimer. "Never Let Her Slip Away" was also featured on the soundtrack of the film Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa (2013), as a personal favourite of the principal character.

In conversation on the podcast WTF with Marc Maron, Dave Grohl of the rock band Foo Fighters called "Never Let Her Slip Away" "the most beautiful piece of music ever written," and "maybe one of the most melodically sophisticated songs I've ever heard in my entire life," and noted his plans to record a cover version of the song.

Undercover version
British dance group Undercover covered the song on their debut album, Check Out the Groove (1992). This version was released in November 1992 by PWL and produced by Steve Mac. It also reached number five in the United Kingdom and number two in Ireland, as Gold's original did. In addition to this, it reached number three in Belgium, number four in Finland and number seven in the Netherlands. On the Eurochart Hot 100, the track peaked at number 11 in December 1992.

Critical reception
A reviewer from Lennox Herald named the song a "stand out" from the album. Pan-European magazine Music & Media commented, "Once again Undercover has hit a goldmine with a cover of a '70s singer/songwriter's work. This time it's the Andrew Gold 1978 classic. The crucial difference is that this is more beaty." Alan Jones from Music Week gave it four out of five, noting that "already achieving a surprisingly major degree of club crossover, it's very much in the KWS/East Side Beat mould, and could even reach the very summit." Mark Frith from Smash Hits also gave it four out of five, writing that "Undercover bloke John Matthews was born to make this record." He described it as a "gorgeous, poignant ballad that suits him down to the ground."

Track listing

 * CD single
 * 1) "Never Let Her Slip Away" (Essential Edit) – 3:28
 * 2) "Never Let Her Slip Away" (Essential Mix) – 4:59
 * 3) "Sha Do" (Extended Mix) – 5:41