Comment te dire adieu explained

Comment te dire adieu
Type:single
Artist:Françoise Hardy
Album:Comment te dire adieu
B-Side:"L'Anamour"[1]
Released:1968
Recorded:Studio Pye, London, England
Genre:French pop
Length:4:39
Label:Disques Vogue
Producer:Production Asparagus
Italic Title:no
Françoise Hardy
Type:ep
Artist:Françoise Hardy
Cover:F. Hardy EP Comment te dire adieu 1968.jpg
Caption:French edition
Released:1968
Recorded:Studio Pye, London, England
Genre:Pop music
Length:9:46
Label:Disques Vogue
Producer:Production Asparagus

"Comment te dire adieu" (English: "How to Say Goodbye to You") is a French adaptation of the song "It Hurts to Say Goodbye". It was originally recorded by Françoise Hardy in 1968.

"It Hurts to Say Goodbye" was written by Arnold Goland, probably best known for his co-operation with Phil Spector, and the American producer and songwriter Jacob "Jack" Gold (1921–1992). In 1966 it was recorded by Margaret Whiting on her album The Wheel of Hurt.[2] In 1967 a release by Vera Lynn reached No. 7 on Billboards Adult Contemporary chart.[3] [4]

These versions were interpreted in the style of a ballad, as was the first French version of the song with lyrics by Michèle Vendôme titled "Avant de dire adieu" which was released by Ginette Reno on her 1967 album Quelqu'un à aimer. More beat driven were the instrumental interpretations by Brazil's Walter Wanderley, dominated by the Hammond organ he is known for, and the Frenchman Caravelli, who focused more on strings, both published in the same year. The Jack Gold Orchestra & Chorus version, which was in a style similar to the Caravelli release, made No. 28 on the Billboard Easy Listening charts in 1969.

Françoise Hardy heard an "American instrumental version" of the song and her manager asked Serge Gainsbourg to provide suitable lyrics for it.[5] The resultant "Comment te dire adieu" was combined with an arrangement relatively closer to the Caravelli version and included on Hardy's 1968 album. Hardy also recorded the song in Italian ("Il pretesto", 1968) and German ("Was mach' ich ohne dich", 1970; released on the album Träume, 1970.) The French lyrics are notable for their uncommon rhymes in "ex", within the subject of the song having a sense of "ex" as in "ex-boyfriend".

A German version with new lyrics, titled "Ich sage dir adieu", was released by veteran Greek-German singer Vicky Leandros on her 2010 album Zeitlos.

Formats and track listings

French SP

English SP

French EP

Jimmy Somerville version

Comment te dire adieu
Cover:Comment_te_dire_adieu.jpg
Type:single
Artist:Jimmy Somerville featuring June Miles-Kingston
Album:Read My Lips
B-Side:Tell the World
Released:October 1989
Genre:House
Length:3:35
Label:London
Producer:Pascal Gabriel
Chronology:Jimmy Somerville
Next Title:You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)
Next Year:1990

The song was covered in 1989 by former Bronski Beat and Communards singer Jimmy Somerville, as a duet with June Miles-Kingston. It was a hit in the UK, reaching number 14 on the UK Singles Chart, helping Somerville's solo career take off. David Giles of Music Week deemed Somerville's cover as "a slightly housey version", adding: "The sheer vivacity of his performance sends the record soaring off the turntable, and the orchestral bits topped with spoken French are out of this universe".[6]

Track listing

  1. "Comment te dire adieu" (7" version) — 3:35
  2. "Tell the World" — 4:12

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Chart (1989–1990)Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[7] 122
South Australia (ARIA Charts)[8] 89
scope="row"
Europe (European Airplay Top 50)[9] 6
Europe (European Hot 100)[10] 8
Europe (Pan-European Hot 100)[11] 13
scope="row"
Germany (Official German Charts)[12] 25
scope="row"
scope="row"
UK Singles (OCC)[13] 14
UK Dance (Music Week)[14] 17

Certifications

In France, the single reportedly sold at least 250,000 copies.[15]

Kate Ryan version

Comment te dire adieu
Type:single
Artist:Kate Ryan
Released:24 June 2016
Genre:Dance-pop, house
Length:2:52
Label:CNR Music Belgium
Producer:Yves Gaillard, Amro
Prev Title:Wonderful Life
Prev Year:2016

In 2016, Belgian dance singer Kate Ryan covered the song and released it as a stand-alone single via iTunes on 24 June 2016, under CNR Music Belgium. It was produced by Yves Jongen a.k.a. Yves Gaillard and Soufiane Amrani "Amro".[17]

A music video accompanied the song, premiered via YouTube on 29 June 2016.[18]

Other cover versions

Usage in film and television

External links

Notes and References

  1. http://www.rfimusique.com/siteen/biographie/biographie_6305.asp Serge Gainsbourg
  2. Web site: Cover versions of It Hurts to Say Goodbye by Margaret Whiting . SecondHandSongs.com . 2016-10-01.
  3. Vera Lynn - Billboard Singles
  4. Web site: Original versions of It Hurts to Say Goodbye by Vera Lynn . SecondHandSongs.com . 1967-01-06 . 2016-10-01.
  5. Serge Gainsbourg: a fistful of gitanes: requiem for a twister, Sylvie Simmons, Da Capo Press, 2002, p. 50 .
  6. David . Giles . Singles . . 11 November 1989 . 47 in the PDF . 27 December 2020 .
  7. Bubbling Down Under – Australian singles chart peaks beyond the top 100: A journey through flop. Bubbling Down Under. bubblingdownunder.com. 11 December 2020. 9 June 2021. Comment Te Dire Adieu" by Jimmy Somerville featuring June Miles Kingston. Peak: number 122. (see section 'Top 150 debuts')
  8. https://www.bubblingdownunder.com/2020/ Bubbling Down Under
  9. https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-UK/Music/Archive-Music-Media-IDX/IDX/90s/90/MM-1990-02-10-OCR-Page-0017.pdf European Airplay Top 50
  10. Eurochart Hot 100 Singles. Music & Media. 7. 7. 17 February 1990. IV-V. 29800226. World Radio History . 16 October 2021.
  11. Pan-Eurochart Chart – Hot 100 Singles. Billboard. 10 February 1990. 74. World Radio History . 9 July 2023.
  12. "Comment te dire adieu", German Singles Chart Lescharts.com (Retrieved October 3, 2008)
  13. "Comment te dire adieu", UK Singles Chart Official Charts Company (Retrieved October 3, 2008)
  14. Top Dance Singles . . 25 November 1989 . 32 . World Radio History . 30 August 2023.
  15. Web site: TOP – 1989 . Top-france.fr . 3 July 2023 . fr.
  16. Eurochart Hot 100 of 1990. Music & Media. 7. 51. 22 December 1990. 60. 29800226. 15 January 2020. American Radio History.
  17. http://www.ultratop.be/fr/song/17e0ec/Kate-Ryan-Comment-te-dire-adieu ultratop.be - Kate Ryan - Comment te dire adieu
  18. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvG78JEBmAc Kate Ryan - Comment Te Dire Adieu - YouTube
  19. Star Academy fait sa Bamba, track listing and charts Lescharts.com (Retrieved October 3, 2008)
  20. Web site: LaCalani - Comment te Dire Adieu? (Audio Alcalina Edit) . YouTube.
  21. Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: Web site: Comment te dire adieu Françoise Hardy Pomplamoose . YouTube.
  22. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVPFSLtHJsQ Comment Te Dire Adieu · Reni Jusis

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