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If You Leave Me Now

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Jemiller226 (talk | contribs) at 15:32, 3 March 2023 (→Composition: The vocal part in the sheet music is an octave higher than Cetera sang it, as is convention with piano/vocal music originally performed by a man. Peter Cetera was a tenor, not a soprano.). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

For the compilation album by Chicago, see If You Leave Me Now (album). For the song by Charlie Puth, see If You Leave Me Now (Charlie Puth song).

"If You Leave Me Now"
Single by Chicago
from the album Chicago X
B-side"Together Again"
Released30 July 1976 (US)[1]
24 September 1976 (UK)[2]
RecordedMarch – April 1976[1]
GenreSoft rock[3][4]
Length3:58
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)Peter Cetera
Producer(s)James William Guercio
Chicago singles chronology
"Another Rainy Day in New York City"
(1976) 		"If You Leave Me Now"
(1976) 		"You Are on My Mind"
(1977)

"If You Leave Me Now" is a song by the American rock group Chicago, from their album Chicago X. It was written and sung by bass player Peter Cetera and released as a single on July 30, 1976. It is also the title of a Chicago compilation album released by Columbia Records (Columbia 38590) in 1983.

The single topped the Billboard Hot 100 on October 23, 1976, and stayed there for two weeks, making it the first number one hit for the group as well as hitting number one on the Easy Listening charts.[5] "If You Leave Me Now" was also Chicago's biggest hit internationally, topping the charts in other countries such as the UK, Australia, Ireland, Canada, and Netherlands. In the UK it maintained the number one position for three weeks.[6] It was one of five "non-disco" songs to make it to number one in the US in a nine-month period of 1976.[7] According to writer Zachary Houle of PopMatters, "The song was so pervasive on radio upon its release that, reportedly, those tuning in within New York could hear the song playing on four different stations, each with varying formats, simultaneously."[8]

The song won Grammy Awards for Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s) (strings) for arranger Jimmie Haskell[9] and producer James William Guercio[10] and Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo, Group or Chorus,[11] the first Grammy Award won by the group.[12] It also received a Grammy nomination for Record of the Year.[13] In addition, by August 1978 it had sold 1.4 million copies in the United States alone.[14] It has been certified gold and platinum by the RIAA.[15] In an article from June 2020, The Guardian listed "If You Leave Me Now" as number 73 on its list of "The Greatest UK No 1s: 100–1", noting, "It’s impossibly lush and beautifully written, but its sadness is pervasive and affecting."[16]

In 2010 Chicago teamed with the American Cancer Society and offered the opportunity to bid on the chance to sing their hit, "If You Leave Me Now" with them on stage live at their concerts, with proceeds going to the American Cancer Society to fight breast cancer.[17] The fund raising effort has continued in succeeding years.[18][19][20]

Composition

Peter Cetera originally wrote "If You Leave Me Now" at the same time as Chicago VII's "Wishing You Were Here", and composed it on a guitar.[21] According to information on the sheet music for the song at MusicNotes, "If You Leave Me Now" is written in the key of B major, and Cetera's vocal range varies between F sharp 3 (F♯3) and D sharp 5 (D♯5).[22]

Reception

Cash Box said that it's "an excellent ballad," with "lushly colored" instrumentation and "carefully constructed" vocals.[23]

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[53] Gold 75,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[54] Gold 500,000^
United States (RIAA)[55] Platinum 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Chess version

"If You Leave Me Now"
Single by Chess
ReleasedFebruary 1, 1993
Recorded1992
GenreDance
Length3:53
LabelBMG
Songwriter(s)Peter Cetera
Producer(s)Boogie Park, Brothers United

In 1992, German music group Chess covered the song which achieved modest success. While the original is a ballad, Chess's version is uptempo and danceable, adapted to the state of dance music of the 1990s. Their version is also on the compilations Larry präsentiert: Neue Smash-Hits 93 (English: Larry presents: New Smash-Hits 93) and Maxi Dance Sensation 9.

Track listing

CD maxi-single

  1. If You Leave Me Now (Airplay Mix) - 3:53
  2. If You Leave Me Now (12" After Dark mix) - 5:13
  3. Please, Don't Leave Me (Instrumental Mystery Mix) - 5:16

Charts

Chart (1993) Peak
position
German Singles Chart[56] 67

Other cover versions

Peter Cetera re-recorded "If You Leave Me Now" as a solo artist for his 1997 album You're the Inspiration: A Collection,[57] and most recently recorded a duet version of the song with Italian vocalist, Filippa Giordano, for her 2018 album, Friends and Legends Duets.[58][59]

The website SecondHandSongs lists over 130 covers of "If You Leave Me Now" by recording artists from around the world between 1976 and 2020, among them:[60]

British DJ, producer, songwriter and former member of the Outlaw Posse, K-Gee, together with Michelle Escoffery performed a hip hop version of "If You Leave Me Now" for K-Gee's 2002 album, Bounce to This. In 2000, K-Gee told Billboard writer Kwaku that he thought the chorus of "If You Leave Me Now" "'sounds phat.'"[75]

Live cover performances

In other media

"If You Leave Me Now" is featured in the soundtrack of the video game Grand Theft Auto V (appearing on the in-game radio station Los Santos Rock Radio), and is also played when Trevor Philips returns the kidnapped wife of a drug kingpin.[78][79] The song is also featured in an episode, "Casa Bonita", of South Park,[80] as well as "Egg Drop", the 12th episode of the third season of the American sitcom Modern Family.[81] The song was also featured in a scene on the British comedy horror film Shaun of the Dead where Shaun is still reeling from his breakup and Ed is trying to cheer him up.[82] In the early 2000's, the song was performed by the mascot "Sockpuppet" in a commercial for the now-defunct website Pets.com.[83]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b The Very Best Of: Only the Beginning (Media notes). Chicago. Rhino. 2002. pp. 10, 13. R2 76170.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  2. ^ "BPI certifications".
  3. ^ Larry Starr; Christopher Alan Waterman; Jay Hodgson (2009). Rock: A Canadian Perspective. Oxford University Press. p. 203. ISBN 978-0-19-542761-5. Retrieved October 10, 2015.
  4. ^ "VH1's 40 Most Softsational Soft-Rock Songs". Stereogum. SpinMedia. May 31, 2007. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  5. ^ a b c Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–2001. Record Research. p. 55.
  6. ^ a b "1976 The Number One Singles | Official Charts". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
  7. ^ Grein, Paul (October 23, 1976). "Discomania: Market Study Show Craze in Impact Akin to British of '60s". Billboard. Vol. 88, no. 43. p. 5. Retrieved December 6, 2017 – via Google Books.
  8. ^ Houle, Zachary (October 8, 2010). "Exploring Chicago: 'Chicago X'". PopMatters. Retrieved December 6, 2017.
  9. ^ "Jimmie Haskell". GRAMMY.com. May 4, 2017. Retrieved October 3, 2017.
  10. ^ "James Guercio". GRAMMY.com. May 14, 2017. Retrieved October 3, 2017.
  11. ^ "Chicago". GRAMMY.com. May 14, 2017. Retrieved October 3, 2017.
  12. ^ Gurza, Agustin (March 5, 1977). "Wonder's Grammy Streak Continues". Billboard. Vol. 89, no. 9. p. 65. Retrieved March 6, 2019 – via Google Books.
  13. ^ Grein, Paul (January 19, 1985). "Grammy Nominations". Billboard. Vol. 97, no. 3. p. 77. Retrieved March 6, 2019 – via Google Books.
  14. ^ Grein, Paul (August 26, 1978). "Platinum Singles Top '76–'77 Years". Billboard. Vol. 90, no. 34. p. 114. Retrieved January 10, 2013 – via Google Books.
  15. ^ "Gold & Platinum - RIAA Chicago If You Leave Me Now". RIAA. Retrieved January 19, 2017.
  16. ^ Beaumont-Thomas, Ben; Petridis, Alexis; Snapes, Laura (June 5, 2020). "The 100 greatest UK No 1s: 100-1". the Guardian. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
  17. ^ "Grammy-Winning Band Chicago and the American Cancer Society Create Extraordinary Fan Experience to Fight Breast Cancer" (Press release). American Cancer Society. March 16, 2010. Retrieved February 18, 2017.
  18. ^ Cain, TIM (October 6, 2011). "Tim Cain column: Chicago keeps sniping after split". Herald-Review.com. Decatur, Illinois U.S.A. Retrieved February 18, 2017.
  19. ^ Coker, Eric (August 24, 2012). "Chicago continues to make audiences smile - Inside Binghamton University". www.binghamton.edu. Binghamton University. Retrieved February 14, 2017.
  20. ^ Byrne, Terry (August 20, 2013). "Chicago at Wolf Trap by Terry Byrne". DCMetroTheaterArts. Retrieved February 14, 2017.
  21. ^ Cetera, Peter (September 28, 2015). "Peter Cetera/September 28" (audio). Humble & Fred Radio.Com (Interview). Interviewed by Howard Glassman and Fred Patterson. Toronto, Ontario, Canada: Humble and Fred Radio. Event occurs at 51:09. Retrieved October 3, 2017.
  22. ^ Cetera, Peter (March 31, 2008). "Chicago "If You Leave Me Now" Sheet Music in B Major (transposable) - Download & Print". Musicnotes.com. MusicNotes. Archived from the original on October 24, 2017. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
  23. ^ "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. August 7, 1976. p. 18. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  24. ^ David Kent's "Australian Chart Book 1970-1992" Archived March 5, 2016, at archive.today
  25. ^ "Chicago – If You Leave Me Now – Austriancharts.at". austriancharts.at (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
  26. ^ "Ultratop.be – Chicago – If You Leave Me Now". Ultratop (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
  27. ^ "Top Singles". RPM. 26 (2): 23. October 9, 1976. ISSN 0315-5994. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
  28. ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. October 9, 1976. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
  29. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Chicago – If You Leave Me Now". GfK Dutch Charts (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
  30. ^ "Tous les Titres de l'Artiste choisi" (in French). InfoDisc. November 4, 1976. Archived from the original on September 13, 2017. Retrieved March 11, 2019.
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  32. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – If You Leave Me Now". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
  33. ^ "Classifiche". Musica e Dischi (in Italian). Retrieved May 28, 2022. Set "Tipo" on "Singoli". Then, in the "Artista" field, search "Chicago".
  34. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Chicago – If You Leave Me Now". norwegiancharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
  35. ^ "charts.nz – Chicago – If You Leave Me Now". charts.nz. Hung Medien. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
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  39. ^ Cash Box Top 100 Singles, October 23, 1976
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  42. ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved October 11, 2016.
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  45. ^ "Top 100 Hits of 1976/Top 100 Songs of 1976". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved October 11, 2016.
  46. ^ "Top 50 Adult Contemporary Hits of 1976". www.45cat.com. Retrieved December 6, 2017.
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  48. ^ Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 25, 1976[dead link‍]
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  51. ^ Swiss Year-End Charts, 1977
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  55. ^ "American single certifications – Chicago – If You Leave Me Now". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
  56. ^ chartsurfer.de
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