"Teardrops" is a song by American husband-and-wife duo Womack & Womack, released on 5 August 1988 by Island Records as the first single from their fourth studio album, Conscience (1988). The song was written by Cecil Womack and Linda Womack, while production was helmed by Chris Blackwell. Although the song was not a hit in their native United States, it charted highly in the United Kingdom and several European countries, as well as Australia and New Zealand.
In 2023, Billboard magazine ranked "Teardrops" number 83 in their list of "The 100 Best Pop Songs Never to Hit the Hot 100", adding, "Few late-'80s hits were as relentless in their barrage of hooks as "Teardrops", one of the original crying-on-the-dancefloor classics."[1] Upon the release in August 1988, Pan-European magazine Music & Media wrote, "You cannot resist this one: a sweet, supple and loosely arranged dance track featuring the wonderful vocals of Linda Womack."[2] Jerry Smith from Music Week complimented "Teardrops" as a "stylish and svelte soul number that sees Chris Blackwell back in the producer's chair as its irresistible rhythm ensures success."[3] John McCready from NME stated that the song "stalks the same radical soul territory continuing Linda and Cecil's joy and pain public romance."[4] Kevin Rowland from Record Mirror said, "Nice vocal effects and interplay. Heartfelt song, good groove."[5] Michael Hochanadel from Schenectady Gazette felt the "spry dance-floor bounce" of the song "beautifully belies its desperation."[6]
Music video
In the accompanying music video for "Teardrops", the band members, studio musicians and backing vocalists (Lyn Gerald and Dashiell Rae) are shown singing different parts of the song in a recording studio.[7]
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
In 1998, British group Lovestation released a version of "Teardrops" as both a CD single and 12" vinyl record. "Teardrops" became the group's biggest hit, reaching number 14 in the United Kingdom. In 2000, the group released another version of the 1998 cover, but it did not achieve the same degree of success in the British charts, peaking at number 24.[31] The 2000 release consisted of several remixes by producers such as Joey Negro, Eric Kupper and Jamie White.
Critical reception
Mixmag included "Teardrops" in their list of "40 of the best UK garage tracks released from 1995 to 2005".[30]Capital Xtra included the song in their list of "The Best Old-School Garage Anthems of All Time".[32]Gemtracks included the song in their list of the "top UK garage songs between 1995–2005".[33]
Track listings
CD maxi single
"Teardrops" (Perky Park Radio) – 3:47
"Teardrops" (Original 7" Mix) – 4:00
"Teardrops" (Hip Hop Mix) – 6:30
"Teardrops" (Perky Park Summer Experience Mix) – 6:15
In June 2007, all-female German pop group No Angels recorded an uptempo version of "Teardrops".[44] While the ballad "Amaze Me" was initially planned to be released as the third single from their fourth studio album, Destiny (2007), Universal Records persuaded the band to record additional material for a double A-single consisting of "Amaze Me" and "Teardrops."[44] Production on the Womack & Womack cover was overseen by Swedish musicians Tobias Gustafsson, Vincent Pontare, and Michel Zitron.[45] Built upon a synth-heavy, beat driven instrumentation, their version omits the opening verse's second line "I break down and cry, next time I'll be true, yeah."[45]
Release and reception
"Teardrops" was first previewed on RTL's news programme Punkt 6 on 22 August 2007,[46] and by 27 August 2007, a thirty-seconds clip of the song had leaked onto the internet – the same week "Teardrops" was serviced to radio stations.[47] No Angels premiered the song on the television live show ZDF Fernsehgarten on 9 September 2007.[48] Physical and digital singles were released on 19 October 2007,[49] including remixes by Roland Spremberg, Boogieman, and Mozart & Friends as well as the previously unreleased track "Ain't Gonna Look the Other Way," a re-recording of the 2004 Tracy Ackerman-penned song by Canadian singer Celine Dion.[50] On 2 November 2007, "Amaze Me"/"Teardrops" debuted and peaked at number 25 on the German Singles Chart, the band's second-lowest peak by then.[49]
Music video
The music video for "Teardrops" was directed by Marcus Sternberg and shot in a filming studio between 20–22 August 2007 in Berlin, Germany.[51] Shot over twenty hours back-to-back with the video for "Amaze Me", the edited clip premiered on 29 September 2007 on the Universal Music Group website. The clip received its first official airing in the week of 29 September 2007, on German music network iMusic1.[46]
The group has declared the filming of the "mammoth shoot" as "extremely exhausting," referring to its extraordinary length and a delay of several hours, caused by various technical defects.[52]Lucy Diakovska has described the plotless clip as a "funky disco-dance-energy-video," reflecting another facet of the band in music and style.[46] Inspired by a concept developed by all four members and based on Sternberg's treatment, the music video was conceived as a stylistic counterpart to "Amaze Me".[46]
In early 2008, Australian singer Kate Alexa covered the song for her second studio album. It was produced by Molly Meldrum and features American rapper Baby Bash. It was released as the album's first single in Australia on 3 March 2008 as a CD single and digital download. Alexa has stated that she has always been a massive fan of the song, which was originally released the same year she was born.[54] The song was released to Australian radio on 1 February 2008, and peaked at number sixty-four on the airplay chart.[55]
The song's producer, Molly Meldrum, suggested that Alexa should cover the song.[54] Alexa states "I was looking to do a single between albums, and Molly came up with the idea of doing "Teardrops". At first, I was a little sceptical because the original is such a classic and I love it so much. But then Molly and I spoke about how we could do it."[54] American rapper, Baby Bash, heard what Alexa was doing with the song through a friend of Alexa's manager and decided to take part in the song.[54] Alexa states "He's a very cool guy. He came in and did the rap in one take, and it fitted perfectly. It's got such an incredible feel and groove and we wanted to keep that vibe. But we also wanted to do something different, and the rap takes the track to a whole new place."[54]
The song debuted on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart in early March 2008 at number twenty-eight.[56] It went to peak at number twenty-six the following week. It also charted at number seven on the Physical Singles chart and number eight on the Australian Artists Chart.[57] "Teardrops" spent six weeks on the chart, five of which were in the top fifty.[56][57] The music video for the song was filmed on 14 January 2008, at the Love Machine in South Yarra, Victoria, Australia.
Track listings
CD / digital single
No.
Title
Writer(s)
Producer(s)
Length
1.
"Teardrops" (Meldrum Radio Edit, featuring Baby Bash)
On 1 June 2009, English girl group Sugababes' record label Island Records released the album Island Life – 50 Years of Island Records for which the Sugababes covered the track "Teardrops". The song debuted on the Romanian Top 100 at number 63 and charted 3 weeks later at number 40.
