Comment te dire adieu (song)

"Comment te dire adieu"
Single by Françoise Hardy
from the album Françoise Hardy
B-side "L'Anamour"[1]
Released 1968
Format 7" single
Recorded Studio Pye, London, England
Genre French pop
Length 4:39
Label Disques Vogue
Writer(s) Serge Gainsbourg
Arnold Goland
Jack Gold
Producer(s) Production Asparagus
Alternative edition 1969
English edition's label of side A.[3]
Françoise Hardy

French edition
EP by Françoise Hardy
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 recorded by Françoise Hardy in 1968[4] and remains one of Hardy's most popular songs.

Background

The song, originally called "It Hurts to Say Goodbye", was written by Arnold Goland and Jack Gold and was recorded by Margaret Whiting on her album The Wheel of Hurt (1966).[5] It was also recorded by Vera Lynn in 1967; this version reached #7 in Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart.[6][7] Hardy heard an American instrumental version of the song and her manager asked Serge Gainsbourg to provide suitable lyrics for it.[8] Gainsbourg's French adaptation of the original lyrics, "Comment te dire adieu", was included on Hardy's 1968 album.[4] Hardy also recorded the song in Italian ("Il pretesto", 1968) and German ("Was mach' ich ohne dich", 1970; collected in the album Träume, 1970.) The lyrics are notable for their uncommon rhymes in "ex", within the subject of the song having a sense of "ex" as in "ex-boyfriend".

Formats and track listings

French SP

English SP

French EP

Jimmy Somerville version

"Comment te dire adieu"
Single by Jimmy Somerville featuring June Miles-Kingston
from the album Read My Lips
B-side "Tell the World"
Released October 1989
Format 7" single
Genre Pop
Length 3:35
Label London
Writer(s) Serge Gainsbourg
Arnold Goland
Jack Gold
Producer(s) Pascal Gabriel
Jimmy Somerville featuring June Miles-Kingston singles chronology
"Comment te dire adieu"
(1989)		 "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)"
(1990)

In 1989 it was covered by former Bronski Beat and Communards singer Jimmy Somerville, as a duet with June Miles-Kingston. The song was a hit in the UK, reaching #14 on the UK singles chart, helping Somerville's solo career take off.

Track listing

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

Certifications

Country Certification Date Sales certified
France[9] Silver 1990 200,000

Charts

Chart (1989/90) Peak
position
Dutch Mega Top 100[10] 26
French SNEP Singles Chart[10] 3
German Singles Chart[10] 25
Irish Singles Chart[11] 3
UK Singles Chart[12] 14

Other cover versions

Apart from Jimmy Somerville, a number of artists have covered the song:

References

  1. ↑ Serge Gainsbourg, biography, RFI Musique. Accessed on line May 7, 2009.
  2. ↑ On this label there is an mistake in the firstname of one of the authors of the song; we should read A. Goland instead of G. Goland.
  3. ↑ On this label there is an mistake in the firstname of one of the authors of the song; we should read A. Goland instead of G. Goland.
  4. 1 2
  5. ↑
  6. ↑ Vera Lynn - Billboard Singles, Allmusic. Accessed on line May 5, 2009.
  7. ↑
  8. ↑ p. 50, Serge Gainsbourg: a fistful of gitanes: requiem for a twister, Sylvie Simmons, Da Capo Press, 2002, ISBN 0-306-81183-9.
  9. ↑ French certifications Chartsinfrance.net (Retrieved October 3, 2008)
  10. 1 2 3 "Comment te dire adieu", in various singles charts Lescharts.com (Retrieved October 3, 2008)
  11. ↑ Irish Single Chart Irishcharts.ie (Retrieved October 3, 2008)
  12. ↑ "Comment te dire adieu", UK Singles Chart Chartstats.com (Retrieved October 3, 2008)
  13. ↑ Star Academy fait sa Bamba, track listing and charts Lescharts.com (Retrieved October 3, 2008)

External links

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