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Kiss and Say Goodbye

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This article is about the Manhattans song. For the song of the same title by Kate & Anna McGarrigle, see Kate & Anna McGarrigle (album).
"Kiss and Say Goodbye"
Song
B-side"Wonderful World Of Love" [1]

"Kiss and Say Goodbye" is a 1976 song by popular American R&B vocal group The Manhattans, written by group member Winfred Lovett. It was recorded for the album The Manhattans, released in 1976 by Columbia Records. It was one of the biggest hits of the year.

Background and recording

The song was written by Manhattans bass singer Winfred "Blue" Lovett, who also provided the spoken introduction heard in the full-length version of the original recording. The lyrics and melody came to him late one night. As he later recalled, "Everything was there. I got up about three o'clock in the morning and jotted down the things I wanted to say. I just put the words together on my tape recorder and little piano. I've always thought that when you write slow songs, they have to have meaning. In this case, it's the love triangle situation we've all been through. I figured anyone who's been in love could relate to it. And it seemed to touch home for a lot of folks."[3]

Lovett originally considered the song a country tune more appropriate to be sung by Glen Campbell or Charley Pride. He decided to do it with his group. Manhattans lead singer Gerald Alston is featured on the originally released recording following Lovett's spoken introduction.

The original demo of the song was recorded with The Manhattans backing band, "Little Harlem." After hearing a tape of the recording, producer/arranger Bobby Martin decided to re-record the song with MFSB at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia. Recorded in early 1975, Columbia Records officials withheld releasing the song until 14 months later. Lovett had his concerns over when the record came out as well as the record itself. "I was critical, a perfectionist in the studio, and there are still parts of it that make my skin crawl. For example, in one place, the background vocals go off pitch. Somehow, though, that didn't seem to bother anyone else."[3]

Chart performance

Released as a single, the song became a worldwide hit for the group, spending two weeks at number one on the U.S. Pop and U.S. R&B charts.[4] and reaching number four on the UK Singles Chart in the middle of 1976. In the U.S., the song was the 400th #1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart. It also became just the second single to earn platinum certification status, after the RIAA established the designation in 1976. (Johnnie Taylor's "Disco Lady" had been the first a few months earlier.) Billboard ranked it as the No. 6 song for 1976.

Besides being the first and only No. 1 pop hit for the Manhattans, "Kiss and Say Goodbye" marked more than 11 years since the group first made the Billboard Hot 100 in 1965 with "I Wanna Be (Your Everything)."

Weekly charts

Chart (1976) Peak
position
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40) [5] 3
Belgium (Ultratop) [6] 1
Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM) [7] 26
Canada Top Singles (RPM) [8] 7
France (IFOP) [9] 30
Germany (GfK Entertainment) [10] 10
Ireland (Irish Charts) [11] 7
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) [12] 1
Netherlands (Single Top 100) [13] 1
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) [14] 1
Norway (VG-lista) [15] 11
South Africa (Springbok Radio) [16] 12
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan) [17] 7
Switzerland (Swiss Hitparade) [18] 7
UK Singles (Official Charts) [19] 4
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard) [20] 12
US R&B Chart (Billboard) [21] 1
US Top 100 R&B (Cash Box) [22] 1
US The R&B Singles (Record World) [23] 1
US The Hot 100 (Billboard) [24] 1
US The Singles Chart (Record World) [25] 1
US Top 100 Singles (Cash Box) [26] 1

Personnel

  • Lead Vocal - Gerald Alston
  • Spoken voice on intro - Winifred Lovett
  • Music played (uncredited) by MFSB
  • Background Vocals (uncredited) - The Manhattans, Barbara Ingram, Evette Benton, Carla Benson

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g 45cat. "The Manhattans - Kiss And Say Goodbye / Wonderful World Of Love 7" (1976)". Retrieved March 14, 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ a b Discogs. "The Manhattans ‎– The Manhattans (1976)". Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  3. ^ a b ""Kiss and Say Goodbye" - The Manhattans". Superseventies.com. 1976-07-24. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
  4. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 375.
  5. ^ "THE MANHATTANS - KISS AND SAY GOODBYE". austriancharts.at. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  6. ^ "THE MANHATTANS - KISS AND SAY GOODBYE". ultratop.be. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  7. ^ Library and Archives Canada. "RPM Adult Contemporary" (PDF). Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  8. ^ Library and Archives Canada. "RPM Top Singles" (PDF). Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  9. ^ "Le Détail par Artiste" (in French). InfoDisc. Select "MANHATTANS" from the artist drop-down menu. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  10. ^ "THE MANHATTANS - KISS AND SAY GOODBYE". offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  11. ^ "Title: KISS AND SAY GOODBYE - Artist: THE MANHATTANS". irishcharts.ie. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  12. ^ "The Manhattans - Top 40-hits". Top 40. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  13. ^ "THE MANHATTANS - KISS AND SAY GOODBYE". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  14. ^ "THE MANHATTANS - KISS AND SAY GOODBYE (SONG)". charts.org.nz. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  15. ^ "THE MANHATTANS - KISS AND SAY GOODBYE (SONG)". norwegiancharts.com. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  16. ^ "South African Rock Lists Website SA Charts 1969 – 1989 Acts (M)". Rock.co.za. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  17. ^ "THE MANHATTANS - KISS AND SAY GOODBYE (SONG)". swedishcharts.com. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  18. ^ "THE MANHATTAN - KISS AND SAY GOODBYE". hitparade.ch. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  19. ^ The Official UK Charts Company. "MANHATTANS - Chart History (UK Charts Songs)". Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  20. ^ Billboard. "THE MANHATTANS - Adult Contemporary Songs". Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  21. ^ Billboard. "THE MANHATTANS - Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  22. ^ Cash Box Magazine. "CASH BOX Top 100 R&B" (PDF). Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  23. ^ AmericanRadioHistory. "Record World The R&B Singles" (PDF). Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  24. ^ Billboard. "THE MANHATTANS - The Hot 100 Songs". Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  25. ^ AmericanRadioHistory. "Record World The Singles Chart" (PDF). Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  26. ^ Cash Box Magazine. "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles" (PDF). Retrieved March 14, 2018.

External links

Preceded by Billboard Hot Soul Singles number-one single
May 22, 1976 (one week) 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Billboard Hot 100 number-one single
July 24, 1976 – July 31, 1976 (two weeks) 		Succeeded by
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