Comment te dire adieu

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For the album of the same name, see Comment te dire adieu (album).
"Comment te dire adieu"
Single by Françoise Hardy
from the album Comment te dire adieu
B-side"L'Anamour"[1]
Released1968
RecordedStudio Pye, London, England
GenreFrench pop
Length4:39
LabelDisques Vogue
Songwriter(s)Serge Gainsbourg
Arnold Goland
Jack Gold
Producer(s)Production Asparagus
Alternative edition 1969
English edition's label of side A.[2]
Music video
"Comment te dire adieu" (French TV, 1969) on YouTube
Françoise Hardy
French edition
EP by
Françoise Hardy
Released1968
RecordedStudio Pye, London, England
GenrePop music
Length9:46
LabelDisques Vogue
ProducerProduction 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.[3] In 1967 a release by Vera Lynn reached No. 7 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart.[4][5]

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.[6] 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; collected in 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[edit]

French SP[edit]

  • Production Asparagus/Disques Vogue/Vogue international industries (V.45-1552), 1968.
    • A-side: "Comment te dire adieu" ("It Hurts to Say Goodbye"), (ad. lyrics from Jack Gold: Serge Gainsbourg / music: Arnold Goland, arr. S. Gainsbourg) – 2:25
    • B-side: "L'Anamour" (lyrics and music: Serge Gainsbourg) – 2:14

English SP[edit]

  • Asparagus Production/United Artists (UP 35011 ), 1969.
    • A-side: "Comment te dire adieu" ("It Hurts to Say Goodbye"), (ad. lyrics from Jack Gold: Serge Gainsbourg / music: Arnold Goland, arr. S. Gainsbourg) – 2:25
    • B-side: "La Mer, les étoiles et le vent" (lyrics and music: Françoise Hardy) – 1:50

French EP[edit]

  • Production Asparagus/disques Vogue/Vogue international industries (EPL 8652), 1968.
    • A1: "Comment te dire adieu" ("It Hurts to Say Goodbye"), (ad. lyrics from Jack Gold: Serge Gainsbourg / music: Arnold Goland, arr. S. Gainsbourg) – 2:25
    • A2: "Il vaut mieux une petite maison dans la main, qu'un grand château dans les nuages" (lyrics: Jean-Max Rivière / music: Gérard Bourgeois) – 2:23
    • B1: "Suzanne", (ad. lyrics from Leonard Cohen: Graeme Allwright / music: L. Cohen) – 3:08
    • B2: "La Mer, les étoiles et le vent" (lyrics and music: Françoise Hardy) – 1:50

Jimmy Somerville version[edit]

"Comment te dire adieu"
Single by Jimmy Somerville featuring June Miles-Kingston
from the album Read My Lips
B-side"Tell the World"
ReleasedOctober 1989
GenreHouse
Length3:35
LabelLondon
Songwriter(s)Serge Gainsbourg
Arnold Goland
Jack Gold
Producer(s)Pascal Gabriel
Jimmy Somerville singles chronology
"Comment te dire adieu"
(1989) 		"You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)"
(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".[7]

Track listing[edit]

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

Charts and certifications[edit]

Weekly charts[edit]

Chart (1989–1990) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[8] 122
South Australia (ARIA Charts)[9] 89
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[10] 23
Europe (European Airplay Top 50)[11] 6
Europe (European Hot 100)[12] 8
Europe (Pan-European Hot 100)[13] 13
France (SNEP)[14] 3
Germany (Official German Charts)[15] 25
Ireland (IRMA)[16] 3
Israel (IBA)[citation needed] 1
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[17] 26
UK Singles (OCC)[18] 14
UK Dance (Music Week)[19] 17

Year-end charts[edit]

Chart (1989) Position
France[20] 20
Chart (1990) Position
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[21] 60

Certifications[edit]

Certifications for "Comment te dire adieu"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
France (SNEP)[22] Silver 200,000*

* Sales figures based on certification alone.

In France, the single reportedly sold at least 250,000 copies.[20]

Kate Ryan version[edit]

"Comment te dire adieu"
Single by Kate Ryan
Released24 June 2016
GenreDance-pop, house
Length2:52
LabelCNR Music Belgium
Songwriter(s)Serge Gainsbourg, Arnold Goland, Jack Gold
Producer(s)Yves Gaillard, Amro
Kate Ryan singles chronology
"Wonderful Life"
(2016) 		"Comment te dire adieu"
(2016)
Audio video
"Comment te dire adieu" on YouTube

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".[23]

A music video accompanied the song, premiered via YouTube on 29 June 2016.[24]

Other cover versions[edit]

  • 1967: Walter Wanderley, a Brazilian organist, recorded an instrumental cover of the song on his album Batucada
  • 1967: Caravelli and his orchestra released an instrumental version on the album Eloïse
  • 1969: Anni-Frid Lyngstad, later a member of ABBA, recorded the song in Swedish as Så synd du måste gå ("So sad you have to go"); it was also included on her 1972 album Anni-Frid Lyngstad
  • 1973: Czech recording by Hana Hegerová titled Rýmováni o životě ("Rhyming about life")
  • 1974: Russian version Моя мечта ("My dream") by Aida Vedishcheva
  • 1985: Jun Togawa recorded a Japanese version, さよならをおしえて (Sayonara wo oshiete, literally "Tell me goodbye")
  • 1987: Taxi Girl's frontman Daniel Darc, collected on Sous influence divine
  • 1996: Jane Birkin published an "arabesque version" on her album Versions Jane
  • 1996: Brave Combo recorded the song as "A Way to Say Goodbye" on their album Kiss of Fire, with a new English lyric by guest vocalist Lauren Agnelli.
  • 1999: A new Czech version by Ilona Csáková titled Jedno Tajemství ("A Secret") featured on the album Blízká i vzdálená
  • 2001: A cover arranged by Tomosuke Funaki, and sung by Shizue Tokui (as Orange Lounge), appeared in beatmania IIDX 6th style
  • 2003: French cover by Annie and Valérie, two contestants of Star Academy 3 and included on the album Star Academy fait sa bamba[25]
  • 2008: Instrumental guitar band from Finland, Agents arranged the song for their instrumental album Agents... Is Beat!
  • 2009: Amanda Lear recorded her version for her album Brief Encounters.
  • 2010: Cover by Satanicpornocultshop in their album Arkhaiomelisidonophunikheratos
  • 2011: A cover of the French version with the lyrics sung by Berry was released by Germany's Blank & Jones on their album Relax Edition Six
  • 2012: Meg, a Japanese singer, covered the song in French for her album La Japonaise
  • 2012: English cover by Julian Ovenden
  • 2012: French/Italian cover by LaCalani[26]
  • 2020: Covered by Pomplamoose[27]
  • 2021: Cover by Reni Jusis featured on her album Je suis Reni[28]

Usage in film and television[edit]

  • 2018: A Simple Favor
  • 2014: Falling Star ("Stella cadente" / Spain) / "Comment te dire adieu"
  • 2013: Coming out (Hungary) / "It hurts to say goodbye" (Saxophone version)
  • 2009: The Island Inside ("La isla interior" / Spain) / "Comment te dir adieu"
  • 2004: Ferpect Crime ("Crimen ferpecto" / Spain/Italy) / "Comment te dire adieu"
  • 1987: Mournful Unconcern ("Скорбное бесчувствие" / Soviet Union)
  • 1972: A Revolta dos Anjos ("Revolt of the Angels / TV Series/Brazil) / "Comment te dire adieu"

References[edit]

  1. ^ Serge Gainsbourg Archived 2009-05-28 at the Wayback Machine, biography, RFI Musique. Accessed on line May 7, 2009.
  2. ^ On this label there is a mistake in the firstname of one of the authors of the song; we should read A. Goland instead of G. Goland.
  3. ^ "Cover versions of It Hurts to Say Goodbye by Margaret Whiting". SecondHandSongs.com. Retrieved 2016-10-01.
  4. ^ Vera Lynn - Billboard Singles, Allmusic. Accessed on line May 5, 2009.
  5. ^ "Original versions of It Hurts to Say Goodbye by Vera Lynn". SecondHandSongs.com. 1967-01-06. Retrieved 2016-10-01.
  6. ^ Serge Gainsbourg: a fistful of gitanes: requiem for a twister, Sylvie Simmons, Da Capo Press, 2002, p. 50 ISBN 0-306-81183-9.
  7. ^ Giles, David (11 November 1989). "Singles" (PDF). Music Week. p. 47 in the PDF. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
  8. ^ "Bubbling Down Under – Australian singles chart peaks beyond the top 100: A journey through flop". Bubbling Down Under. 11 December 2020. bubblingdownunder.com. Retrieved 9 June 2021. Comment Te Dire Adieu" by Jimmy Somerville featuring June Miles Kingston. Peak: number 122 (see section 'Top 150 debuts')
  9. ^ Bubbling Down Under
  10. ^ "Jimmy Somerville Feat. June Miles Kingston – Comment te dire adieu" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 17 October 2021.
  11. ^ European Airplay Top 50
  12. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 7, no. 7. 17 February 1990. p. IV-V. OCLC 29800226. Retrieved 16 October 2021 – via World Radio History.
  13. ^ "Pan-Eurochart Chart – Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Billboard. 10 February 1990. p. 74. Retrieved 9 July 2023 – via World Radio History.
  14. ^ "Jimmy Somerville Feat. June Miles Kingston – Comment te dire adieu" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 17 October 2021.
  15. ^ "Comment te dire adieu", German Singles Chart Lescharts.com (Retrieved October 3, 2008)
  16. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Comment te dire adieu". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 17 October 2021.
  17. ^ "Jimmy Somerville Feat. June Miles Kingston – Comment te dire adieu" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 17 October 2021.
  18. ^ "Comment te dire adieu", UK Singles Chart Official Charts Company (Retrieved October 3, 2008)
  19. ^ "Top Dance Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 25 November 1989. p. 32. Retrieved 30 August 2023 – via World Radio History.
  20. ^ a b "TOP – 1989". Top-france.fr (in French). Retrieved 3 July 2023.
  21. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 of 1990" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 7, no. 51. 22 December 1990. p. 60. OCLC 29800226. Retrieved 15 January 2020 – via American Radio History.
  22. ^ "InfoDisc : Les Certifications Officielles d'un Artiste (Depuis 1973)". infodisc.fr (in French). Retrieved 17 October 2021. Select "Jimmy Somerville feat. June Miles Kingston" from the drop-down menu and click "OK".
  23. ^ ultratop.be - Kate Ryan - Comment te dire adieu
  24. ^ Kate Ryan - Comment Te Dire Adieu - YouTube
  25. ^ Star Academy fait sa Bamba, track listing and charts Lescharts.com (Retrieved October 3, 2008)
  26. ^ "LaCalani - Comment te Dire Adieu? (Audio Alcalina Edit)". YouTube.
  27. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Comment te dire adieu | Françoise Hardy | Pomplamoose". YouTube.
  28. ^ Comment Te Dire Adieu · Reni Jusis

External links[edit]

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