Heartbreaker (Dionne Warwick song)

Last updated
"Heartbreaker"
Heartbreaker (Dionne Warwick song).jpg
Single by Dionne Warwick
from the album Heartbreaker
B-side "I Can't See Anything (But You)"
ReleasedSeptember 1982
Studio
Length4:16
Label Arista
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s) Gibb-Galuten-Richardson
Dionne Warwick singles chronology
"For You"
(1982)
"Heartbreaker"
(1982)
"Take the Short Way Home"
(1983)

"Heartbreaker" is a song performed by American singer Dionne Warwick. It was written by Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb of the Bee Gees for her 1982 studio album of the same name, while production was helmed by Barry Gibb, Albhy Galuten and Karl Richardson under their production moniker Gibb-Galuten-Richardson. Barry Gibb's backing vocal is heard on the chorus.

Contents

The song reached the top ten in over a dozen countries and stands as one of Warwick's biggest career hits, selling an estimated 4 million singles worldwide. In the U.S., it peaked at number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in January 1983. The track was Warwick's eighth number one Adult Contemporary hit and reached number 14 on the Hot Black Singles chart. [1] It was ranked as Billboard magazine's 80th-biggest US hit of 1983. On the UK Singles Chart, the track reached number 2 in November 1982.

Background

"Heartbreaker" was written by Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb of the Bee Gees for singer Dionne Warwick's same-titled album. The song blended the Gibb brothers' two schools of songwriting: it has the clear verse and chorus structure favored by Robin and Maurice, yet also has the longer spun-out verses Barry now preferred, both well balanced. The melody is reminiscent of "Living Eyes", but the song has a much stronger forward motion. Maurice said later that he wished they had saved it for themselves. [2] The Bee Gees' demo version, sung by Barry, was not released until 2006 when it appeared on The Heartbreaker Demos (2006), the group's demo album of Warwick's album. [3]

Warwick admitted in The Billboard Book of Number One Adult Contemporary Hits by Wesley Hyatt that she was not fond of "Heartbreaker" (regarding the song's international popularity, she quipped, "I cried all the way to the bank"), but recorded it because she trusted the Bee Gees' judgment that it would be a hit. [4] Maurice Gibb, who co-wrote the song, commented, "I cried my eyes out after we wrote it. I drove home and thought, 'We should be doing this one', and when she did it, it was brilliant. We sang on it, and it still became like a duet between the Bee Gees and Dionne Warwick". [5]

Cover versions

The Bee Gees' own version, with Barry Gibb on lead vocals, was recorded in 1994. It was originally planned for an album called Love Songs to be released in 1995, but was eventually released in 2001 on Their Greatest Hits: The Record . [6] "Heartbreaker" was originally recorded as a single released on the Yep Roc label in 2019. Later it was released on a full length (Walkabout) originally released in Australia to commemorate their tour of the continent. Eventually it was released for the rest of the world as well.

Track listings

All tracks produced by Gibb-Galuten-Richardson.

7-inch single
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Heartbreaker"
  • Barry Gibb
  • Robin Gibb
  • Maurice Gibb
4:16
2."I Can't See Anything (But You)"
3:24

Charts

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bee Gees</span> British-Australian music group (1958–2012)

The Bee Gees were a musical group formed in 1958 by brothers Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio were especially successful in popular music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later as prominent performers in the disco music era in the mid- to late 1970s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barry Gibb</span> English musician (born 1946)

Sir Barry Alan Crompton Gibb is a British musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. He rose to worldwide fame as a member of the Bee Gees, with his younger brothers, Robin and Maurice Gibb, one of the most commercially successful groups in the history of popular music. Gibb's career has spanned over 60 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Night Fever</span> 1978 single by the Bee Gees

"Night Fever" is a song written and performed by the Bee Gees. It first appeared on the soundtrack to Saturday Night Fever on RSO Records. Producer Robert Stigwood wanted to call the film Saturday Night, but singer Robin Gibb expressed hesitation at the title. Stigwood liked the title Night Fever but was wary of marketing a movie with that name. The song bounded up the Billboard charts while the Bee Gees’ two previous hits from Saturday Night Fever soundtrack were still in the top ten. The record debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart at #76, then leaped up 44 positions to #32. It then moved: 32–17–8–5–2–1. It remained at #1 for eight weeks, and ultimately spent 13 weeks in the top 10. For the first five weeks that "Night Fever" was at #1, "Stayin' Alive" was at #2. Also, for one week in March, Bee Gees related songs held five of the top positions on the Hot 100 chart, and more impressively, four of the top five positions, with "Night Fever" at the top of the list. The B-side of "Night Fever" was a live version of "Down the Road" taken from the Bee Gees 1977 album, Here at Last... Bee Gees... Live.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alone (Bee Gees song)</span> 1997 single by Bee Gees

"Alone" is a song by musical group the Bee Gees. The ballad, written by Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb, is the opening track on their 21st studio album, Still Waters (1997), and was the first single released from the album on 17 February 1997. In the United Kingdom, the song was backed with two B-sides: "Closer Than Close" and "Rings Around the Moon", while in the United States, a live version of "Stayin' Alive" was included on the single releases.

<i>Their Greatest Hits: The Record</i> 2001 compilation album by the Bee Gees

Their Greatest Hits: The Record is the career retrospective greatest hits album by the Bee Gees, released on UTV Records and Polydor in November 2001 as HDCD. The album includes 40 tracks spanning over 35 years of music. Four of the songs were new recordings of classic Gibb compositions originally recorded by other artists, including "Emotion", "Heartbreaker", "Islands in the Stream", and "Immortality". It also features the Barry Gibb duet with Barbra Streisand, "Guilty", which originally appeared on Streisand's 1980 album of the same name. It is currently out of print and has been supplanted by another compilation, The Ultimate Bee Gees.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">How Deep Is Your Love (Bee Gees song)</span> 1977 single by Bee Gees

"How Deep Is Your Love" is a pop ballad written and recorded by the Bee Gees in 1977 and released as a single in September of that year. It was ultimately used as part of the soundtrack to the film Saturday Night Fever. It was a number-three hit in the United Kingdom and Australia. In the United States, it topped the Billboard Hot 100 on 25 December 1977 and stayed in the Top 10 for 17 weeks. It spent six weeks atop the US adult contemporary chart. It is listed at No. 27 on Billboard's All Time Top 100. Alongside "Stayin' Alive" and "Night Fever", it is one of the group's three tracks on the list. The song was covered by Take That for their 1996 Greatest Hits album, reaching No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart for three weeks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">All the Love in the World (Dionne Warwick song)</span> 1982 single by Dionne Warwick

"All the Love in the World" is a song by Dionne Warwick, released as a single in 1982. It was written by the Bee Gees, and was featured on Warwick's hit album Heartbreaker, produced by Barry Gibb, Karl Richardson, and Albhy Galuten. Barry Gibb provides backing vocals on the track. It was Warwick's third single from the album, behind "Heartbreaker" and "Take the Short Way Home". The song just missed the Billboard Hot 100 in the US, but charted at number 16 on the US Adult Contemporary Chart and at number 10 on the UK Singles Chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Albhy Galuten</span> American songwriter

Albhy Galuten is an American technology executive and futurist, Grammy Award-winning record producer, composer, musician, orchestrator and conductor. He has numerous inventions and has produced 18 number 1 singles with songs and albums selling over 100,000,000 copies. He has won two Grammy Awards, a Dramalogue award, and a BMI Citation of Achievement.

<i>Eaten Alive</i> (album) 1985 studio album by Diana Ross

Eaten Alive is the sixteenth studio album by American R&B singer Diana Ross, released on September 24, 1985, by RCA Records in the United States, with EMI Records distributing elsewhere. It was Ross' fifth of six albums released by the label during the decade. Primarily written and produced by Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees, with co-writing from his brothers Andy, Maurice, and Robin, the album also includes a contribution from Ross' friend Michael Jackson who co-wrote and performed on the title track.

<i>Eyes That See in the Dark</i> 1983 studio album by Kenny Rogers

Eyes That See in the Dark is the fifteenth studio album by American country singer Kenny Rogers, released by RCA Nashville in August 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Living Eyes (song)</span> 1981 single by Bee Gees

"Living Eyes" is a power ballad recorded by the Bee Gees and was released in November 1981 as the second single and title track off the LP of the same name. It was written by Barry, Robin & Maurice Gibb. The sound of this single was closer musically to the rest of the album than its predecessor, "He's a Liar".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Just Want to Be Your Everything</span> 1977 single by Andy Gibb

"I Just Want to Be Your Everything" is a song recorded by Andy Gibb, initially released in April 1977 as the first single from his debut album Flowing Rivers. It reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks, starting on the week ending 30 July 1977, and again for the week ending 17 September 1977. It was Gibb's first single released in the United Kingdom and United States. His previous single, "Words and Music" was only released in Australia. It is ranked number 26 on Billboard's 55th anniversary All Time Top 100.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guilty (Barbra Streisand and Barry Gibb song)</span> 1980 vocal duet

"Guilty" is a vocal duet between Barbra Streisand and Barry Gibb. The song was written by all three Bee Gees: Barry, Robin & Maurice Gibb. Released as a single from Streisand's 1980 album of the same name. "Guilty" peaked at No. 3 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. 5 on the adult contemporary chart. In the UK, the song reached No. 34 on the UK Singles Chart. The single was certified gold by the RIAA. In addition, "Guilty" won a Grammy Award in the category Best Pop Vocal Performance, Duo or Group. The song also appeared on the 2001 Bee Gees compilation, Their Greatest Hits: The Record.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Run to Me (Bee Gees song)</span> 1972 single by Bee Gees

"Run to Me" is a song by the Bee Gees, the lead single from the group's album To Whom It May Concern (1972). The song reached the UK Top 10 and the US Top 20.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">What Kind of Fool</span> 1981 single by Barbra Streisand and Barry Gibb

"What Kind of Fool" is a 1981 vocal duet by singers Barbra Streisand and Barry Gibb. The song was written by Gibb and Albhy Galuten. Released as the third single from Streisand's album Guilty (1980), "What Kind of Fool" was the third consecutive top ten single from the album in the United States. "Woman in Love" reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and the album's title track reached number three, both in late 1980. "What Kind of Fool" spent three weeks at number ten on the Hot 100 in March and April 1981. It also spent four weeks atop the Billboard adult contemporary chart.

<i>Heartbreaker</i> (Dionne Warwick album) 1982 studio album by Dionne Warwick

Heartbreaker is a studio album by American singer Dionne Warwick. It was released by Arista Records on September 28, 1982, in the United States. Her fourth album with the label, it was largely written by the Bee Gees, and produced by band member Barry Gibb along with Karl Richardson and Albhy Galuten; Gibb and Galuten also served as musicians on the album. Warwick recorded the songs on Heartbreaker during the spring of 1982.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">(Our Love) Don't Throw It All Away</span> Song by Andy Gibb

"(Our Love) Don't Throw It All Away" is a song penned by Barry Gibb and Blue Weaver and recorded by the Bee Gees in 1977 on the Saturday Night Fever sessions but was not released until Bee Gees Greatest (1979). A different version was released in September 1978 as the third single by Andy Gibb from his second studio album Shadow Dancing.

<i>The Eyes That See in the Dark Demos</i> 2006 demo album by Barry Gibb

The Eyes That See in the Dark Demos is a demo version of the album by Barry Gibb. Originally circulating on tape among collectors and later also on CD the album saw a legitimate and wide release on iTunes in October 2006. Maurice Gibb contributed bass, guitar and synthesizer and Robin Gibb contributed background vocals on some songs in this demo album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eyes That See in the Dark (song)</span> 1983 single by Kenny Rogers

"Eyes That See in the Dark" is a song written by Barry and Maurice Gibb in 1982. It was performed by Kenny Rogers for his 1983 album of the same name. It reached #30 in the US Country Charts, #4 in the US Adult Contemporary Charts, #61 in the United Kingdom and #79 in the Billboard Hot 100.

Gibb-Galuten-Richardson were a British-American record producing team, consisting of Bee Gees founding member and British singer-songwriter Barry Gibb, American musician and songwriter Albhy Galuten and American sound engineer Karl Richardson. They produced albums and singles for Andy Gibb, Samantha Sang, Frankie Valli, Teri DeSario, Barbra Streisand, Dionne Warwick, Kenny Rogers, Dolly Parton and Diana Ross.

References

  1. Whitburn, Joel (2007). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–2006. Record Research. p. 254.
  2. "Gibb Songs : 1982". Columbia.edu. Retrieved 2012-09-02.
  3. "Barry Gibb – The Heartbreaker Demos". Apple Music . Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  4. Wesley Hyatt, The Billboard Book of Number One Adult Contemporary Hits (NY: Billboard Books, 1997); ISBN   9780823076932
  5. Hughes, Andrew (2009). The Bee Gees - Tales of the Brothers Gibb. ISBN   9780857120045 . Retrieved 15 February 2015.
  6. "Gibb Songs : 1994". Columbia.edu. Retrieved 2012-09-02.
  7. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.
  8. "Dionne Warwick – Heartbreaker" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
  9. "Dionne Warwick – Heartbreaker" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  10. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 6192." RPM . Library and Archives Canada.
  11. 1 2 "Danish Chart Archive - Singles 1979 - ____ (B.T./IFPI DK)". www.ukmix.org. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
  12. Timo (13 August 2015). "Sisältää hitin: Levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1960: Artistit W - WES". Sisältää hitin. Retrieved 2020-12-31.
  13. "InfoDisc : Les Tubes de chaque Artiste commençant par W" . Retrieved June 12, 2020.
  14. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Heartbreaker". Irish Singles Chart.
  15. Racca, Guido (2019). M&D Borsa Singoli 1960–2019 (in Italian). ISBN   9781093264906.
  16. "Nederlandse Top 40 – Dionne Warwick" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
  17. "Dionne Warwick – Heartbreaker" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  18. "Dionne Warwick – Heartbreaker". Top 40 Singles.
  19. "Dionne Warwick – Heartbreaker". VG-lista.
  20. "TOP 20 TMP Portugal - number one in the 80's airplay charts". www.laurentpons.com. Retrieved 2020-12-31.
  21. "SA Charts 1965–March 1989" . Retrieved 5 September 2018.
  22. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN   84-8048-639-2.
  23. "Dionne Warwick – Heartbreaker". Singles Top 100.
  24. "Dionne Warwick – Heartbreaker". Swiss Singles Chart.
  25. "Dionne Warwick: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
  26. "Dionne Warwick Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  27. "Dionne Warwick Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard.
  28. "Dionne Warwick Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard.
  29. "Cash Box Top 100 Singles – Week ending December 18, 1982". Cash Box magazine . Retrieved 2020-12-31.
  30. "Offiziellecharts.de – Dionne Warwick – Heartbreaker" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts.
  31. Chartsventes (2016-10-01). "World singles charts and sales TOP 50 in 58 countries: DIONNE WARWICK". World singles charts and sales TOP 50 in 58 countries. Retrieved 2020-07-25.
  32. "Jaaroverzichten 1982". Ultratop. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
  33. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1982". www.top40.nl. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
  34. "Jaaroverzichten - Single 1982". www.dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
  35. Rees, Dafydd; Lazell, Barry; Jones, Alan (1983). "The Top 100 UK Singles". Chart File Volume 2. London, England: Virgin Books. pp. 80–81. ISBN   0-907080-73-1.
  36. "Top 100 Year End Charts: 1982". Cashbox Magazine . Retrieved 2020-12-31.
  37. "Kent Music Report – National Top 100 Singles for 1983". Kent Music Report . Retrieved January 22, 2023 via Imgur.com.
  38. Steffen Hung. "Forum - Top 100 End of Year AMR Charts - 1980s (ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts)". Australian-charts.com. Archived from the original on 2014-10-06. Retrieved 2016-10-31.
  39. "Top 100 Hits of 1983/Top 100 Songs of 1983".
  40. "Top 100 Single-Jahrescharts". GfK Entertainment (in German). offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved 31 December 2020.