"Le Moribond" | |
---|---|
![]() 7" vinyl single cover | |
Song by Jacques Brel | |
from the album Marieke | |
Released | 1961 |
Recorded | 22 February 1961 |
Genre | Chanson |
Length | 3:06 |
Label | Philips |
Songwriter(s) | Jacques Brel |
"Seasons in the Sun" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() German 7" vinyl cover | ||||
Single by Terry Jacks | ||||
from the album Seasons in the Sun | ||||
B-side | "Put the Bone In" | |||
Released | December 1973 | |||
Recorded | 1973 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:24 | |||
Label | Bell | |||
Songwriter(s) | Jacques Brel, Rod McKuen | |||
Producer(s) | Terry Jacks | |||
Terry Jacks singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Audio | ||||
"Seasons in the Sun" on YouTube |
"Seasons in the Sun" is an English-language adaptation of the 1961 Belgian song "Le Moribond" ("The Dying Man") by singer-songwriter Jacques Brel [2] with lyrics rewritten in 1963 by singer-poet Rod McKuen [3] portraying a dying man's farewell to his loved ones. It became a worldwide hit in 1974 for singer Terry Jacks and became a Christmas number one in the UK in 1999 for Westlife.
The first version of the song was recorded by Brel. Set to a marching rhythm, it tells of a man dying of a broken heart and shows him saying his last farewells first to his close friend Emile, then to a priest, next to an acquaintance named Antoine, and finally to his wife, who has cheated on him numerous times with Antoine. Despite knowing of Antoine being his wife's lover, he wishes no ill upon him but tells him to take care of his wife. American Rod McKuen translated the lyrics into English. In 1964, the Kingston Trio first recorded an English version of "Seasons in the Sun", which was later heard by Terry Jacks and became the basis for his rendition.
Jacks changed nearly one sixth part of McKuen's lyrics, later claiming all of the words were his. [4] He deemed the original version and its translations as "too macabre". The inspiration for the rewritten lyrics was his close friend Roger, who was suffering from acute leukemia and died four months later. The Terry Jacks rendition, which was later dedicated to the friend, has the dying man (in the spring season) giving his last words to his loved ones with whom he shared his life, much like the original. However, unlike the Brel version, the man does not die broken-hearted but instead, acknowledges the rights and wrongs of his actions in life as he passes away peacefully.
In the rewritten version, the man first addresses a close friend whom he had known since childhood and reminisces about the happy times they had, such as playing and studying together ("climbed hills and trees", "learned of love and ABC's") and friendships with others ("skinned our hearts and skinned our knees"). He then addresses his father, who tried to give him a good upbringing and exert a positive influence on his undisciplined life ("I was the black sheep of the family", "You tried to teach me right from wrong", "wonder how I got along") which included overindulgence, vices, and revelry ("too much wine and too much song"). The man finally addresses a "little one" named "Michelle", recounting how she had lifted his spirit up in times of despair. At the end of each verse, the man reminds all three that he is always present in spirit when they visit places or see people. [5]
According to Jacks, the Beach Boys asked him to be their producer during the sessions for the band's album Surf's Up . On 31 July 1970, they attempted a rendition of the "Seasons in the Sun", but the session went badly, and the track was never finished. Afterwards, Mike Love told an interviewer: "We did record a version [of 'Seasons'] but it was so wimpy we had to throw it out. ... It was just the wrong song for us." [6] The recording remained unreleased until the 2021 compilation Feel Flows . [7]
Jacks recorded his rendition in Vancouver in 1973.[ citation needed ] The piano arpeggio parts and double bass parts in the second verse were done by a young David Foster. [8]
Jacks released his version as a single in 1973 on his own label, Goldfish Records. "Put the Bone In", an original composition about burying a deceased pet dog, was included as the B-side. The single soon topped the record charts in the US (where it was released on Bell Records), in Canada, and the UK, [9] selling over 14 million copies worldwide. [10]
Jacks's version was released in the United States in December 1973 and made the Billboard Hot 100 a month later. On 2 March 1974, the song began a three-week run at number one atop the Hot 100 and remained in the top 40 until almost Memorial Day weekend. Jacks's version also spent one week on the Easy Listening charts. [11] Billboard ranked it as the number two song for 1974. [12] Although he released several other singles that were moderately successful in Canada, "Seasons in the Sun" would become Jacks's only major solo hit in the United States. [13] In Canada, the single (Gold Fish GF 100) reached number one on the RPM magazine charts 26 January 1974, and remained there four weeks.
Though the song enjoyed contemporary success, some modern critics take a dimmer view, considering it overly sentimentalized. Jacks's version has been held up as an example of bad music, such as having been listed as one of the worst pop songs ever recorded and ranking number five in a similar CNN poll in 2006. [14]
Jacks also released a German-language version in Germany with lyrics by Gerd Müller-Schwanke, "In den Gärten der Zeit". [15]
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
All-time charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Canada | — | 312,000 [47] |
France | — | 300,000 [48] |
United Kingdom (BPI) [49] | Gold | 500,000^ |
United States (RIAA) [50] | Gold | 3,000,000 [51] |
Summaries | ||
Worldwide | — | 8,000,000 [52] |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
"Seasons in the Sun" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by Westlife | ||||
from the album Westlife | ||||
A-side |
| |||
Released | 13 December 1999 [53] | |||
Studio | PWL Studios (London) | |||
Length | 4:06 | |||
Label | BMG | |||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) | TTW | |||
Westlife singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Music video | ||||
"Seasons in the Sun" on YouTube |
Irish boy band Westlife released a cover of "Seasons in the Sun" in December 1999, as a double A-side with "I Have a Dream" and as a triple A-side in Australia with both "I Have a Dream" and "Flying Without Wings" included. [54] The release became the UK's Christmas number-one single of 1999, beating Cliff Richard's charity single "The Millennium Prayer" into the No. 2 spot, and also became the group's fourth UK number-one single. It then extended its peak into January 2000, spending a total of 17 weeks on the UK chart. [55] The song was the 26th best-selling single of 1999 in the UK and it was also the final number one single of the 1990s.
Chart (1999–2000) | Peak position |
---|---|
Czech Republic (IFPI) [56] | 25 |
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100) [57] | 7 |
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista) [58] | 10 |
Germany (Official German Charts) [59] | 24 |
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40) [60] | 13 |
Ireland (IRMA) [61] | 1 |
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) [62] | 10 |
Norway (VG-lista) [63] | 10 |
Scotland (OCC) [64] | 1 |
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan) [65] | 15 |
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade) [66] | 18 |
UK Singles (OCC) [55] | 1 |
There were actually 3 different versions released in the UK in 1974, two of which were on the BELL label. At least two (including the Terry Jacks version), and possibly all three, charted.
"Flying Without Wings" is a song by Irish boy band Westlife, released on 18 October 1999 as the third single from their self-titled debut studio album (1999). It is the band's fourth-best-selling single on both paid-for and combined sales in the United Kingdom as of January 2019.
Terrence Ross Jacks is a Canadian singer, songwriter, guitarist and record producer known for his 1974 hit song "Seasons in the Sun", an English adaptation of a song written by Belgian composer and singer Jacques Brel in 1961. Jacks is also an environmental activist, focused on pulp mill emissions in Howe Sound.
"Delta Dawn" is a song written by musician Larry Collins and country songwriter Alex Harvey. The first notable recording of the song was in 1971 by American singer and actress Bette Midler for her debut album "The Divine Miss M". However it is best known as a 1972 top ten country hit for Tanya Tucker and a 1973 US number one hit for Helen Reddy.
"Uptown Girl" is a song written and performed by American musician Billy Joel from his ninth studio album An Innocent Man (1983), released in September 1983 as the album's second single. The lyrics describe a working-class "downtown man" attempting to woo a wealthy "uptown girl". The 12" EP has the tracks "My Life", "Just the Way You Are" and "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me", whereas some 7" single versions featured "Careless Talk" as a B-side.
"The Rose" is a pop song written by Amanda McBroom. The Melody is actually taken from Felix Mendelssohn’s. The melody was subsequently arranged by Robert Lowry for popular use, entitled CYMRAEG, and is usually associated with the hymn, "Here Is Love, Vast As the Ocean." Bette Midler made the song famous when she recorded it for her 1979 film The Rose, in which it plays during the closing credits. It has been recorded multiple times, including by Conway Twitty and Westlife who had US Country & Western and UK number one hits with the song, respectively. Nana Mouskouri recorded a German version, also in 1980, as well as an English version.
"Gimme Little Sign" is a 1967 soul song, originally performed by Brenton Wood and written by Wood, Joe Hooven and Jerry Winn. The charted versions were by Wood, Peter Andre, the Sattalites, and Danielle Brisebois.
"You Raise Me Up" is a song composed by Rolf Løvland and written by Brendan Graham. It was first recorded by Secret Garden, in collaboration with Brian Kennedy. Although the original version was not a major hit, the song has since been recorded by more than a hundred other artists, most notably American singer Josh Groban in 2003 and Irish group Westlife in 2005.
"I Have a Dream" is a song by Swedish pop group ABBA. It was released in December 1979 as the sixth and final single from the group's sixth studio album, Voulez-Vous. Anni-Frid Lyngstad sang lead vocals. It was a major hit, topping the charts in many countries and peaking at No. 2 in the UK over the Christmas week of 1979. Twenty years later, Irish pop group Westlife released a version that reached No. 1 in the UK over the Christmas week of 1999.
"Brandy", later called "Mandy", is a song written by Scott English and Richard Kerr. It was originally recorded by English in 1971 and reached the top 20 of the UK Singles Chart.
"If You Go Away" is an adaptation of the 1959 Jacques Brel song "Ne me quitte pas" with English lyrics by Rod McKuen. Created as part of a larger project to translate Brel's work, "If You Go Away" is considered a pop standard and has been recorded by many artists, including Greta Keller, for whom some say McKuen wrote the lyrics.
"Baby I'm Yours" is a song written by Van McCoy which was a hit in 1965 for Barbara Lewis, the original recording artist. The song was featured in the 1995 film The Bridges of Madison County and was included on the soundtrack album. It was also featured in the TV movies The Midnight Hour (1985) and An American Crime (2007), as well as being briefly featured in Baby Driver.
"Swear It Again" is a song by Irish boy band Westlife. The ballad was released on 19 April 1999 in the United Kingdom as the first single from their debut album, Westlife (1999). The song peaked at number one on the UK Singles Chart for two weeks, giving Westlife their first of 14 UK number-one singles. "Swear It Again" is Westlife's only single to have charted in the US, peaking at number 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 and ranking number 75 on the Billboard Hot 100 year-end chart in 2000.
"Before the Next Teardrop Falls" is an American country and pop song written by Vivian Keith and Ben Peters, and most famously recorded by Freddy Fender. His version was a major crossover success in 1975, reaching number 1 on the Billboard pop and country charts.
"Butterfly Kisses" is a song written by Bob Carlisle and Randy Thomas from Carlisle's third studio album Butterfly Kisses . The song was written for Carlisle's daughter Brooke's 16th birthday. Carlisle also wrote a journal, Butterfly Kisses for Fathers and Their Daughters. The last track of the Butterfly Kisses is a country version of the song, where instruments like the Pedal Steel Guitar and Fiddle are added as instruments. There have been many cover versions of the song including Raybon Brothers, Jeff Carson, Westlife and Cliff Richard.
"What About Now" is the seventh single from American rock band Daughtry's self-titled debut album. The song is a ballad, that was written by Ben Moody, David Hodges, and Josh Hartzler, who is married to Amy Lee. It is one of only two songs on the album not at least co-written by Chris Daughtry. The song was announced as the band's next single on their website. It was officially released in the U.S. on July 1, 2008.
"Jean" is a popular song from the 1969 movie The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie. It was written by the American poet and composer Rod McKuen, who also recorded a version of the song.
"Danny's Song" is a song written by American singer-songwriter Kenny Loggins, as a gift for his brother Danny for the birth of his son, Colin. It first appeared on an album by Gator Creek and a year later on the album Sittin' In, the debut album by Loggins and Messina. The song is well remembered for both the Loggins and Messina original, as well as for Anne Murray's 1972 top-ten-charting cover.
"Miss You Nights" is a song written by Dave Townsend and made famous worldwide by Cliff Richard. The song has been recorded by numerous other artists, most notably Westlife, who released it as the second track on a double A-side single in 2003. The Westlife single reached number 3 in the UK singles chart.
The Way We Were is the thirty-second studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams, released in the spring of 1974 by Columbia Records and was a return to singing songs that his audience was already familiar with after Solitaire, his previous LP that was less reliant on covers of recent pop hits, did not perform well.
"Rock and Roll (I Gave You the Best Years of My Life)" is a 1973 song written and originally performed by Australian singer Kevin Johnson, most famously covered by American singer Mac Davis.
My first experience with Brel consisted of doing an unauthorized adaptation of 'Le Moribund', which I called 'Seasons in the Sun'... I subsequently learned that Brel had received my recording...
Bell Records pickep up the rights for U.S.A. an it sold over three million there alone.