The Isley Brothers recorded it for their 2001 album Eternal.The single of it by Upside Down, a British boy band, charted at number 27 in the UK in 1996.Elkie Brooks released a version of the song on her album Pearls in 1981.The Brotherhood of Man included it on their 1980 album Sing 20 Number One Hits.The website SecondHandSongs lists over 130 covers of "If You Leave Me Now" by recording artists from around the world between 19, among them: Peter Cetera re-recorded "If You Leave Me Now" as a solo artist for his 1997 album You're the Inspiration: A Collection, and most recently recorded a duet version of the song with Italian vocalist, Filippa Giordano, for her 2018 album, Friends and Legends Duets.
Please, Don't Leave Me (Instrumental Mystery Mix) - 5:16.If You Leave Me Now (12" After Dark mix) - 5:13.If You Leave Me Now (Airplay Mix) - 3:53.Their cover version is also on the compilations Larry präsentiert: Neue Smash-Hits 93 (englisch: Larry presents: New Smash-Hits 93) und Maxi Dance Sensation 9. While the original is a ballad, the version of Chess is much more danceable and adapted to the state of dance music of the 1990s. In 1992, the German music group Chess covered the song and landed a modest success. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.Ĭhess versions "If You Leave Me Now" Chart performance Īll-time charts Chart (1958-2018) French horns played by Gene Sherry and George HydeĪccording to Mike Stahl, Chicago's live audio engineer during the 1970s, Terry Kath would always "quietly" walk off stage when the band was about to perform "If You Leave Me Now" because he was not present in the studio when the band recorded the song, and since he wasn't on the recording "he would never, ever play it live." However, recordings exist of Kath playing bass on the song during the band's 1977 tour.Jimmie Haskell – string, French horn orchestrations.James William Guercio – lead and rhythm acoustic guitar.Laudir de Oliveira – congas, shakers, finger cymbals, wind chimes.Robert Lamm – Fender Rhodes electric piano.Peter Cetera – lead and backing vocals, bass.Reception Ĭash Box said that it's "an excellent ballad," with "lushly colored" instrumentation and "carefully constructed" vocals. According to information on the sheet music for the song at MusicNotes, "If You Leave Me Now" is written in the key of B major, and Cetera's vocal range varies between F sharp 4 (F♯ 4) and D sharp 6 (D♯ 6).
Peter Cetera originally wrote "If You Leave Me Now" at the same time as Chicago VII's " Wishing You Were Here", and composed it on a guitar. The fund raising effort has continued in succeeding years. In 2010 Chicago teamed with the American Cancer Society and offered the opportunity to bid on the chance to sing their hit, "If You Leave Me Now" with them on stage live at their concerts, with proceeds going to the American Cancer Society to fight breast cancer. In an article from June 2020, The Guardian listed "If You Leave Me Now" as number 73 on its list of "The Greatest UK No 1s: 100–1", noting, "It’s impossibly lush and beautifully written, but its sadness is pervasive and affecting." It has been certified gold and platinum by the RIAA. In addition, by August 1978 it had sold 1.4 million copies in the United States alone. It also received a Grammy nomination for Record of the Year. The song won Grammy Awards for Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s) (strings) for arranger Jimmie Haskell and producer James William Guercio and Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo, Group or Chorus, the first Grammy Award won by the group. According to writer Zachary Houle of PopMatters, "The song was so pervasive on radio upon its release that, reportedly, those tuning in in New York could hear the song playing on four different stations, each with varying formats, simultaneously." It was one of five "non-disco" songs to make it to number one in the US in a nine-month period of 1976.
In the UK it maintained the number one position for three weeks. "If You Leave Me Now" was also Chicago's biggest hit internationally, topping the charts in other countries such as the UK, Australia, Ireland, Canada, and Netherlands. The single topped the Billboard Hot 100 on October 23, 1976, and stayed there for two weeks, making it the first number one hit for the group as well as hitting number one on the Easy Listening charts. It is also the title of a Chicago compilation album released by Columbia Records (Columbia 38590) in 1983. It was written and sung by bass player Peter Cetera and released as a single on July 31, 1976. " If You Leave Me Now" is a song by the American rock group Chicago, from their album Chicago X.