Love Will Keep Us Together
Encyclopedia
"Love Will Keep Us Together" is a popular song written by Neil Sedaka
and Howard Greenfield
in 1973. It was first released in the United Kingdom
on Sedaka's 1973 LP The Tra-La Days Are Over
, which was never released in the U.S.
The song arrived in the U.S. the following year when it appeared on Sedaka's compilation album Sedaka's Back
.
had recorded the song earlier, it is best remembered for the subsequent 1975 cover version by the duo The Captain & Tennille (Daryl Dragon
and Toni Tennille
).
The song was Captain & Tennille's debut single, reaching #1 on the Billboard Hot 100
for the week ending June 21, 1975 and remaining in the top position for four weeks. Their version ranked as the top US single for year-end chart Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1975
. This version also spent one week at number one on the Easy Listening charts.
Their recording won the Grammy Award for Record Of The Year
in February 1976.
Dragon and Tennille acknowledged Sedaka's authorship — as well as his mid-1970s comeback — by working the phrase "Sedaka is back" into the song's fadeout, where the applause from the studio musicians can be heard. Their version would earn Sedaka and Greenfield a Grammy nomination for Song Of The Year.
In 2010, Matthew Wilkening of AOL Radio
ranked the Captain & Tennille version at #56 on his list of the 100 Worst Songs Ever, stating that "Thirty-five years on, love has kept them together. The rest of us can stand united by our mutual dislike of this song."
version of the song, Por Amor Viviremos. Por Amor Viviremos rose to number 49 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, giving Captain & Tennille a rare feat of the identical song, in different languages and released as separate singles (rather than the A-side and B-side
of one single), appearing simultaneously on the Billboard Hot 100. Chicago
radio station WLS AM 890
used the two versions to create a Spanglish
version of the song for their own broadcasting use.
Por Amor Viviremos would later appear on their May 1976 album Por Amor Viviremos, a Spanish track-for-track rerecording of their album Love Will Keep Us Together
.
covered "Love Will Keep Us Together" with a live show track on the album "T.R.A.S.H.".
In the 1979 Mae West
movie Sextette
, West and Timothy Dalton
cover the tune in a Disco
style.
In 1983, The Circle Jerks
covered "Love Will Keep Us Together" as one of the six cover versions on "Golden Shower of Hits (Jerks on 45)", which appears on their third album with the same title
.
In 1999, French singer Sheila, who is best known internationally as Sheila B. Devotion ('Spacer' 1979), covered the song for her album 'Dense'. The song was released as a cd single and 12 inch with remixes in the Summer of 2000 (EMI France).
In 2000, Nickelback
performed an impromptu cover on Andrew Denton's Musical Challenge
on Australia
's Triple M Sydney
radio station. Nickelback later added it as a bonus track on some versions of their 2003 album The Long Road
.
In 2009, Neil Sedaka did a spoof of his song, renaming it "Lunch Will Keep Us Together" for his first children's cd "Waking Up Is Hard To Do"
.
The song was also featured as the opening of the 2001 film Get Over It
starring Kirsten Dunst
. It appears in Starsky and Hutch , Sextette
, House Arrest
and A Smile Like Yours
.
The song can be heard in the "Academic Octathelon" episode of Malcolm in the Middle
, "The Alma Matter" episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
as well as in the "Some Like It Hoth
" episode of Lost
and the pilot episode of Arrested Development. It was also sung in the "Will & Grace
" episode An Old Fashioned Piano Party by the title characters.
The song was sung by Judy and Kevin in the 2010 film "FRED: The Movie
".
The song can be heard twice during the pilot episode of SyFy's "Haven
", firstly when Audrey wakes up to it on her clock radio and turns it off, and secondly when she swerves her car to avoid a crack and nearly drives off the cliff. As she is teetering, the song plays and she leans forward to switch it off and nearly topples the car over.
In the That '70s Show
first episode, That '70s Pilot, at Kitty's party, the song could be heard in the background.
Neil Sedaka
Neil Sedaka is an American pop/rock singer, pianist, and composer. His career has spanned nearly 55 years, during which time he has sold millions of records as an artist and has written or co-written over 500 songs for himself and other artists, collaborating mostly with lyricists Howard...
and Howard Greenfield
Howard Greenfield
Howard Greenfield was an American lyricist and songwriter, who for several years in the 1960s worked out of the famous Brill Building...
in 1973. It was first released in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
on Sedaka's 1973 LP The Tra-La Days Are Over
The Tra-La Days Are Over
The Tra-La Days Are Over is a 1973 album by American singer-songwriter Neil Sedaka. The album was the second to be produced at Strawberry Studios in England in collaboration with Graham Gouldman, Lol Creme, Kevin Godley and Eric Stewart, who had formed the band 10cc since their first joint venture...
, which was never released in the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
The song arrived in the U.S. the following year when it appeared on Sedaka's compilation album Sedaka's Back
Sedaka's Back
Sedaka's Back is an album by American singer-songwriter Neil Sedaka. The record, a compilation of his last three albums, which had been released only in the UK, was released on Elton John's Rocket Records label in 1974...
.
Captain & Tennille version
Although Sedaka and Wilson PickettWilson Pickett
Wilson Pickett was an American R&B/Soul singer and songwriter.A major figure in the development of American soul music, Pickett recorded over 50 songs which made the US R&B charts, and frequently crossed over to the US Billboard Hot 100...
had recorded the song earlier, it is best remembered for the subsequent 1975 cover version by the duo The Captain & Tennille (Daryl Dragon
Daryl Dragon
Daryl Frank Dragon is a keyboardist, known as Captain in the successful 1970s pop musical duo Captain & Tennille, with his wife, Toni Tennille....
and Toni Tennille
Toni Tennille
Cathryn Antoinette "Toni" Tennille is one-half of the 1970s Grammy Award-winning duo Captain & Tennille. Tennille has also done musical work independently of her husband Daryl Dragon. Tennille has a contralto vocal range.-Biography:...
).
The song was Captain & Tennille's debut single, reaching #1 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
for the week ending June 21, 1975 and remaining in the top position for four weeks. Their version ranked as the top US single for year-end chart Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1975
Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1975
This is a list of Billboard magazine's Top Hot 100 songs of 1975....
. This version also spent one week at number one on the Easy Listening charts.
Their recording won the Grammy Award for Record Of The Year
Grammy Award for Record of the Year
The Record of the Year is one of the four most prestigious Grammy Awards presented annually. It has been awarded since 1959.-History:The honorees through its history have been:*1959-1965: Artist only.*1966-1998: Artist and producer....
in February 1976.
Dragon and Tennille acknowledged Sedaka's authorship — as well as his mid-1970s comeback — by working the phrase "Sedaka is back" into the song's fadeout, where the applause from the studio musicians can be heard. Their version would earn Sedaka and Greenfield a Grammy nomination for Song Of The Year.
In 2010, Matthew Wilkening of AOL Radio
AOL Radio
AOL Radio powered by Slacker, , is an online radio service available only in the United States.- Roots :...
ranked the Captain & Tennille version at #56 on his list of the 100 Worst Songs Ever, stating that "Thirty-five years on, love has kept them together. The rest of us can stand united by our mutual dislike of this song."
Por Amor Viviremos
While Love Will Keep Us Together was topping the charts in the summer of 1975, Captain & Tennille released a SpanishSpanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
version of the song, Por Amor Viviremos. Por Amor Viviremos rose to number 49 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, giving Captain & Tennille a rare feat of the identical song, in different languages and released as separate singles (rather than the A-side and B-side
A-side and B-side
A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...
of one single), appearing simultaneously on the Billboard Hot 100. Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
radio station WLS AM 890
WLS
WLS may refer to:* White light scanner, a device for measuring physical geometry* WLS , a radio station * WLS-FM, a radio station * WLS-TV, a television station...
used the two versions to create a Spanglish
Spanglish
.Spanglish refers to the blend of Spanish and English, in the speech of people who speak parts of two languages, or whose normal language is different from that of the country where they live. The Hispanic population of the United States and the British population in Argentina use varieties of...
version of the song for their own broadcasting use.
Por Amor Viviremos would later appear on their May 1976 album Por Amor Viviremos, a Spanish track-for-track rerecording of their album Love Will Keep Us Together
Love Will Keep Us Together (album)
Love Will Keep Us Together was a 1975 album, the first release by the duo The Captain & Tennille. The album would peak at #2 on the Billboard 200 album chart, while the title song, Love Will Keep Us Together, won the Grammy Award for Record Of The Year and was nominated for Song Of The Year.The...
.
Chart positions
| Chart (1975) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks | 1 |
| Canadian RPM Top Singles | 1 |
| Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary | 1 |
| Australian Kent Music Report | 1 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 8 |
| French Singles Chart | 6 |
| South African Singles Chart | 2 |
| U.K. Singles Chart | 32 |
| Italian Singles Chart | 33 |
Year-End Chart
| Chart (1975) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 1 |
| U.S. Cashbox Top 100 | 1 |
| Canadian RPM Top Singles | 1 |
| Australian Kent Music Report | 6 |
| South African Singles Chart | 16 |
| Brazil Singles Chart | 19 |
Covers
In 1976, The TubesThe Tubes
The Tubes are a San Francisco-based rock band, whose 1975 debut album included the hit single, "White Punks on Dope". During its first fifteen years or so, the band's live performances combined quasi-pornography with wild satires of media, consumerism, and politics...
covered "Love Will Keep Us Together" with a live show track on the album "T.R.A.S.H.".
In the 1979 Mae West
Mae West
Mae West was an American actress, playwright, screenwriter and sex symbol whose entertainment career spanned seven decades....
movie Sextette
Sextette
Sextette is a 1978 Crown International Pictures comedy/musical motion picture that starred Mae West. Other actors in the cast included Timothy Dalton, Dom DeLuise, Tony Curtis, Ringo Starr, Keith Moon, George Hamilton, Alice Cooper and Walter Pidgeon....
, West and Timothy Dalton
Timothy Dalton
Timothy Peter Dalton ) is a Welsh actor of film and television. He is known for portraying James Bond in The Living Daylights and Licence to Kill , as well as Rhett Butler in the television miniseries Scarlett , an original sequel to Gone with the Wind...
cover the tune in a Disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
style.
In 1983, The Circle Jerks
Circle Jerks
The Circle Jerks are an American hardcore punk band, formed in 1980 in Los Angeles, California. It was formed by Black Flag's original singer, Keith Morris, and future Bad Religion guitarist Greg Hetson. They were among the preeminent hardcore punk bands of the L.A. scene in the late 1970s.The band...
covered "Love Will Keep Us Together" as one of the six cover versions on "Golden Shower of Hits (Jerks on 45)", which appears on their third album with the same title
Golden Shower of Hits
Golden Shower of Hits is the third studio album by the American hardcore punk band the Circle Jerks. It was released in 1983 through Allegiance Records and was the band's last album to feature Roger Rogerson on bass and Lucky Lehrer on drums...
.
In 1999, French singer Sheila, who is best known internationally as Sheila B. Devotion ('Spacer' 1979), covered the song for her album 'Dense'. The song was released as a cd single and 12 inch with remixes in the Summer of 2000 (EMI France).
In 2000, Nickelback
Nickelback
Nickelback is a Canadian rock band from Hanna, Alberta. Since 1995 the band has included guitarist and lead vocalist Chad Kroeger, guitarist and back-up vocalist Ryan Peake and bassist Mike Kroeger.. The band's current drummer and percussionist is Daniel Adair who has been with the band since 2005....
performed an impromptu cover on Andrew Denton's Musical Challenge
Andrew Denton's Musical Challenge
Andrew Denton's Musical Challenge is an album released by Austereo in 2001 featuring musical challenges posed by radio comedian Andrew Denton to musicians, generally selecting a song in a style in contrast to their own...
on Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
's Triple M Sydney
2MMM
2MMM is a radio station broadcasting in Sydney, Australia. Triple M Sydney is part of the Austereo Triple M network and broadcasts on the 104.9 MHz frequency.-The Early Days:...
radio station. Nickelback later added it as a bonus track on some versions of their 2003 album The Long Road
The Long Road
The Long Road is the second major album by Canadian rock band Nickelback, released on September 23, 2003.The album was certified 3x Platinum by the RIAA in March 2005 and it had sold 3,591,000 copies as of April 2011. It has sold over 5 million copies worldwide and in 2003 only the album sold 2...
.
In 2009, Neil Sedaka did a spoof of his song, renaming it "Lunch Will Keep Us Together" for his first children's cd "Waking Up Is Hard To Do"
Appearances
The song was featured on the video game Karaoke Revolution Presents: American IdolKaraoke Revolution
Karaoke Revolution and its many sequels are video games for the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Nintendo GameCube, Wii, Xbox, and Xbox 360, developed by Harmonix Music Systems and Blitz Games and published by Konami in its Bemani line of music games. The Original Concept for Karaoke Revolution was...
.
The song was also featured as the opening of the 2001 film Get Over It
Get Over It (film)
Get Over It is a 2001 American romantic comedy film about a teenage boy whose girlfriend ends their relationship. The film was directed by Tommy O'Haver for Miramax Films. The film stars Ben Foster, Kirsten Dunst, Melissa Sagemiller, Sisqó, Colin Hanks, Shane West, and Martin Short. R. Lee Fleming,...
starring Kirsten Dunst
Kirsten Dunst
Kirsten Caroline Dunst is an American actress, singer and model. She made her film debut in Oedipus Wrecks, a short film directed by Woody Allen for the anthology New York Stories...
. It appears in Starsky and Hutch , Sextette
Sextette
Sextette is a 1978 Crown International Pictures comedy/musical motion picture that starred Mae West. Other actors in the cast included Timothy Dalton, Dom DeLuise, Tony Curtis, Ringo Starr, Keith Moon, George Hamilton, Alice Cooper and Walter Pidgeon....
, House Arrest
House Arrest (film)
House Arrest is a 1996 comedy film. The film was directed by Harry Winer who has directed other films but is more prolific as a television series director. The film stars Jamie Lee Curtis and Kevin Pollak...
and A Smile Like Yours
A Smile Like Yours
A Smile Like Yours is a 1997 romantic comedy film directed by Keith Samples and starring Greg Kinnear and Lauren Holly. The film centers on a couple as they try to conceive a child. The film was produced by Rysher Entertainment and released by Paramount Pictures. The title song was performed by...
.
The song can be heard in the "Academic Octathelon" episode of Malcolm in the Middle
Malcolm in the Middle
Malcolm in the Middle is an American television sitcom created by Linwood Boomer for the Fox Network. The series was first broadcast on January 9, 2000, and ended its six-and-a-half-year run on May 14, 2006, after seven seasons and 151 episodes...
, "The Alma Matter" episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from September 10, 1990 to May 20, 1996. The show stars Will Smith as a fictionalized version of himself, a street-smart teenager from West Philadelphia who is sent to move in with his aunt and uncle in their...
as well as in the "Some Like It Hoth
Some Like It Hoth
"Some Like It Hoth" is the 13th television episode of the fifth season of ABC's Lost. The 99th episode of the show overall, "Some Like It Hoth" aired on April 15, 2009 on ABC in the United States. The episode was written by co-producer Melinda Hsu Taylor and "Eggtown" writer Greggory Nations and...
" episode of Lost
Lost (TV series)
Lost is an American television series that originally aired on ABC from September 22, 2004 to May 23, 2010, consisting of six seasons. Lost is a drama series that follows the survivors of the crash of a commercial passenger jet flying between Sydney and Los Angeles, on a mysterious tropical island...
and the pilot episode of Arrested Development. It was also sung in the "Will & Grace
Will & Grace
Will & Grace was an American television sitcom that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 21, 1998 to May 18, 2006 for a total of eight seasons. Will & Grace remains the most successful television series with gay principal characters...
" episode An Old Fashioned Piano Party by the title characters.
The song was sung by Judy and Kevin in the 2010 film "FRED: The Movie
Fred: The Movie
Fred: The Movie is a 2010 independent comedy film written by David A. Goodman, directed by Clay Weiner, and produced by Brian Robbins. The film is based on the adventures of Fred Figglehorn, a character created and played by Lucas Cruikshank for Cruikshank's YouTube channel...
".
The song can be heard twice during the pilot episode of SyFy's "Haven
Haven
Haven or The Haven may refer to:* Harbor, a place where ships may shelter from the weather or are stored* Sanctuary, a consecrated area or a place of safety- Literature :...
", firstly when Audrey wakes up to it on her clock radio and turns it off, and secondly when she swerves her car to avoid a crack and nearly drives off the cliff. As she is teetering, the song plays and she leans forward to switch it off and nearly topples the car over.
In the That '70s Show
That '70s Show
That '70s Show is an American television period sitcom that centers on the lives of a group of teenage friends living in the fictional suburban town of Point Place, Wisconsin, from May 17, 1976, to December 31, 1979...
first episode, That '70s Pilot, at Kitty's party, the song could be heard in the background.