Love Will Keep Us Together

"Love Will Keep Us Together"
"Love Will Keep Us Together"
Single by Captain & Tennille
from the album Love Will Keep Us Together
B-side	"Gentle Stranger"
Released	April 1975
Recorded	1975
Genre	Soft rock
Length	3:24
Label	A&M
Songwriter(s)	Neil Sedaka, Howard Greenfield
Producer(s)	Daryl Dragon
Captain & Tennille singles chronology
Music video
	"Captain & Tennille - Love Will Keep Us Together (1975)" on YouTube

"Love Will Keep Us Together"
"Love Will Keep Us Together"
Song by Neil Sedaka
from the album The Tra-La Days Are Over
Released	1973
Recorded	Spring 1973
Studio	Strawberry Studios, Stockport, England
Genre	Pop
Label	MGM
Producer(s)	Neil Sedaka, 10cc
Official audio
	"Love Will Keep Us Together" on YouTube

"Love Will Keep Us Together" is a song written by Neil Sedaka and Howard Greenfield. It was first recorded by Sedaka in 1973. The brother-sister duo Mac and Katie Kissoon also recorded a version in 1973. American pop duo Captain & Tennille covered it in 1975; their version became a worldwide hit.^[1]

Composition

Sedaka admitted lifting the main chord progression from "Do It Again" by The Beach Boys and added a progression including augmented chords inspired by Al Green. The melody was written with Diana Ross in mind.^[2]^[3] Greenfield wrote the lyrics as one of the two final collaborations with Sedaka (they had decided reluctantly to break off their partnership because their songs were no longer commercially viable) along with "Our Last Song Together," before Greenfield moved to Los Angeles with his companion Tory Damon.^[4]

Background

"Love Will Keep Us Together" first appeared on Neil Sedaka's 1973 studio album The Tra-La Days Are Over which did not have a US release.^[5] His version of the song made its US album debut on the 1974 compilation album Sedaka's Back. In West Germany, Sedaka's original song was also included as the B-side of his 1976 hit, "Love in the Shadows".^[6]

In 2009, Neil Sedaka rerecorded a spoof of his song, renaming it "Lunch Will Keep Us Together" for his first children's CD Waking Up Is Hard to Do.^[7]

Personnel

Source:^[8]

Neil Sedaka – piano, organ, electric piano, vocals
Lol Creme – guitar, vocals
Eric Stewart – guitar, vocals, recording engineer
Graham Gouldman – bass, guitar, vocals
Kevin Godley – drums, percussion, vocals

Mac and Katie Kissoon version

"Love Will Keep Us Together" had its first single release via a UK recording by the brother and sister vocal duo Mac and Katie Kissoon on September 28, 1973, but it failed to chart. This version also failed to chart in its US release in February 1974, but it did become the first hit version of "Love Will Keep Us Together" by virtue of charting in the Netherlands in the autumn of 1973, peaking at number 12 that December.

Captain & Tennille version

"Love Will Keep Us Together" was the title cut and lead single of Captain & Tennille's debut album, although "Captain" Daryl Dragon originally hoped that honor would go to the duo's rendition of "I Write the Songs". The single rose to number 1 on both the Billboard Easy Listening chart^[10] and the Billboard pop chart, staying atop the latter for four weeks starting June 21, 1975. It also hit the top of the 1975 year-end chart. In the US it was the best-selling single of 1975.^[11] "Love Will Keep Us Together" was certified gold by the RIAA^[12] and also won the Grammy Award (1975) for Record of the Year on February 28, 1976.^[13]^[14]

Record World said the song "is a solid choice of material for the label to propel this duo into Carpenter-ish acceptance." “Captain” Daryl Dragon played all the instruments on this version, with the exception of drums played by Hal Blaine.^[15]

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. Twenty years later in 1995, the duo would re-record the song for their Twenty Years of Romance CD.

"Por Amor Viviremos" (Spanish version)

While "Love Will Keep Us Together" was topping the charts in the summer of 1975, Captain & Tennille released a Spanish 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. It also appears on the 2002 Hip-O Records compilation album Ultimate Collection: The Complete Hits.

Personnel

Toni Tennille – lead and backing vocals
Daryl Dragon – piano, electric piano, synthesizers, clavinet, bass, arrangement
Hal Blaine – drums^{[citation needed]}

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Chart (1975–1976)	Peak position
Australia (Kent Music Report)	1
Canadian RPM Top Singles	1
Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary^[16]	1
French Singles Chart^[17]	6
Italian Singles Chart	33
New Zealand Singles Chart	8
South Africa (Springbok Radio)^[18]	2
UK Singles (OCC)^[19]	32
US Billboard Hot 100^[20]	1

Year-end charts

Chart (1975)	Rank
Australia (Kent Music Report)^[21]^[22]	6
Brazil (ABPD)^[23]	19
Canada RPM Top Singles	1
Canada RPM Adult Contemporary^[24]	14
New Zealand^[25]	22
South Africa^[26]	16
US Billboard Hot 100^[27]	1
US Billboard Easy Listening^[28]	7
US Cash Box	1

All-time charts

Chart (1958-2018)	Position
US Billboard Hot 100^[29]	259

Other notable versions

Wilson Pickett recorded "Love Will Keep Us Together" for his 1976 studio album release Chocolate Mountain from which it was issued as a single. It reached number 69 on the Billboard R&B chart.^{[citation needed]}
In 1978, the song was covered by Timothy Dalton and Mae West in West's final movie Sextette.
In 1980, Joy Division released "Love Will Tear Us Apart", the title of which "was intended as an ironic nod to the classic '70s pop song."^[30]
In 1982, the song featured heavily in Troma comedy “Stuck on You” performed by the band Junk Rock.
In 1992, Mexican trio Pandora released a cover version titled "Pierdo el Control" on their album Ilegal.
In 1979 Ginger Rogers sang this song on The Love Boat in the episode "Critical Success / The Love Lamp Is Lit / Take My Boyfriend, Please / Rent a Family / The Man in Her Life: Parts 1 & 2"
In 2001, the film Get Over It featured a dance to this song at the beginning by some of the cast.

References

^ Hartman, Kent (2012). The Wrecking Crew. St. Martin’s Griffin. pp. 261–263. ISBN 978-1-250-03046-7.
^ Neil Sedaka's mini-concert, September 1, 2020 from Sedaka's official YouTube account
^ "Neil Sedaka Talks With Paul Shaffer About Love Will Keep Us Together And Captain & Tennille". YouTube. 28 April 2020. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
^ Today's Mini-Concert - 9/8/20 on YouTube from Sedaka's official YouTube channel
^ "The Tra-La Days Are Over/Overnight Success - Neil Sedaka | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
^ "Neil Sedaka - Love In The Shadows" – via www.45cat.com.
^ "Music: Waking Up Is Hard to Do (CD) by Neil Sedaka". Tower.com.
^ "The Tra-La Days Are Over/Overnight Success - Neil Sedaka | Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic.
^ Kuge, Mara (7 February 2019). "14 Secretly Cruel Soft Rock Love Songs". Ultimate Classic Rock.
^ Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 45.
^ Hyatt, Wesley. The Billboard Book of Number One Adult Contemporary Hits, Billboard Books, 1999, p. 166.
^ "Captain & Tennille - Love Will Keep Us Together - RIAA Gold Certification". RIAA. July 1, 1975. Retrieved March 4, 2019.
^ "Winners - 18th Annual GRAMMY Awards (1975)". The Recording Academy. 1975. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
^ "Captain & Tennille Win Record Of The Year". The Recording Academy. February 28, 1976. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
^ "Single Picks" (PDF). Record World. March 8, 1975. p. 26. Retrieved 2023-03-10.
^ "RPM Weekly Adult Contemporary". Library and Archives Canada. RPM (archived). June 14, 1975. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
^ "Toutes les Chansons N° 1 des Années 70" (in French). InfoDisc. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
^ "SA Charts 1965–March 1989". Retrieved 1 September 2018.
^ "Captain & Tennille: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 23, 2019.
^ Whitburn, Joel (2003). Top Pop Singles 1955-2002. Record Research. ISBN 9780898201550.
^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 427. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
^ "National Top 100 Singles for 1975". Kent Music Report. December 29, 1975. Retrieved January 15, 2022 – via Imgur.
^ "Top 100 Músicas Mais Tocadas em 1975" [Top 100 Most Played Songs of 1975]. 17 March 2018. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". collectionscanada.gc.ca. 17 July 2013.
^ "Top Selling Singles of 1975". THE OFFICIAL NZ MUSIC CHART.
^ "Top 20 Hit Singles of 1975". Retrieved 2 September 2018.
^ "Top 100 Hits of 1975/Top 100 Songs of 1975". musicoutfitters.com.
^ "Top 50 Adult Contemporary Hits of 1975 (+2) - 45cat". www.45cat.com.
^ "Billboard Hot 100 60th Anniversary Interactive Chart". Billboard. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
^ "Single Stories: Joy Division, "Love Will Tear Us Apart"". Rhino Records. Retrieved February 24, 2020.

[1] Hartman, Kent (2012). The Wrecking Crew. St. Martin’s Griffin. pp. 261–263. ISBN 978-1-250-03046-7.

[2] Neil Sedaka's mini-concert, September 1, 2020 from Sedaka's official YouTube account

[3] "Neil Sedaka Talks With Paul Shaffer About Love Will Keep Us Together And Captain & Tennille". YouTube. 28 April 2020. Retrieved 6 November 2022.

[4] Today's Mini-Concert - 9/8/20 on YouTube from Sedaka's official YouTube channel

[5] "The Tra-La Days Are Over/Overnight Success - Neil Sedaka | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.

[6] "Neil Sedaka - Love In The Shadows" – via www.45cat.com.

[7] "Music: Waking Up Is Hard to Do (CD) by Neil Sedaka". Tower.com.

[8] "The Tra-La Days Are Over/Overnight Success - Neil Sedaka | Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic.

[9] Kuge, Mara (7 February 2019). "14 Secretly Cruel Soft Rock Love Songs". Ultimate Classic Rock.

[10] Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 45.

[11] Hyatt, Wesley. The Billboard Book of Number One Adult Contemporary Hits, Billboard Books, 1999, p. 166.

[12] "Captain & Tennille - Love Will Keep Us Together - RIAA Gold Certification". RIAA. July 1, 1975. Retrieved March 4, 2019.

[13] "Winners - 18th Annual GRAMMY Awards (1975)". The Recording Academy. 1975. Retrieved March 20, 2019.

[14] "Captain & Tennille Win Record Of The Year". The Recording Academy. February 28, 1976. Retrieved March 20, 2019.

[rw-15] "Single Picks" (PDF). Record World. March 8, 1975. p. 26. Retrieved 2023-03-10.

[16] "RPM Weekly Adult Contemporary". Library and Archives Canada. RPM (archived). June 14, 1975. Retrieved February 11, 2018.

[17] "Toutes les Chansons N° 1 des Années 70" (in French). InfoDisc. Retrieved 11 March 2019.

[18] "SA Charts 1965–March 1989". Retrieved 1 September 2018.

[sc_UKsinglesbyname_Captain_&_Tennille-19] "Captain & Tennille: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 23, 2019.

[20] Whitburn, Joel (2003). Top Pop Singles 1955-2002. Record Research. ISBN 9780898201550.

[21] Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 427. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.

[aus75-22] "National Top 100 Singles for 1975". Kent Music Report. December 29, 1975. Retrieved January 15, 2022 – via Imgur.

[23] "Top 100 Músicas Mais Tocadas em 1975" [Top 100 Most Played Songs of 1975]. 17 March 2018. Retrieved 27 May 2024.

[24] "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". collectionscanada.gc.ca. 17 July 2013.

[25] "Top Selling Singles of 1975". THE OFFICIAL NZ MUSIC CHART.

[26] "Top 20 Hit Singles of 1975". Retrieved 2 September 2018.

[27] "Top 100 Hits of 1975/Top 100 Songs of 1975". musicoutfitters.com.

[28] "Top 50 Adult Contemporary Hits of 1975 (+2) - 45cat". www.45cat.com.

[29] "Billboard Hot 100 60th Anniversary Interactive Chart". Billboard. Retrieved 10 December 2018.

[30] "Single Stories: Joy Division, "Love Will Tear Us Apart"". Rhino Records. Retrieved February 24, 2020.

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v t e Captain & Tennille
Daryl Dragon Toni Tennille
Albums	Love Will Keep Us Together Song of Joy Come In from the Rain Dream Make Your Move Keeping Our Love Warm More Than Dancing The Secret of Christmas
Singles	"Love Will Keep Us Together" "The Way I Want to Touch You" "Lonely Night (Angel Face)" "Shop Around" "Muskrat Love" "Can't Stop Dancin'" "I'm on My Way" "Do That to Me One More Time" "Happy Together (A Fantasy)"
Songs	"Disney Girls" "Cuddle Up" "God Only Knows" "I Write the Songs" "Wedding Song (There Is Love)" "Don't Call It Love" "Until You Come Back to Me (That's What I'm Gonna Do)" "Since I Fell for You" "Your Good Thing (Is About to End)" "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)" "Nobody Does It Better" "Wind Beneath My Wings" "Save the Best for Last"
Related topics	Discography Carmen Dragon The Beach Boys

v t e Neil Sedaka
Studio albums	Rock with Sedaka Circulate Neil Sedaka Sings Little Devil and His Other Hits 3 Great Guys Workin' on a Groovy Thing/Sounds of Sedaka Emergence Solitaire The Tra-La Days Are Over Laughter in the Rain Overnight Success The Hungry Years Steppin' Out A Song All You Need Is the Music In the Pocket Now Come See About Me The Good Times
Compilation albums	Neil Sedaka Sings His Greatest Hits Italiano Italiano Vol. 2 Oh! Carol Sedaka's Back Oh Carol Let's Go Steady Again Neil Sedaka's Greatest Hits (1977) The '50s and '60s 14 Knockouts The Many Sides of Neil Sedaka Sunny Neil Sedaka's Greatest Hits (1980) My Friend Neil Sedaka: All Time Greatest Hits All Time Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 Laughter in the Rain: The Best of Neil Sedaka, 1974–1980 The Very Best of Neil Sedaka Oh Carol: The Complete Recordings, 1955–66 Stairway to Heaven: The Best of Neil Sedaka Love Songs
Live albums	Live at the Royal Festival Hall On Stage
Singles	"The Diary" "I Go Ape" "Crying My Heart Out for You" "Oh! Carol" "One-Way Ticket To The Blues" "Stairway to Heaven" "You Mean Everything to Me" "Run Samson Run" "Calendar Girl" "Little Devil" "Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen" "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" "Next Door to an Angel" "La terza luna" "Lettera bruciata" "Our Last Song Together" "Laughter in the Rain" "The Immigrant" "That's When the Music Takes Me" "Bad Blood" "Love in the Shadows" "Amarillo" "Should've Never Let You Go" "Your Precious Love" "Rhythm of the Rain"
Other songs	"Stupid Cupid" "Fallin'" "Frankie" "Where the Boys Are" "Workin' On a Groovy Thing" "Rainy Jane" "Puppet Man" "Time Waits for No One" "One Day of Your Life" "Summer Symphony" "One More Mountain to Climb" "Ring Ring" "Solitaire" "Don't Hide Your Love" "The Other Side of Me" "The Way I Am" "Sad Eyes" "Love Will Keep Us Together" "Lonely Night (Angel Face)" "You Never Done It Like That"
Related articles	Discography Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam The Tokens Food Rocks

v t e Grammy Award for Record of the Year
1950s	"Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu (Volare)" – Domenico Modugno (1958) "Mack the Knife" – Bobby Darin (1959)
1960s	"Theme from A Summer Place" – Percy Faith (1960) "Moon River" – Henry Mancini (1961) "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" – Tony Bennett (1962) "Days of Wine and Roses" – Henry Mancini (1963) "The Girl from Ipanema" – Astrud Gilberto & Stan Getz (1964) "A Taste of Honey" – Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass (1965) "Strangers in the Night" – Frank Sinatra (1966) "Up, Up and Away" – The 5th Dimension (1967) "Mrs. Robinson" – Simon & Garfunkel (1968) "Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In" – The 5th Dimension (1969)
1970s	"Bridge over Troubled Water" – Simon & Garfunkel (1970) "It's Too Late" – Carole King (1971) "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" – Roberta Flack (1972) "Killing Me Softly with His Song" – Roberta Flack (1973) "I Honestly Love You" – Olivia Newton-John (1974) "Love Will Keep Us Together" – Captain & Tennille (1975) "This Masquerade" – George Benson (1976) "Hotel California" – Eagles (1977) "Just the Way You Are" – Billy Joel (1978) "What a Fool Believes" – The Doobie Brothers (1979)
1980s	"Sailing" – Christopher Cross (1980) "Bette Davis Eyes" – Kim Carnes (1981) "Rosanna" – Toto (1982) "Beat It" – Michael Jackson (1983) "What's Love Got to Do with It" – Tina Turner (1984) "We Are the World" – USA for Africa (1985) "Higher Love" – Steve Winwood (1986) "Graceland" – Paul Simon (1987) "Don't Worry, Be Happy" – Bobby McFerrin (1988) "Wind Beneath My Wings" – Bette Midler (1989)
1990s	"Another Day in Paradise" – Phil Collins (1990) "Unforgettable" – Natalie Cole with Nat King Cole (1991) "Tears in Heaven" – Eric Clapton (1992) "I Will Always Love You" – Whitney Houston (1993) "All I Wanna Do" – Sheryl Crow (1994) "Kiss from a Rose" – Seal (1995) "Change the World" – Eric Clapton (1996) "Sunny Came Home" – Shawn Colvin (1997) "My Heart Will Go On" – Celine Dion (1998) "Smooth" – Santana featuring Rob Thomas (1999)
2000s	"Beautiful Day" – U2 (2000) "Walk On" – U2 (2001) "Don't Know Why" – Norah Jones (2002) "Clocks" – Coldplay (2003) "Here We Go Again" – Ray Charles & Norah Jones (2004) "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" – Green Day (2005) "Not Ready to Make Nice" – Dixie Chicks (2006) "Rehab" – Amy Winehouse (2007) "Please Read the Letter" – Alison Krauss & Robert Plant (2008) "Use Somebody" – Kings of Leon (2009)
2010s	"Need You Now" – Lady Antebellum (2010) "Rolling in the Deep" – Adele (2011) "Somebody That I Used to Know" – Gotye featuring Kimbra (2012) "Get Lucky" – Daft Punk featuring Pharrell Williams & Nile Rodgers (2013) "Stay with Me" (Darkchild version) – Sam Smith (2014) "Uptown Funk" – Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars (2015) "Hello" – Adele (2016) "24K Magic" – Bruno Mars (2017) "This Is America" – Childish Gambino (2018) "Bad Guy" – Billie Eilish (2019)
2020s	"Everything I Wanted" – Billie Eilish (2020) "Leave the Door Open" – Silk Sonic (2021) "About Damn Time" by Lizzo (2022) "Flowers" – Miley Cyrus (2023)