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Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite

For other songs with this title, see Goodnight Sweetheart (disambiguation).
"Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite"
Single by The Spaniels
B-side"You Don't Move Me"
ReleasedMarch 1954[1]
RecordedSeptember 23, 1953[2]
GenreDoo-wop[3][4][5]
Length2:48
LabelVee-Jay
Songwriter(s)Calvin Carter and James "Pookie" Hudson
The Spaniels singles chronology
"The Bells Ring Out"
(1953) 		"Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite"
(1954) 		"Let's Make Up"
(1954)

"Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite" is a popular song that was a hit during the mid-1950s. It was written by Calvin Carter and James "Pookie" Hudson in 1951, and was first recorded by The Spaniels in 1953.[2] It has also been released by some artists as "Goodnight, Well It's Time to Go".[6]

The Spaniels version

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The song was originally released by the R&B doo-wop group The Spaniels in March 1954.[1][7] The original version peaked at No. 5 on Billboard's "Rhythm and Blues Records" chart of "Best Sellers in Stores",[8][9] No. 5 on Billboard's "Rhythm and Blues Records" chart of "Most Played in Juke Boxes",[10] and No. 3 on Cash Box's Rhythm & Blues Top 15.[11]

The Spaniels' version was ranked No. 20 on Billboard's ranking of "1954's Top R&B Records according to Retail Sales" and No. 15 on Billboard's ranking of "1954's Top R&B Records according to Juke Box Plays".[12] It was also ranked No. 16 in Cash Box's ranking of "1954's Top R&B Records as Voted in the Cash Box Poll".[13]

The McGuire Sisters version

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The best-selling version of the song was recorded by The McGuire Sisters in 1954.[14] Under the title "Goodnight, Sweetheart, Goodnight", their version reached No. 8 on Billboard's chart of "Best Sellers in Stores",[15] No. 7 on Billboard's chart of "Most Played in Juke Boxes",[15] and No. 9 on Billboard's chart of "Most Played by Jockeys".[16] A million copies of the McGuire Sisters' single were sold.[17][1]

The McGuire Sisters' version was ranked No. 21 on Billboard's ranking of "1954's Top Popular Records according to Juke Box Plays".[18] It was also ranked No. 33 in Cash Box's ranking of "1954's Top Pop Records as Voted in the Cash Box Poll".[19]

Johnnie & Jack version

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It was also recorded in 1954 by country music duo Johnnie & Jack,[20] whose version reached No. 3 on Billboard's "Country & Western Records" chart "Most Played by Jockeys",[21] No. 4 on Billboard's "Country & Western Records" chart "Best Sellers in Stores",[21] No. 4 on Billboard's "Country & Western Records" chart "Most Played in Juke Boxes",[22] No. 4 on Cash Box's chart of "The 10 Top Folk & Western Best Sellers",[23] No. 4 on Cash Box's chart of "The Ten Folk and Western Disk Jockeys Played Most This Week",[24] and No. 4 on Cash Box's chart of "Hillbilly, Folk & Western Juke Box Tunes".[25]

Johnnie & Jack's version was ranked No. 20 on Billboard's ranking of "1954's Top C&W Records according to Retail Sales" and No. 21 on Billboard's ranking of "1954's Top C&W Records according to Juke Box Plays".[26] It was also ranked No. 17 in Cash Box's ranking of "1954's Top Country Records as Voted in the Cash Box Poll".[27]

Other versions

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Sunny Gale also released a version in 1954, which reached No. 27 on Billboard's chart of "Best Sellers in Stores".[15]

The song reached No. 8 on the Cash Box Top 50, in a tandem ranking of the McGuire Sisters, Sunny Gale, the Spaniels, Johnnie & Jack, Ella Mae Morse, and Gloria Mann & Carter Rays' versions, with the McGuire Sisters and Sunny Gale's versions marked as bestsellers,[28] while reaching No. 5 on Cash Box's Top Ten Juke Box Tunes chart,[29] and No. 7 on Cash Box's chart of "The Ten Records Disk Jockeys Played Most This Week", in a tandem ranking of the McGuire Sisters and Sunny Gale's versions.[30] The song also reached No. 8 on Billboard's "Honor Roll of Hits", with the McGuire Sisters, the Spaniels, and Sunny Gale's versions listed as best sellers.[31]

Later use

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The Spaniels re-recorded the song in 1969 for Buddah Records; however, the title was shown as "Goodnight Sweetheart" and the songwriting misattributed to Ray Noble, Jimmy Campbell, Reg Connelly and Rudy Vallee, implying they covered the 1930s standard.[32][33]

The song became well known again in the late 1970s as the closing song performed by Sha Na Na on their weekly variety show, as well as because of its appearance in the 1973 movie American Graffiti.

In 1975, Australian band Ol' 55 released a version as their debut single. The song peaked at number 95 on the Kent Music Report.

In the late 1980s it was used again as a lullaby in the major hit film Three Men and a Baby.

For many years, Dick Biondi played the song at the end of every show on Chicago's 94.7 WLS-FM.[34]

The Johnnie & Jack version was used by NTV in Tokyo, Japan from 2000 to 2001 when the broadcasting in a day ended and not having the NNN24.

References

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  1. ^ a b c Pruter, Robert (1996). Doowop: The Chicago Scene. University of Illinois Press. p. 104. ISBN 9780252065064. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  2. ^ a b Baptista, Todd. "Playing It Cool: The Spaniels' 50 Years of Harmony – As published in Goldmine magazine, 2011", TRB Enterprises. Retrieved April 28, 2018.
  3. ^ Koskoff, Ellen (2005). Music Cultures in the United States: An Introduction, Psychology Press. p. 231. Retrieved April 28, 2018.
  4. ^ Dawson, Jim; Propes, Steve (2003). 45 Rpm: The History, Heroes and Villains of a Pop Music Revolution, Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 158. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  5. ^ Rolling Stone Staff (September 24, 2024). "The 101 Greatest Soundtracks of All Time". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 5, 2024.
  6. ^ The Book of Golden Rock 'N' Roll, Columbia Pictures Publications, 1987
  7. ^ Gilliland, John (1969). "Show 11 – Big Rock Candy Mountain: Early rock 'n' roll vocal groups & Frank Zappa" (audio). Pop Chronicles. University of North Texas Libraries. Track 5.
  8. ^ "The Billboard Music Popularity Charts – Rhythm and Blues Records", Billboard, June 5, 1954. p. 44. Retrieved April 28, 2018.
  9. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 543.
  10. ^ "The Billboard Music Popularity Charts – Rhythm and Blues Records", Billboard, July 17, 1954. p. 63. Retrieved April 28, 2018.
  11. ^ "Rhythm & Blues Top 15", Cash Box, June 19, 1954. p. 31. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  12. ^ "1954's Top R&B Records", Billboard, December 25, 1954. p. 17. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  13. ^ "1954's Top R&B Records as Voted in the Cash Box Poll", Cash Box, December 25, 1954. p. 29. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  14. ^ Fred Bronson (2002). Billboard's Hottest Hot 100 Hits: Top Songs and Song Makers, 1955 to 2000. Billboard Books. p. 214. ISBN 9780823077380.
  15. ^ a b c "The Billboard Music Popularity Charts – Popular Records", Billboard, August 14, 1954. p. 26. Retrieved April 28, 2018.
  16. ^ "The Billboard Music Popularity Charts – Popular Records", Billboard, August 21, 1954. p. 34. Retrieved April 28, 2018.
  17. ^ Gugin, Linda C.; St. Clair, James E. (2015). Indiana's 200: The People Who Shaped the Hoosier State, Indiana Historical Society. p. 54. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  18. ^ "1954's Top Popular Records", Billboard, December 25, 1954. p. 17. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  19. ^ "1954's Top Pop Records as Voted in the Cash Box Poll", Cash Box, December 25, 1954. p. 28. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  20. ^ "Goodnight, Sweetheart, Goodnight". Allmusic. Retrieved August 24, 2011.
  21. ^ a b "The Billboard Music Popularity – Country & Western Records", Billboard, September 11, 1954. p. 52. Retrieved April 28, 2018.
  22. ^ "The Billboard Music Popularity – Country & Western Records", Billboard, September 18, 1954. p. 36. Retrieved April 28, 2018.
  23. ^ "The 10 Top Folk & Western Best Sellers", Cash Box, August 28, 1954. p. 26. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  24. ^ "The Ten Folk and Western Disk Jockeys Played Most This Week", Cash Box, August 14, 1954. p. 29. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  25. ^ "Hillbilly, Folk & Western Juke Box Tunes", Cash Box, September 25, 1954. p. 27. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  26. ^ "1954's Top C&W Records", Billboard, December 25, 1954. p. 17. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  27. ^ "1954's Top Country Records as Voted in the Cash Box Poll", Cash Box, December 25, 1954. p. 36. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  28. ^ "The Nation's Top 50 Best Selling Records", Cash Box, July 24, 1954. p. 16. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  29. ^ "The Nation's Top Ten Juke Box Tunes", Cash Box, August 14, 1954. p. 4. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  30. ^ "The Ten Records Disk Jockeys Played Most This Week", Cash Box, August 14, 1954. p. 7. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  31. ^ "Honor Roll of Hits", Billboard, September 4, 1954. p. 20. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  32. ^ The Spaniels - Goodnight Sweetheart / Maybe, 45cat.com. Retrieved July 20, 2019.
  33. ^ The Spaniels Goodnight Sweetheart, YouTube. Retrieved July 20, 2019.
  34. ^ Thanks Ted!, The Dick Biondi Film, November 14, 2016. Retrieved April 28, 2018.