"Ne partez pas sans moi" (; "Don't Leave Without Me") is a song recorded by Canadian singer

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion (born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Power Ballads", Dion's powerful, technically skilled vocals and commercially successful works have had ...

with music composed by Atilla Şereftuğ and lyrics by Nella Martinetti. It in the Eurovision Song Contest 1988, held in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, winning the contest, being to date the last French language song to win. "Ne partez pas sans moi" was released as a single in selected countries in Europe in May 1988. It topped the chart in Belgium for four consecutive weeks and reached number 11 in Switzerland. In France, it peaked at number 36.

Background

Conception

"Ne partez pas sans moi" was written by Turkish composer Atilla Şereftuğ and Swiss lyricist Nella Martinetti and recorded by

. She also recorded a German version, titled "Hand in Hand".

Eurovision

On 6 February 1988, "Ne partez pas sans moi" performed by Dion competed in the organized by the

Swiss Broadcasting Corporation The Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (; ; ; ; SRG SSR) is the Swiss public broadcasting association, founded in 1931, the holding company of 24 radio and television channels. Headquartered in Bern, the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation is a non-pro ...

(SRG SSR) to select their song and performer for the of the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), often known simply as Eurovision, is an international Music competition, song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) among its members since 1956. Each participating broadcaster ...

. The song won the competition so it became the for the contest. On 30 April 1988, the Eurovision Song Contest was held at the RDS Simmonscourt Pavilion in

hosted by (RTÉ), and broadcast live throughout the continent. Dion performed "Ne partez pas sans moi" ninth on the night, following 's "Ben Adam" by Yardena Arazi and preceding 's "Take Him Home" by Jump the Gun. Şereftuğ conducted the live orchestra in the performance of the Swiss entry. The contest was followed by 600 million viewers worldwide. At the close of voting, the song had received 137 points, winning the contest beating the 's entry " Go" performed by Scott Fitzgerald by just one point in one of the closest finishes in Eurovision history.

Aftermath

"Ne partez pas sans moi" is considered to be one of the most popular Eurovision entries, mainly because of Dion's subsequent international success. It was included on Dion's 1988 album '' The Best of Celine Dion'' released in selected European countries in May 1988. The song appeared in Canada as B-side to " D'abord, c'est quoi l'amour". It was also featured on the French version of Dion's '' Incognito'' album. In 2005, it was included on her French compilation album, '' On ne change pas''. As the winning broadcaster, the

European Broadcasting Union The European Broadcasting Union (EBU; , UER) is an alliance of Public broadcasting, public service media organisations in countries within the European Broadcasting Area (EBA) or who are member states of the Council of Europe, members of the ...

(EBU) gave SRG SSR the responsibility to host the of the Eurovision Song Contest. This contest, held on 6 May 1989, opened with Dion performing "Ne partez pas sans moi" and the premiere of her first English language single " Where Does My Heart Beat Now". She also presented the trophy to the winner. "Ne partez pas sans moi" was one of fourteen songs chosen by Eurovision fans and a EBU reference group, from among the 992 songs that had ever participated in the contest, to participate in the fiftieth anniversary competition '' Congratulations: 50 Years of the Eurovision Song Contest'' held on 22 October 2005 in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

. The song, performed by Elina Nechayeva and

Conchita Wurst Thomas Neuwirth (born 6 November 1988) is an Austrian singer, fashion designer, human rights activist and drag queen who is known for his stage persona Conchita Wurst (or simply Conchita). He came to international attention after winning the Euro ...

, is featured as part of the "Eurovision Song-Along" act on the 2020 film '' Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga''.

Track listings

* European 7-inch single # "Ne partez pas sans moi" – 3:07 # "Ne partez pas sans moi" (instrumental version) – 3:07 * German 7-inch single # "Hand in Hand" – 3:08 # "Hand in Hand" (instrumental) – 3:07

Release history

Chart history

"Ne partez pas sans moi" debuted at number one in Belgium and stayed at the top of the chart for four consecutive weeks; then the single directly dropped to number 45. In Switzerland, the song peaked at number 11 and in France at number 36. While the single sold 200,000 copies in Europe in two days and over 300,000 copies in total, it is one of the less commercially successful Eurovision winners. It was the first winning song not to be released in the United Kingdom or in Ireland.O'Connor, John Kennedy: ''The Eurovision Song Contest – The Official History'', page 113. Carlton Books, UK 2010, Although not released as a single in Canada, the song entered the chart in Quebec on 1 October 1988, spending 23 weeks on it and peaking at number 10.

Weekly charts

References

External links

* {{authority control 1988 singles 1988 songs Celine Dion songs Carrere Records singles CBS Records singles Congratulations Eurovision songs Columbia Records singles Eurovision songs of 1988 Eurovision Song Contest-winning songs French-language Swiss songs French-language Canadian songs Eurovision songs of Switzerland Songs written by Atilla Şereftuğ Songs written by Nella Martinetti