"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. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...

. The song was written by

Atilla Şereftuğ Atilla Şereftuğ (born 16 November 1950) is a Turkish-Swiss songwriter, born in Istanbul. Career In 1986, Şereftuğ participated in the Swiss heats of the Eurovision Song Contest as composer of the song "Pas pour moi". The song's co-composer w ...

and

Nella Martinetti Nella Martinetti (21 January 1946 – 29 July 2011) was a Swiss singer-songwriter, affectionately nicknamed "Bella Nella". She was born in Brissago, Ticino, Switzerland. In 1986, she became the first winner of the Grand Prix der Volksmusi ...

. It is best known as the Swiss winning entry at the

Eurovision Song Contest 1988 The Eurovision Song Contest 1988 was the 33rd edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Dublin, Ireland, following Johnny Logan's win at the with the song " Hold Me Now". Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU ...

, held in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

. To date, it is the last French language song to win the contest. Dion performed it for 600 million viewers worldwide at the contest. "Ne partez pas sans moi" was released as a single in selected countries in Europe on 2 May 1988. It topped the chart in Belgium for three consecutive weeks.

Background

The song was composed by Turkish songwriter

and Swiss composer

. "Ne partez pas sans moi" was also 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 Incognito is an English adjective meaning "in disguise", "having taken steps to conceal one's identity". Incognito may also refer to: Film and television * ''Incognito'' (1937 film), a Danish film * ''Incognito'' (1997 film), an American crime ...

'' album. In 2005, it was included on her French compilation album, ''

On ne change pas ''On ne change pas'' (meaning ''We do not change'' or ''One does not change'') is the first comprehensive French-language greatest hits album by Canadian singer Celine Dion, released by Columbia Records on 30 September 2005. It features songs rec ...

''. A music video was released in 1988. Dion also recorded a German version of "Ne partez pas sans moi", titled "Hand in Hand".

Eurovision

It won Eurovision with 137 points, beating the 's entry " Go" performed by

Scott Fitzgerald Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald (September 24, 1896 – December 21, 1940) was an American novelist, essayist, and short story writer. He is best known for his novels depicting the flamboyance and excess of the Jazz Age—a term he popularize ...

by just one point in one of the closest finishes in Eurovision history. It is considered to be one of the most popular Eurovision entries, mainly because of Dion's subsequent international success.

Commercial performance

"Ne partez pas sans moi" debuted at number one in Belgium and stayed at the top of the chart for four consecutive weeks. In Switzerland, the song peaked at number eleven and in France at number thirty-six. 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. Although not released as a single in Canada, the song entered the chart in Quebec on 1 October 1988, spending twenty-three weeks on it and peaking at number ten.

Track listings and formats

*European 7" single #"Ne partez pas sans moi" – 3:07 #"Ne partez pas sans moi" (Instrumental Version) – 3:07 *German 7" single #"Hand in Hand" – 3:08 #"Hand in Hand" (Instrumental) – 3:07

Charts

Release history

References

{{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