"Say Goodbye" is a song by the American rock band

Cheap Trick Cheap Trick is an American Rock music, rock band from Rockford, Illinois, formed in 1973 by guitarist Rick Nielsen, bassist Tom Petersson, lead vocalist Robin Zander and drummer Bun E. Carlos. The current lineup of the band consists of Zander, ...

, which was released in 1997 as the lead single from their thirteenth studio album ''

''. The song was written by guitarist

Rick Nielsen Richard Alan Nielsen (born December 22, 1948) is an American musician best known as the lead guitarist, primary songwriter, and leader of the rock band Cheap Trick. He is well-known for his numerous custom-made guitars from Hamer Guitars, inclu ...

, lead vocalist

Robin Zander Robin Wayne Zander (born January 23, 1953) is an American musician, best known as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist for the rock band Cheap Trick, but is also a solo artist. Zander was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2016 as a ...

and bassist

Tom Petersson Thomas John Peterson, better known as Tom Petersson, is an American musician who is best known for being the bass guitar player for the rock band Cheap Trick. Career Before joining Cheap Trick, Petersson played in a number of bands, including t ...

, and was produced by

and Ian Taylor. "Say Goodbye" reached number 19 on the ''

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Bubbling Under the Hot 100 Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (also known as Bubbling Under the Hot 100) is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. The chart lists the top songs that have not yet charted on the main ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Chart ...

chart and number 39 on the ''Billboard''

Mainstream Rock Mainstream rock (also known as heritage rock) is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations in the United States and Canada. Format background Mainstream rock stations represent the middle ground between classic rock and active rock ...

'' chart.

Release

"Say Goodbye" was released as the lead single from ''Cheap Trick''. In the US, Red Ant began promoting the song to a number of different radio formats, including commercial alternative and triple-A, from March 24, 1997.

Music video

The song's music video was directed by Doug Freel. It features the band performing in front of an audience at the Rockford Theater in Rockford, Illinois, with interspersed footage shot on location in Chicago.

Critical reception

On its release,

Larry Flick Larry Flick is an American journalist, former dance music columnist, single reviewer, and Senior Talent Editor for ''Billboard'' magazine, where he worked for 14 years. Now he produces and hosts Sirius XM radio shows. Flick started in the music ...

of ''

'' described "Say Goodbye" as "gloriously melodious" and "one of Cheap Trick's best ever bits of Beatlemania", adding "that's saying something, considering the rpast achievements in that area". He added that the song had "warmth and personality" and felt its "distillation of power pop verities makes it an obvious add for both modern and mainstream rock outlets". Flick also praised "Yeah, Yeah" as a "hard rockin' highlight" from ''Cheap Trick'' that "wouldn't have sounded out of place" on ''

Heaven Tonight ''Heaven Tonight'' is Cheap Trick's third studio album, produced by Tom Werman and released in 1978. The album was remastered and released with bonus tracks on Sony's Epic/Legacy imprint in 1998. The album cover features lead singer Robin Zander ...

''. In a review of the single, Doug Stone of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...

described the song and its B-side as "two first-class tunes" from the band's "artistically-pleasing but ultimately ill-fated revival". Stone commented that "Say Goodbye" "delivers an irksome send-off which quotes Dylan and the Beatles" whereas "Yeah Yeah" is a "strong and snarly album cut".

Track listing

CD and cassette single (US) #"Say Goodbye" (Cheap Rock Mix) - 3:30 #"Yeah Yeah" (LP Edit) - 3:12 CD single (US promo) #"Say Goodbye" (Cheap Rock Mix) - 3:30 CD single (Australia) #"Say Goodbye" (Album Version) - 3:34 #"Yeah Yeah" (LP Edit) - 3:12 3-inch CD single (Japan) #"Say Goodbye" (Cheap Rock Mix) - 3:30 #"Yeah Yeah" (Album Version) - 3:14

Personnel

Cheap Trick *

- lead vocals, rhythm guitar *

- lead guitar, backing vocals *

- bass, backing vocals * Bun E. Carlos - drums, percussion Production * Cheap Trick – producers * Ian Taylor – producer, engineer, mixer *

Bob Ludwig Robert C. Ludwig (born c. 1945) is an American mastering engineer. He has mastered recordings on all the major recording formats for all the major record labels, and on projects by more than 1,300 artists including Led Zeppelin, Lou Reed, Quee ...

- mastering

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Authority control 1997 singles 1997 songs Cheap Trick songs Songs written by Rick Nielsen Songs written by Robin Zander Songs written by Tom Petersson