Don't Go (Yazoo song)

"Don't Go" is a song by British synth-pop band Yazoo (known in the US and Canada as Yaz). It was released in 1982 as the second single from their debut album, Upstairs at Eric's.

"Don't Go"
Single by Yazoo
from the album Upstairs at Eric's
B-side	"Winter Kills"
Released	1982
Genre	Synth-pop[1] new wave[2]
Length	3:08
Label	Mute Sire
Songwriter(s)	Vince Clarke
Producer(s)	Eric Radcliffe Daniel Miller Vince Clarke
Yazoo singles chronology
"Only You" (1982) "Don't Go" (1982) "Situation" (1982)
Music video
"Don't Go" on YouTube

Overview

Released in 1982, the song peaked at number three on the UK Singles Chart, becoming Yazoo's second top 5 hit. In the US, where the band was known as Yaz, the song was their second big hit on the American dance chart, where it spent two weeks at number one in October 1982. Their first American dance chart hit was "Situation", which had also gone to number one on this chart earlier the same year. The music video for the song features band members Alison Moyet and Vince Clarke in a sort of haunted mansion with Clarke cast in the role of Victor Frankenstein. The song is featured in the 1989 film Tango & Cash, in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories on the radio station Wave 103, and appears in Dance Dance Revolution II. The song re-entered the UK Dance Chart on 13 December 2009 at number 30, peaking at number 15 on 2 January 2010.

Reception

Ian Birch of Smash Hits considered "Don't Go" to be a "sharp successor" to "Only You". He commented: "Vince coaxes a sterling song out of his synthesizer while Alf balances its metallic clip with a deep, emotion-packed vocal that gets better with every hearing".[3]

Formats and track listings

UK 7" single (Mute 7 YAZ 001)

1. "Don't Go" – 2:53
2. "Winter Kills" – 4:02

US 12" single (Sire 29886-0)

1. "Don't Go (Re-mix)" – 4:08
2. "Don't Go (Re-re-mix)" – 4:20
3. "Winter Kills (album version)" – 4:03

• "Winter Kills," the B-side to this single, is explicitly listed as "Not re-mixed" and "Not extended" on the album sleeve
• The US 12" single mis-prints the track lengths on the record, listing the "Re-mix" as 5:08 and the "Re-re-mix" as 3:20

Chart performance

Weekly charts Year Chart (1982) Peak position 1982 Australia (Kent Music Report)[4] 6 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[5] 6 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[6] 1 France (IFOP)[7] 3 Germany (Official German Charts)[8] 4 Ireland (IRMA)[9] 4 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[10] 2 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[11] 6 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[12] 22 Poland (LP3)[13] 12 South Africa (Springbok Radio)[14] 9 Spain (AFYVE)[15] 4 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[16] 5 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[17] 2 UK Singles (OCC)[18] 3 US Hot Dance/Disco[19] 1 1999^1 Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)[20] 17 US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play[19] 16 US Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales[19] 8 2000 France (SNEP)[21] 91 2009 UK Dance (OCC)[22] 30 2010 UK Dance (OCC)[23] 15 ^1Remixes

Year-end charts Chart (1982) Rank Australia (Kent Music Report)[24] 70 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[25] 9 France (IFOP)[26] 31 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[27] 24 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[28] 46 Sales and certifications Region Certification Certified units/sales France — 515,000[29] United Kingdom (BPI)[30] Silver 250,000^^ ^^shipments figures based on certification alone

Other versions

The following artists produced a cover or sampled the song:

• 1993 – Dutch act Boobytrax (aka doop) released a house version of the song.[31] Their version peaked at number 23 in the Netherlands and at number 36 in Sweden.[32]
• 1995 – British singer Lizzy Mack had a UK number 52 hit with her version of the song.[33]
• 2006 – Nouvelle Vague covered the song on their album Bande à Part.[34]
• 2009 – The Kid Sister song "Big N Bad" from the album Ultraviolet contains interpolations of "Don't Go".[35]
• 2009 – Smoove & Turrell covered "Don't Go" on their album Antique Soul.[36]
• 2010 – Georgian-Greek singer Tamta sampled the synths of the song on her single "Fotia".[37]
• 2011 – Slow Moving Millie covered the song on her album Renditions.[38]
• 2019 – Estonian DJ Madison Mars sampled the synths of the song for his house song "New Vibe Who Dis" featuring Indianapolis Singer Little League.[39]
• 2019 – English DJ Riton and Dutch DJ Oliver Heldens sampled the synths of the song on their future house song "Turn Me On", featuring British singer Vula.[40]

Starting Rock featuring Diva Avari version

"Don't Go"
Single by Starting Rock featuring Diva Avari
Released	2006
Length	3:27
Label	541
Songwriter(s)	Vince Clarke Alison Moyet
Producer(s)	Hédi Banon Stéphane Tedesco
Starting Rock featuring Diva Avari singles chronology
"Don't Go" (2006) "Movin' On" (2007)

The song was covered and remixed by French project Starting Rock featuring Diva Avari. It was released in December 2006 as a single and had modest success in Europe. It reached the top 10 in Finland.

Music video

The music video depicts a male at a club dancing with women. He meets Diva Avari, who has her eyes set on him and he cannot escape her throughout their time at the club.

Chart performance

Chart (2006)	Peak position
Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)[41]	10
Belgium (Ultratip Wallonia)[42]	10
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[43]	3
France (SNEP)[44]	24
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[45]	34
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[46]	42

See also

• List of number-one dance singles of 1982 (U.S.)

References

1. "On Stage > Alison Moyet – Old Vic Theater, London". Billboard. Vol. 114 no. 51. 21 December 2002. p. 37. ISSN 0006-2510. Situation," followed by "Don't Go," two synth-pop dance jams from the singer's Yazoo days that, sadly, sounded out of place
2. "Nine British Bands That Had to Change Their Names for the US Audience | Cassava Films".
3. Birch, Ian (8 July 1982). "Singles". Smash Hits.
4. "Billboard – Hits of the World". Billboard. Vol. 94 no. 45. 13 November 1982. p. 64. ISSN 0006-2510.
5. "Austriancharts.at – Yazoo – Don't Go" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
6. "Ultratop.be – Yazoo – Don't Go" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
7. "Le Détail par Artiste". InfoDisc (in French). Select "Yazoo" from the artist drop-down menu. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
8. "Offiziellecharts.de – Yazoo – Don't Go". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
9. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Yazoo". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
10. "Nederlandse Top 40 – Yazoo - Don't Go" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
11. "Dutchcharts.nl – Yazoo – Don't Go" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
12. "Charts.nz – Yazoo – Don't Go". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
13. "DON'T GO – Yazoo" (in Polish). LP3. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
14. "South African Rock Lists Website SA Charts 1969 – 1989 Acts (Y)". Rock.co.za. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
15. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
16. "Swedishcharts.com – Yazoo – Don't Go". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
17. "Swisscharts.com – Yazoo – Don't Go". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
18. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
19. "Yazoo – Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
20. "Ultratop.be – Yazoo – Don't Go 1999 Mix" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
21. "Lescharts.com – Yazoo – Don't Go" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
22. "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
23. "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
24. "National Top 100 Singles for 1982". Kent Music Report. 3 January 1983. Retrieved 1 January 2020 – via Imgur.
25. "Jaaroverzichten 1982" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
26. "TOP – 1982". Top-france.fr (in French). Retrieved 15 May 2016.
27. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1982" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
28. "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1982" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
29. "Les Meilleures Ventes 'Tout Temps' de 45 T. / Singles / Téléchargement". InfoDisc (in French). Retrieved 15 May 2016.
30. "British single certifications – Yazoo – Don't Go". British Phonographic Industry. Select singles in the Format field. Select Silver in the Certification field. Type Don't Go in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
31. Hoos, Willem (21 May 1994). "Dutch Dance Duo Scores Int'l Hit With 'Doop'". Billboard. Vol. 106 no. 21. p. 79. ISSN 0006-2510.
32. "Boobytrax – Don't Go!" (in German). Austriancharts.at. Hung Medien. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
33. "Lizzy Mack". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
34. Hubbard, Michael (17 July 2006). "Nouvelle Vague – Bande A Part". musicOMH. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
35. Blyweiss, Adam (22 July 2010). "Kid Sister – Ultraviolet". Mxdwn.com. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
36. "SMOOVE & TURRELL: Antique Soul – 2009 – Album review". Monkeyboxing. 31 August 2009. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
37. "Το νέο single της Tamta 'Φωτιά'" [Tamta's new single "Fotia"] (in Greek). MAD TV. 13 September 2010. Retrieved 23 January 2020.
38. Lester, Paul (11 November 2010). "Slow Moving Millie (No 1,147)". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
39. White, Nick (23 August 2019). "Madison Mars Brings Fresh Sound With 'New Vibe Who Dis'". EDM Sauce. Retrieved 18 December 2019.
40. Bein, Kat (12 September 2019). "Oliver Heldens & Riton Sample Yazoo Classic for 'Turn Me On': Exclusive". Billboard. Retrieved 19 September 2019.
41. "Ultratop.be – Starting Rock feat. Diva Avari – Don't Go" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
42. "Ultratop.be – Starting Rock feat. Diva Avari – Don't Go" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
43. "Starting Rock feat. Diva Avari: Don't Go" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
44. "Lescharts.com – Starting Rock feat. Diva Avari – Don't Go" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
45. "Nederlandse Top 40 – Starting Rock feat. Diva Avari" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
46. "Dutchcharts.nl – Starting Rock feat. Diva Avari – Don't Go" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 20 July 2013.