Cherish (Kool & the Gang song)

"Cherish"
Single by Kool & the Gang
from the album Emergency
B-side "Ladies' Night"
Released May 10, 1985
Recorded 1984
Genre Pop, Smooth R&B, Adult contemporary
Length 4:45 (Album)
3:58 (Single)
Label De-Lite Records
Writer(s)

Robert Earl Bell
Ronald Nathan Bell
James L Bonnefond
George Melvin Brown
Claydes Charles Smith

James "J.T." Taylor
Curtis "Fitz" Williams
Kool & the Gang singles chronology
"Fresh"
(1985)
"Cherish"
(1985)
"Emergency"
(1985)

"Cherish" is the title of an RIAA million-selling Gold-certified single by American R&B band Kool & the Gang. It held the #1 position on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart for six weeks running. It would ultimately rank as the genre's biggest hit of the 1980s.

This was the third single released from the band's Double Platinum-certified album, Emergency. The song is a romantic ballad that proved to be extremely popular when it was released and has since been a wedding song staple of sorts.

The song was composed in the key of D major.

Different remixes

There are several different mixes of "Cherish." The original album version (length: 4:47) begins with the sound of a wave crashing on the beach followed by a (solely) keyboard intro. The entire first verse is sung without drums and percussion, which do not begin until the first chorus.

The single (and video) version of "Cherish" (length: 3:58) adds additional "beach" effects at the beginning and combines an acoustic guitar with the original keyboard introduction. Additional drumming, which this time starts right as J.T. Taylor begins singing the first verse, is also added throughout the song. Whereas the chorus is repeated (sung twice) after the first verse in the album version, it is only sung one time on the single.

There is also an extended 12-inch version of "Cherish" (length: 5:43) which includes the same flourishes that were added to the single/video version of the tune, plus saxophone parts during various sections of the song (introduction, bridge, etc.), including a whole additional sax interlude after the first chorus.

Furthermore, there is an edited mix of this 12-inch version (length: 4:22), where the bridge that appears in all of the other versions of the song is replaced by the same saxophone interlude that is included in the full 12-inch version.

Appearances in other media

The song was featured in a 1985 episode of the daytime soap opera Days of Our Lives. as well as an early 1986 episode of One Life to Live.

The song was featured in a season seven episode of The Facts of Life.

The song was featured in the 2009 film 17 Again.[1]

Chart performance

"Cherish" peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in September 1985, remaining in the runner-up position for three weeks, behind "Money for Nothing" by Dire Straits.[2] It was a number-one hit on both the R&B[2] and adult contemporary charts in the U.S., spending one week atop the R&B chart and six weeks atop the AC chart. In the UK, the song reached number four on the UK Singles Chart.[3]

Weekly charts

Chart (1985) Peak
position
Australian Singles Chart 8
Austrian Singles Chart 3
Belgian Singles Chart 3
Canadian Singles Chart 1
Dutch Top 40 Singles Chart 3
French Singles Chart 11
German Singles Chart 5
Irish Singles Chart 1
New Zealand Singles Chart 4
Norwegian Singles Chart 2
Swedish Singles Chart 19
Swiss Singles Chart 2
UK Singles Chart 4
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 2
U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary 1
U.S. Billboard Hot Black Singles 1

Year-end charts

Chart (1985) Rank
Australia [4] 56
Canada [5] 6
UK [6] 14
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 [7] 17

Preceded by
"Everytime You Go Away" by Paul Young
Billboard Adult Contemporary number-one single
August 24, 1985- September 28, 1985
Succeeded by
"Saving All My Love for You" by Whitney Houston
Preceded by
"Dancing in the Street" by Mick Jagger and David Bowie
Canadian RPM Singles Chart number-one single
October 19, 1985
Succeeded by
"Money for Nothing" by Dire Straits

Pappa Bear feat. Van der Toorn version

"Cherish"
Single by Pappa Bear feat. Van der Toorn
from the album What's My Name?
Released October 13, 1997
Format CD maxi
Recorded 1997
Length 3:52
Label Universal
Writer(s) Ronald Bell, James Taylor, Kool & the Gang
Producer(s) Bülent Aris, Toni Cottura
Pappa Bear feat. Van der Toorn singles chronology
"Cherish"
(1997)
"When the Rain Begins to Fall"
(1998)

Samples (and lyrics) from this song were used in Pappa Bear's song of the same name in 1997. This version is largely unknown in America where the film clip is set but experienced excellent chart success in Europe and Australia.

Track listing

CD maxi

  1. Cherish (Radio) 3:52
  2. Cherish (Extended) 5:37
  3. One 4 Da Money 5:02
  4. Xtra Large 4:10

Charts

Chart (1997-98) Peak
position
UK Singles Chart 47
German Singles Chart 2
Austrian Singles Chart 2
Swiss Singles Chart[8] 2
Dutch Top 40 Singles Chart 4
Belgian Singles Chart 39
Swedish Singles Chart 20
Norwegian Singles Chart 7
Australian Singles Chart 7
New Zealand Singles Chart 1

Other cover versions

See also

References

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