When Will I See You Again

Not to be confused with When Can I See You or When Can I See You Again?. For other uses, see When Will I See You Again (disambiguation).
"When Will I See You Again"
Single by The Three Degrees
from the album The Three Degrees
B-side "I Didn't Know"
Released September 27, 1974
Recorded 1973
Genre Soul, R&B
Length 3:00
Label Philadelphia International Records
Writer(s) Gamble and Huff
Producer(s) Gamble and Huff
The Three Degrees singles chronology
"Love Is the Message"
(1974)		 "When Will I See You Again"
(1974)		 "Get Your Love Back"
(1974)

"When Will I See You Again" is a song released in 1974 by American soul group The Three Degrees, from their third album The Three Degrees. The song was written and produced by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. Sheila Ferguson sang the lead, accompanied by Fayette Pinkney and Valerie Holiday.

It was one of the most successful recordings of the "Philly Soul" era. In the U.S., the song reached number one on the adult contemporary chart, number two on the pop singles chart,[1] and number four on the R&B chart in the autumn of 1974.[2] In the UK, it fared even better, spending two weeks at the top of the UK Singles Chart in August 1974.[3] The Three Degrees performed the song at Prince Charles' 30th birthday party at Buckingham Palace in 1978.

Sheila Ferguson recalled that "the song was played to me by Kenny Gamble at the piano in 1973 and I threw a tantrum. I screamed and yelled and said I would never sing it. I thought it was ridiculously insulting to be given such a simple song and that it took no talent to sing it. We did do it and several million copies later, I realized that he knew more than me."[4] She would later have a #60 hit with a solo remake of the track in 1994.[5] The song is unique in that every sentence is a question, heightening the overall effect and emotion. In the film Kill Bill: Volume 2, Bill cites this song as his "favorite soul song of the 70s".

Chart performance

Weekly singles charts

Chart (1974-75) Peak
position
Australia [6] 2
Belgium 2
Canada 5
Ireland 2
Germany 27
Netherlands 3
UK Singles Chart[3] 1
US Billboard Hot 100 2
US Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks 1
US Billboard Hot Black Singles 4
US Cash Box Top 100 [7] 1

Year-end charts

Chart (1974) Rank
Canada 61
UK [8] 2
Chart (1975) Rank
Australia [6] 21
US Billboard Hot 100 [9] 75
US Cash Box [10] 93

Cover versions

"When Will I See You Again"
Single by Brother Beyond
from the album Trust
Released 1989
Recorded 1989
Genre Pop
Length 3:34
Label Parlophone
Brother Beyond singles chronology
"Drive On"
(1989)		 "When Will I See You Again"
(1989)		 "Trust"
(1990)

References

  1. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 243.
  2. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 578.
  3. 1 2 Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 303–4. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  4. ↑ 1000 UK #1 Hits by Jon Kutner and Spencer Leigh
  5. ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 198. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  6. 1 2 Steffen Hung. "Forum - 1970 (ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts)". Australian-charts.com. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  7. ↑
  8. ↑ "Top 100 1974 - UK Music Charts". Uk-charts.top-source.info. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  9. ↑ "Top 100 Hits of 1975/Top 100 Songs of 1975". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  10. ↑
Preceded by
"Rock Your Baby" by George McCrae		 UK number one single
August 17, 1974 (2 weeks) 		Succeeded by
"Love Me For A Reason" by The Osmonds
Preceded by
"Angie Baby" by Helen Reddy		 Billboard Easy Listening Singles number-one single by The Three Degrees
December 14, 1974 		Succeeded by
"Wishing You Were Here" by Chicago
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