Save Your Kisses For Me
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| "Save Your Kisses For Me" | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
||
| Single by Brotherhood Of Man | ||
| from the album "Love And Kisses From Brotherhood Of Man" | ||
| B-side(s) | Let's Love Together | |
| Released | 1976 | |
| Genre | Pop | |
| Length | 3:02 | |
| Label | Pye Records | |
| Writer(s) | Tony Hiller / Lee Sheriden / Martin Lee | |
| Producer(s) | Tony Hiller | |
| Brotherhood Of Man singles chronology | ||
| "Kiss Me, Kiss Your Baby" | "Save Your Kisses For Me" (1976) |
"My Sweet Rosalie" (1976) |
Save Your Kisses For Me was the winning song of the Eurovision Song Contest 1976, performed for the United Kingdom by Brotherhood Of Man in The Hague, Netherlands. The lyrics and music were written by Tony Hiller, Lee Sheriden and Martin Lee, the latter being members of the band. This was the third consecutive occasion on which a group had won the Contest and the second consecutive occasion on which the song performed first had won.
The performance consisted of the two male singers wearing a black and white suit respectively, and the two females wearing a white and red jumpsuit with matching berets standing still and singing, with minor arm and leg choreography. The bouncy jingle described the gently conflicted emotions of a young man leaving an adored loved-one in the morning as he leaves for work. The song's final line provided the twist: that he was leaving a three year old behind, ending with "save your kisses for me/save all your kisses for me...even though you're only three".
It was awarded the maximum douze points (meaning 12 points in French) by seven countries, totalling 164 pts compared to the second placed French entry with 147 points. After winning the contest, the song was released and reached #1 in more than thirty countries across Europe and eventually sold more than five million copies. In the UK, it was the biggest-selling single of 1976.
The lyrics have come in for their share of lampooning, most notably as "Save Your Kippers For Tea" included in a medley by the Barron Knights. Some sources also speculate on a possible impure motive for the song due to the age of the person being asked to save their kisses - first time listeners might assume the song is about two adoring newlyweds - until the twist reveals that the object of the song is a young child. However the actual lyrics, while implying affection, include no references to any sort of sexual relationship.
The song was chosen in an internet poll conducted by the European Broadcasting Union in 2005 as one of the 14 most popular songs in the history of the Eurovision, and was one of the entrants in the Congratulations 50th anniversary concert in Copenhagen, Denmark, held in October 2005. It was re-enacted by the group (who are still together) along with twelve dancers dressed in matching red, white and black costumes with briefcases and a live orchestra as the original footage was shown in the background. Save Your Kisses for me came 4th in the final voting.
The song was succeeded in 1977 by Marie Myriam singing L'Oiseau Et L'Enfant for France.
In 1976, Country Music singer Margo Smith covered the song in the United States and it went to #10 on the Country charts.
| Preceded by "I Love To Love (But My Baby Loves To Dance)" by Tina Charles |
UK number one single(Steve Harley version) March 27, 1976 |
Succeeded by "Fernando" by ABBA |
| Preceded by Ding-A-Dong by Teach-In |
Eurovision Song Contest winners 1976 |
Succeeded by L'Oiseau Et L'Enfant by Marie Myriam |
