Bye, Bye, Baby (Baby Goodbye)

"Bye, Bye, Baby (Baby Goodbye)" is a popular song written by Bob Crewe and Bob Gaudio, a member of the The Four Seasons whose version of the song made it to #12 the U.S. singles charts in 1965. On the original issue of the single, the title was "Bye Bye Baby"; on the The 4 Seasons Entertain You album (and later issues of the song), the name was changed to the longer, more familiar name.

A cover of the song by the Bay City Rollers sold a million copies and hit #1 on the UK Singles Chart for six weeks from March 1975. The arrangement is in verse-chorus form:

The intro is slowly spoken then picks up into the first chorus with strong beat. The verse appears slower because emphasis is on every second word and there is an offbeat. The transition to the seemingly faster chorus is exciting. The lines often end in a drawn-out word as a slur (multiple notes per syllable). The outro has an upward key before fading. The song is about saying goodbye, not because the person is unloved, but rather that another commitment is preventing their relationship.

The Four Seasons' version is quite sparse in instrumental backing, instead carried by the vocals. The Bay City Rollers' version is faster and has a fuller backing sound.

In the film Love Actually, the song is played by Daniel (Liam Neeson) at his wife's funeral. It's use in this scene results in an immensely dramatic effect, pairing the upbeat "pop tune" with the tragedy of the family loss. It is also played by the DJ (Junior Simpson) at Juliet (Keira Knightley) and Peter's (Chiwetel Ejiofor) wedding reception.

During the Bay City Rollers version's long run at number one, UK radio DJ Johnnie Walker made somewhat derogatory remarks about the song and called the band "musical garbage", which caused some controversy and can be seen to anticipate his departure from BBC Radio 1 the following year because he disliked the station's pop format and wanted to play more rock music.