If You Leave (song)

"If You Leave" is a 1986 song by the British synthpop group Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD). It was recorded for the soundtrack to the film Pretty in Pink (1986), in which it is played prominently during the final scene. Along with 1980's "Enola Gay",[1] the track has been described as the band's signature song.[2]

"If You Leave"
Single by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark
from the album Pretty in Pink soundtrack
ReleasedApril 21, 1986 (1986-04-21)
Recorded1986
GenreSynth-pop, New wave
Length4:30
LabelVirgin Records (UK)
A&M Records (US)
Songwriter(s)Andy McCluskey, Paul Humphreys, Martin Cooper
Producer(s)Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, Tom Lord-Alge
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark singles chronology
"La Femme Accident"
(1985)		 "If You Leave"
(1986)		 "(Forever) Live and Die"
(1986)

"If You Leave" is the group's highest-charting single in the United States, where it reached number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in May 1986. The song was also a Top 5 entry in Canada and New Zealand, and charted at number 15 in Australia. A distinguishing track of the 1980s, it has had an enduring presence on radio.[3]

Composition

The band wrote "If You Leave" after John Hughes decided to change the ending to Pretty in Pink after poor test audience reactions. Hughes had asked the band for a song for the new ending two days before they were due to begin a tour, and "If You Leave" was written and recorded in under 24 hours as a result.[4] The song was deliberately written at a tempo of 120 BPM, to match the speed of "Don't You (Forget About Me)", which the dancers in the scene had initially danced to.[5] Despite this, singer Andy McCluskey later noted that an editing error meant the dancing appears out of sync regardless.[5] The original ending featured another OMD song, "Goddess of Love", which was released on The Pacific Age later in 1986.[4] Lyrically the band has stated that the song is about "The end of high school...The ending of your childhood" elaborating that they were trying to capture "this fear of what comes next" [6]

Reception and legacy

Ian Cranna in Smash Hits wrote that "If You Leave" is "false and contrived and seems to last about 3 years" (but described UK B-side "88 Seconds in Greensboro" as "OMD at their blazing best").[7] On the other hand, Chicago Sun-Times journalist Dennis Hunt asserted that the track "is too good to be ignored".[8] Retrospectively, Alfred Soto of The Village Voice said it "starts promisingly" and features "admirably straightforward" lyrics, but concluded: "Gradually the annoyances become menaces. The parts are garish, overstated; it's a cluttered mix."[9] Trouser Press called the song a "dull ballad" that "was thankfully omitted from OMD's subsequent album, The Pacific Age".[10]

Conversely, Stereogum critic Ryan Leas considered the track to be among "the best songs of the '80s", and described its intro/chorus synthesizer melody as "one of the best sounds ever".[11] Andrew Unterberger in Stylus Magazine said that the "gorgeous" song makes the final scene of Pretty in Pink "one of the best in cinematic history".[12] AllMusic journalist Mike DeGagne named "If You Leave" as the best track from Pretty in Pink, adding that "its adult feel and smooth transition from stanza to chorus makes it [OMD's] most memorable song".[13]

Hugo Lindgren in The New York Times Magazine argued that the stateside popularity of "If You Leave" – as well as that of the similarly pop-oriented Crush (1985) – "obscured OMD's legacy as musical innovators" from US audiences, and marked a shift toward "making music for whoever signed the checks".[4] Listeners in OMD's native UK – where the band had gained an audience with edgy, experimental music – were particularly resistant to the track, which peaked at no. 48 on the UK Singles Chart.[14] Frontman Andy McCluskey commented: "It's a blessing to have such a big hit, but a shame that it overshadows so many other good songs for the US audience. We have many European fans who hate the song."[15]

Entertainment Weekly journalist Dana Falcone described "If You Leave" as a "now-classic tune" and "OMD's best-known song to Americans".[16] The track has been included in various "greatest songs" listings;[17][18][19][20][21][22] KOOL-FM named it the third-best new wave song of the 1980s,[17] while Time Out ranked it the 10th greatest track of 1980s cinema.[18]

Track listing

7": Virgin / VS 843 (UK)
  1. "If You Leave" – 4:30
  2. "88 Seconds in Greensboro" – 4:20

7": A&M/Virgin / AM 8669 (US)
  1. "If You Leave" – 4:24
  2. "Secret" – 3:57

7": A&M/Virgin / AM 2811 (US)
  1. "If You Leave" - 4:24
  2. "La Femme Accident" - 3:58

12": Virgin / VS 843-12 (UK)
  1. "If You Leave" (extended version) – 5:59
  2. "88 Seconds in Greensboro" – 4:20
  3. "Locomotion" (live version) – 3:50

12": A&M/Virgin / SP-12176 (US)
  1. "If You Leave" (extended version) – 5:59
  2. "La Femme Accident" (extended version) – 5:36

Charts

Other appearances

Cover versions
  • "If You Leave" was covered by pop-punk band Good Charlotte for the soundtrack of Not Another Teen Movie, a parody on teen movies like Pretty in Pink.
  • A cover version by Nada Surf was used on an episode of The O.C. It is played as a tribute to the John Hughes film Pretty in Pink where the original OMD version of the song appeared. It was released on Music from the OC: Mix 2.
  • LMP covered the song on their album A Century of Song.
  • In 2001, "If You Leave" was covered by Seattle synthpop band Dyed Emotions on the OMD tribute compilation "Messages: Modern Synthpop Artists Cover Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark".
  • Indie rock band Rafter covered the song for the compilation album Guilt by Association Vol. 2, released in 2008.[35]
  • It was also covered by Tom Racer on the compilation album Isn't She Still... the Pretty in Pink Soundtrack Revisited.

References
  1. O'Brien, Jon. "Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark – Live in Berlin". AllMusic. Retrieved December 26, 2016.
  2. "'Now I'm bored and old': 27 deliberately confounding follow-ups to popular successes". The A.V. Club. August 17, 2009. Retrieved December 26, 2016.
  3. Wuench, Kevin (January 28, 2014). "Tuesday lost and found: OMD's 'Electricity'". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
  4. Lindgren, Hugo (May 10, 2013). "The Plot Against Rock". The New York Times Magazine. The New York Times Company. Retrieved October 20, 2013.
  5. Macantosh, Dan. "ANDY MCCLUSKY OF OMD". Songfacts. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  6. Professor of rock (September 21, 2020). OMD On The Story of 80s Love Song "If You Leave". YouTube.
  7. Cranna, Ian (May 7, 1986). "Single Reviews (OMD – '88 Seconds in Greensboro')". Smash Hits. 8 (10): 41.
  8. Hunt, Dennis (June 17, 1986). "Hit single puts OMD in the pink". Chicago Sun-Times. HighBeam Research. Archived from the original on October 20, 2017. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
  9. Soto, Alfred (June 19, 2012). "OMD's 'If You Leave' Can't Get Out Of Here Soon Enough". The Village Voice. Retrieved January 19, 2017.
  10. "Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark". Trouser Press. Retrieved January 2, 2017.
  11. Leas, Ryan (February 12, 2016). "Neon Nostalgia". Stereogum. Retrieved October 2, 2016.
  12. Unterberger, Andrew (October 3, 2003). "Top Ten Musical Moments from Pretty in Pink". Stylus Magazine. Retrieved October 2, 2016.
  13. The Best of OMD at AllMusic.
  14. "If You Leave" review at AllMusic.
  15. "If You Leave by OMD". Songfacts. Retrieved January 19, 2017.
  16. Falcone, Dana (February 28, 2016). "Pretty in Pink 30th anniversary: OMD 'If You Leave'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved October 18, 2017.
  17. "Top 15 New Wave Songs of the '80s". KOOL-FM. April 18, 2016. Retrieved April 20, 2016.
  18. Chenr, Michael (March 18, 2014). "The 50 best songs from '80s movies". Time Out. Archived from the original on September 21, 2018. Retrieved October 2, 2016.
  19. "CBS-FM's Thanksgiving 2015 Countdown of the Top 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". WCBS-FM. November 16, 2015. Retrieved October 2, 2016.
  20. Top 500 Songs of the 80's-00's. Blender. 2005. Retrieved October 23, 2012. Archived at Acclaimed Music.
  21. Terich, Terrance. The Top 200 Songs of the 80's: Part One Archived June 5, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. Treble. February 13, 2011. Retrieved October 23, 2012.
  22. "The 1001 Greatest Songs to Download Right Now!". Blender. October 2003.
  23. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 224. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  24. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 0679." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
  25. "Charts.nz – OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark) – If You Leave". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
  26. "SA Charts 1965–1989 (As presented on Springbok Radio/Radio Orion) – Acts O". The South African Rock Encyclopedia. Archived from the original on May 24, 2018. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  27. "OMD: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
  28. "Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Archived from the original on September 24, 2014. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  29. "Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Archived from the original on September 24, 2014. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  30. "Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark Chart History (Dance Singles Sales)". Billboard. Archived from the original on September 24, 2014. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  31. "Cash Box Top 100 Singles – Week ending May 31, 1986". Cash Box. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  32. "Top 100 Singles of '86". RPM. Vol. 45 no. 14. December 27, 1986. p. 5. ISSN 0315-5994 – via Library and Archives Canada.
  33. "Hot 100 Songs – Year-End 1986". Billboard. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  34. "The Cash Box Year-End Charts: 1986 – Top 100 Pop Singles". Cash Box. December 27, 1986. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  35. Matthew Solarski (November 19, 2008). "My Brightest Diamond, Frightened Rabbit Do Covers". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
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