Johnny, Johnny
"Johnny, Johnny" is a 1985 song recorded by the French singer Jeanne Mas. It was her second single from her debut album, Jeanne Mas, on which it features as the second track. Released in February 1985, the song became a hit in France, topping the singles chart for about one month.
| "Johnny, Johnny" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Jeanne Mas | ||||
| from the album Jeanne Mas | ||||
| B-side | "Lisa" | |||
| Released | February 1985 (original version) 2005 (remix) | |||
| Recorded | France | |||
| Genre | Synthpop, pop rock | |||
| Length | 4:05 | |||
| Label | EMI, Pathé Marconi | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Romano Musumarra Jeanne Mas | |||
| Producer(s) | Romano Musumarra | |||
| Jeanne Mas singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Alternative cover | ||||
.jpg) 2005 remix | ||||
Background and writing
"Johnny, Johnny" was written and produced by Romano Musumarra, who also composed successful songs in the 1980s for many artists such as Princess Stéphanie of Monaco, Elsa Lunghini, Demis Roussos and Céline Dion.[1]
The song, which deals with a man named Johnny who bears very badly a break-up, was recorded in French-language, but also in English-language and Spanish-language.
The song is characterized by "melodious and sweet synthetic notes, with a rhythmical bass and lively percussion". Its structure is similar to that of Jeanne Mas' previous hit, "Toute première fois".[2]
An excerpt of the song was performed by the French actress Jacqueline Maillan in the 1986 film La Vie dissolue de Gérard Floque, produced by Georges Lautner.
The song was re-issued in 2005 in a remixed version, but passed unnoticed.
Charts performances
On the French SNEP Singles Chart, the single debuted straight to number 8 on the chart edition of 2 March 1985. It climbed to No. 1 in its fifth week, and stayed at the top for four weeks, alternating with Al Corley's "Square Rooms". After that, it dropped to number 6 and almost kept on falling. It remained for 14 weeks in the top ten and 23 weeks on the chart (Top 50). It disappeared from the chart on 17 August after a furtive re-entry at No. 49.[3]
With this song, Jeanne Mas became the first female artist to reach number one on the new SNEP French Singles Chart.[4]
As the previous single "Toute première fois", "Johnny Johnny" achieved Gold status awarded by the SNEP, the French certifier, for more than 500,000 copies sold.[5] According to Infodisc website, the song is the 154th best-selling single of all time in France, with about 849,000 sales.[6]
The 2005 version failed to reach the chart (Top 100).
Official versions
- Single version – 4:05
- Album version – 4:25
- English version – 4:21
- Spanish version – 4:11
- Extended version – 6:30
- New club mix – 6:22
- Radio edit (2005) – 3:26
- Bounce mix edit (2005) – 3:15
- Remix 2 edit (2005) – 3:19
- Club mix (2005) – 5:18
- Bounce mix (2005) – 6:18
Track listings
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Certifications
| Country | Certification | Date | Sales certified | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| France[5] | Gold | 1985 | 500,000 | 849,000 |
Charts
| Chart (1985) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Eurochart Hot 100 | 18 |
| French SNEP Singles Chart[3] | 1 |
References
- Romano Musumarra's compositions / productions Lescharts.com (Retrieved 21 April 2008)
- Elia Habib, Muz hit. tubes, p. 37 (ISBN 2-9518832-0-X)
- "Johnny, Johnny", in French Singles Chart Lescharts.com (Retrieved 20 April 2008)
- Alex P. King, Hit-parade, 20 ans de tubes, 2005, Pascal Ed., p. 8 (ISBN 978-2350190099) Vingt ans de tubes (Retrieved 23 April 2008)
- French certifications Chartsinfrance.net (Retrieved 20 April 2008)
- Best-selling singles of all time in France Infodisc.fr Archived 2 December 2008 at the Wayback Machine (Retrieved 20 April 2008)