When Will I See You Again

"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. The strings were arranged by Belford "Sinky" Hendricks, who also arranged songs for many top-flight groups and recording artists. Sheila Ferguson sang the lead, accompanied by Fayette Pinkney and Valerie Holiday. Billboard named the song #67 on their list of 100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time.[1]

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	June 21, 1974 (UK) September 1974 (U.S.)
Recorded	1973
Genre	Soul, R&B
Length	3:00
Label	Philadelphia International Records
Songwriter(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)

Background

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."[2] She would later have a #60 hit with a solo remake of the track in 1994.[3] 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". The Three Degrees performed the song at Prince Charles' 30th birthday party at Buckingham Palace in 1978.

Chart performance

It was one of the most successful recordings of the "Philly Soul" era. In the U.S., "When Will I See You Again" peaked at #2 on the pop singles chart, "Kung Fu Fighting" by Carl Douglas kept it from the #1 spot.[4]

On other US charts, the song reached #1 on the adult contemporary chart,[5] and #4 on the R&B chart in the autumn of 1974.[6] In the UK, it fared even better, spending two weeks at the top of the UK Singles Chart in August 1974.[7]

Weekly charts Chart (1974–75) Peak position Australia[8] 2 Belgium 2 Canada RPM Adult Contemporary[9] 1 Canada RPM Top Singles 5 Ireland 2 Germany 27 Netherlands 3 South Africa (Springbok Radio)[10] 2 UK Singles Chart[7] 1 US Billboard Hot 100 2 US Billboard Easy Listening 1 US Billboard Hot Soul Singles 4 US Cash Box Top 100 [11] 1

Year-end charts Chart (1974) Rank Canada[12] 61 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[13] 37 South Africa [14] 19 Chart (1975) Rank US Billboard Hot 100[15] 75 US Cash Box[16] 93

Brother Beyond version

"When Will I See You Again"
Single by Brother Beyond
from the album Trust
Released	December 8, 1989
Recorded	1989
Genre	Pop
Length	3:34
Label	Parlophone
Songwriter(s)	Gamble and Huff
Brother Beyond singles chronology
"Drive On" (1989) "When Will I See You Again" (1989) "Trust" (1990)

British boy band Brother Beyond covered the song on their 1989 album Trust, that was also released in the Compilation Ronny's Pop Show [1990/1] – Hochfeine Pop-Musik-Schallplatte.

Track listing

CD maxi

1. "When Will I See You Again" (Radio Mix) – 4:28
2. "New Heights (The Clompete Mix)" (Cloud 9 Mix) – 4:25
3. "When Will I See You Again (Extended)" (Gee Extended Mix) – 6:42

7" Single

1. When Will I See You Again – 3:35
2. New Heights (Edit) – 3:20

Charts

Chart (1989)	Peak position
UK Singles Chart	43[17]

Thomas Anders version

"When Will I See You Again"
Single by Thomas Anders feat. The Three Degrees
from the album When Will I See You Again
Released	July 18, 1993
Recorded	1992
Genre	Pop
Length	3:30
Label	Polydor
Songwriter(s)	Gamble and Huff
Producer(s)	Christian De Walden, Ralf Stemmann
Thomas Anders feat. The Three Degrees singles chronology
"Standing Alone" (1992) "When Will I See You Again" (1993) "I'll Love You Forever" (1993)

In 1993, Thomas Anders released his version of the song with The Three Degrees, which appeared on the same-named album. The success of the cover version was modest. The following year, Anders released a Spanish-language version of the song titled Una mañana de sol.

Track listing

CD maxi

1. When Will I See You Again – 3:30
2. Thomas Anders – Is It My Love 3:40
3. When Will I See You Again (Extended Version) – 5:15

7" Single

1. When Will I See You Again (Precious String-House Mix) – 4:45
2. When Will I See You Again (Precious Club Mix) – 5:10
3. When Will I See You Again (Precious Outerspace Mix) – 5:32
4. When Will I See You Again (Precious Pop Mix) – 5:28

Charts

Chart (1993)	Peak position
German Singles Chart	37[18]

Other cover versions

• Geoffrey Chung arranged a reggae version released as a 7" on the Antrim label in 1974 with vocals by Marcia Griffiths (A) and Onika (B).
• Magda Layna released the song as a single on Megatone Records in 1983.
• Hong Kong Cantopop singer Priscilla Chan (陳慧嫻) released a Cantonese cover version "幾時再見?!" (lit.: "When Will I See You Again?!") on her album, 秋色 (lit. "Autumn Colours"), in 1988.
• Japanese Singer CINDY covered the song on her 1997 compilation album Surprise.
• U2 Played the song on the Elevation Tour it is most remembered when the played it at Slane Castle on 25th August and 1st of September 2001.
• Erasure covered the song on their 2003 album Other People’s Songs.
• Guitarist Peter White remade the song for his 2016 album Groovin', with Amber DiLena providing vocals.

References

1. "100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time: Critics' Picks". Billboard. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
2. 1000 UK #1 Hits by Jon Kutner and Spencer Leigh
3. Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 198. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
4. https://www.billboard.com/charts/hot-100/1974-12-14
5. Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–2001. Record Research. p. 243.
6. Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942–2004. Record Research. p. 578.
7. Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 303–4. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
8. Steffen Hung. "Forum – 1970 (ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts)". Australian-charts.com. Archived from the original on June 2, 2016. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
9. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. December 7, 1974. Retrieved September 26, 2019.
10. "SA Charts 1965–March 1989". Retrieved September 5, 2018.
11. "Top 100 1974-12-07". Cashbox Magazine. Retrieved 2016-01-19.
12. Bac-lac.gc.ca
13. "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1974" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Hung Medien. Retrieved March 2, 2018.
14. "Top 20 Hit Singles of 1974". Retrieved September 2, 2018.
15. "Top 100 Hits of 1975/Top 100 Songs of 1975". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved October 10, 2016.
16. "Top 100 Year End Charts: 1975". Cashbox Magazine. Retrieved 2015-01-17.
17. chartsurfer.de
18. chartsurfer.de

Famousfix/Music/Belford Hendricks/Songs Violin music arranger

External links

• Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics