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Goodbye, Little Darlin', Goodbye

"Goodbye, Little Darlin', Goodbye" (also known as "Goodby Little Darlin") is a 1939 song written by Gene Autry and Johnny Marvin.[5] Autry sang it (as a duet with Mary Lee) in the December 1939 movie South of the Border,[6][7] and released it as a single in April 1940.[7] It went on to make both Popular and Hillbilly (Country) listings for 1940.

"Goodbye, Little Darlin', Goodbye"
Single by Gene Autry
B-side"When I'm Gone You'll Soon Forget"
PublishedMarch 15, 1940 (1940-03-15) by Western Music Publishing Co., Hollywood, Calif.[1]
ReleasedApril 1940 (1940-04)[2]
RecordedMarch 12, 1940 (1940-03-12)[3][4]
StudioCBS Columbia Square, Hollywood, California[3]
GenreHillbilly, Western
Length2:46
LabelVocalion 5463[3][2]
Songwriter(s)Johnny Marvin, Gene Autry[1]
Producer(s)Art Satherly
Gene Autry singles chronology
"I'm Beginning To Care"
(1940) 		"Goodbye, Little Darlin', Goodbye"
(1940) 		"El Rancho Grande"
(1940)
Audio
"Goodbye Little Darlin' Goodbye" on YouTube
"Goodbye Little Darlin'"
Single by Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two
A-side"Goodby Little Darlin'"
"You Tell Me"
Released1959 (1959)
GenreCountry
LabelSun 331
Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two singles chronology
"I Got Stripes"
(1959) 		"Goodbye Little Darlin'"
(1959) 		"Little Drummer Boy"
(1959)
Audio
"Goodby Little Darlin'" on YouTube

The song would be notably recorded by Johnny Cash[6][8] at Sun Records probably on December 13, 1956,[9] and released as a single (Sun 331, with "You Tell Me" on the opposite side) in September 1959,[10][11][12][13][14][15] when he had already left the label for Columbia.

Cash version

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According to John M. Alexander's book The Man in Song: A Discographic Biography of Johnny Cash, the song was not released as a single:

“Goodbye Little Darlin',” which was written by cowboy legend Gene Autry and songwriter Johnny Marvin, was the first Cash song Jack Clement produced. Its haunting beauty reveals a side of Cash not yet realized. His final farewell to a lover who is leaving him is truly heartbreaking. While the song was never released as a single, Cash had faith in it and would rerecord it in 1964 for his I Walk the Line album on Columbia Records. Both versions are impeccable, and either one would have made a worthy single for either label.

— John M. Alexander. The Man in Song: A Discographic Biography of Johnny Cash[5]

Chart performance

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Gene Autry

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Charts (1940) Rank
US Billboard National Best Selling Retail Records 20
"The Billboard Hillbilly Record Hits of the Month" column[16] 1
US Billboard National Best Selling Retail Records Year-End 264
"The Billboard Hillbilly Record Hits" Year-End 3

Johnny Cash

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Chart (1959) Rank
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[17] 22 22

References

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  1. ^ a b Library of Congress. Copyright Office. (1940). Catalog of Copyright Entries 1940 Musical Compositions New Series Vol 35 Pt 3 For the Year 1940. United States Copyright Office. U.S. Govt. Print. Off. p. 520.
  2. ^ a b "Vocalion 05463 (5000 10-in. series)". Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  3. ^ a b c Russell, Tony (2004). Country Music Records: A Discography, 1921–1942. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 85. ISBN 0-19-513989-5.
  4. ^ "Brunswick matrix LA2175. Goodbye little darlin' goodbye / Gene Autry". Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  5. ^ a b Alexander, John M. (2018-04-10). The Man in Song: A Discographic Biography of Johnny Cash. University of Arkansas Press. pp. 31–. ISBN 978-1-68226-051-7.
  6. ^ a b Hischak, Thomas S. (2002). The Tin Pan Alley Song Encyclopedia. Greenwood Press. ISBN 978-0-313-31992-1. "Goodbye, Little Darlin', Goodbye" (1940) is a cowboy farewell song that Gene Autry wrote with Johnny Marvin to sing in the movie South of the Border (1939). The rustic piece was recorded by Autry, Dick Robertson, Bing Crosby, Boxcar Willie ...
  7. ^ a b "Original versions of Goodbye Little Darlin' Goodbye written by Gene Autry, Johnny Marvin". SecondHandSongs. Retrieved 2019-01-21.
  8. ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The encyclopedia of popular music. MUZE. p. 122. ISBN 978-0-19-531373-4.
  9. ^ Smith, John L. (1 January 1999). Another Song to Sing: The Recorded Repertoire of Johnny Cash. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-3629-7.
  10. ^ JEMF Quarterly. John Edwards Memorial Foundation. 1974.
  11. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Country Singles, 1944 to 2001: Chart Data Compiled from Billboard's Country Singles Charts, 1944-2001. Record Research. ISBN 978-0-89820-151-2.
    Whitburn, Joel (2005). Joel Whitburn's Top Country Songs: 1944-2005, Billboard. Record Research. ISBN 978-0-89820-165-9.
  12. ^ Neely, Tim (2004-05-01). Goldmine Records & Prices. Krause Publications. ISBN 978-0-87349-781-7. Goodbye Little You Tell Me Sun 331.
  13. ^ Escott, Colin; Hawkins, Martin (1980). Sun Records: The Brief History of the Legendary Recording Label. Quick Fox. ISBN 978-0-8256-3161-0. Goodbye Little Darling You Tell Me.
  14. ^ Albert, George (1984-01-01). The Cash Box Country Singles Charts, 1958-1982. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-1685-5.
  15. ^ Lewry, Peter (2001). I've Been Everywhere: A Johnny Cash Chronicle. Helter Skelter. ISBN 978-1-900924-22-1.
    September
    Sun records release "You Tell Me"/ "Goodbye, Little Darlin" (Sun 331) and it registers on the country charts for just four weeks with a high of #22.
  16. ^ "The Billboard July 27, 1940 p84". worldradiohistory.com. July 27, 1940. Retrieved August 23, 2021.
  17. ^ "Johnny Cash Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 2019-01-17.
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