«If You Leave Me Now» [1976] – Chicago (w/lyrics)

–LYRICS–
If you leave me now, you'll take away the biggest part of me
Oooh no, baby please don't go

And If you leave me now, you'll take away the very heart of me
Oooh no, baby please don't go
Oooh girl, I just want you to stay

A love like ours is love that's hard to find
How could we let it slip away
We've come too far to leave it all behind
How could we end it all this way
When tomorrow comes we'll both regret
The things we said today

A love like ours is love that's hard to find
How could we let it slip away
We've come too far to leave it all behind
How could we end it all this way
When tomorrow comes we'll both regret
The things we said today

If you leave me now, you'll take away the biggest part of me
Oooh no, baby please don't go

Oooh girl, I just got to have you by my side
Oooh no, baby please don't go
Oooh mama, I just got to have your lovin'

–INFORMATION–
"If You Leave Me Now" is the title of a popular hit ballad by the American rock group Chicago, from their album Chicago X. It was written and sung by bass guitar player Peter Cetera and released as a single on July 31, 1976. It is also the title of a Chicago compilation album released by Columbia Records (Columbia 38590) in 1983.

The single topped the US charts on October 23, 1976, and stayed there for two weeks, making it the first number one hit for the group as well as hitting number one on the Easy Listening charts. "If You Leave Me Now" was also Chicago's biggest hit internationally, topping the charts in other countries such as the UK, Australia, Ireland, Canada, and Netherlands. In the UK it maintained the number one position for three weeks. It was one of only five "non-disco" songs to make it to number one in the US in a nine-month period of 1976. According to writer Zachary Houle of PopMatters, "The song was so pervasive on radio upon its release that, reportedly, those tuning in in New York could hear the song playing on four different stations, each with varying formats, simultaneously."

The song won Grammy Awards for Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s) (strings) for arranger Jimmie Haskell and producer James William Guercio and Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo, Group or Chorus, the first Grammy Award won by the group. It also received a Grammy nomination for Record of the Year. In addition, by August 1978 it had sold 1.4 million copies in the United States alone. It has been certified gold and platinum by the RIAA.

The song has been featured in the movies Three Kings (1999), Shaun of the Dead (2004), A Lot Like Love (2005), Happy Feet (2006), and Daddy's Home 2 (2017); the television series Sex and the City and South Park; and the video game Grand Theft Auto V. A sock puppet sang a version of the song in a 2000 Super Bowl commercial for Pets.com that was ranked as the number one Super Bowl commercial that year by the USA Today Ad Meter.

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