A second version of the song, sung partly in English, released in 1996 as "Time to Say Goodbye", paired Bocelli with British sopranoSarah Brightman, and achieved even greater success, topping charts all across Europe, including Germany, where it became the biggest-selling single in history. Brightman and Bocelli produced a version with Brightman singing in German and Bocelli in Italian, with this version being available on the CD Time to Say Goodbye. That version alone has now sold more than 12 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling singles of all time. The song is also known in its Spanish-language version "Por ti volaré" ("For You I Shall Fly").
Background
The song's original single release by Polydor Records was not commercially successful in Italy, and received minor radio airplay there. Elsewhere it was a big hit; in France and Switzerland, the single topped the charts for six weeks, earning a triple Gold sales award. In Belgium, it became the biggest hit of all time, spending 12 weeks at No. 1.
Critical reception
Pan-European magazine Music & Media wrote about the song, "The Benelux triumph of poppy tenor Andrea Bocelli continues with this excellent seasonal anthem, which wisely leaves the singer’s classically trained voice in the spotlight. The orchestral arrangements take a back seat, as they should in Bocelli's case." After Sarah Brightman released her version, Larry Flick from Billboard stated that she "has one of the truly glorious voices in musical theater". He described the song as a "lushly orchestral piece". British magazine Music Week gave the duet version a top score of five out of five and named it Single of the Week, writing, "Mostly sung in Italian, it has a beautiful, soaring melody that gives it true 'Nessun Dorma' potential."
In Germany, East West Records, in conjunction with Polydor, marketed a lyrically changed version of "Con te partirò", retitled "Time to Say Goodbye", as the theme song for the final match of boxer Henry Maske (then the light-heavyweight champion of the International Boxing Federation), having seen previous success when Vangelis's "Conquest of Paradise" was also promoted via Maske's fights. "Time to Say Goodbye" was also turned into a duet with Sarah Brightman, who had performed "A Question of Honour" for one of Maske's previous fights. German producer Frank Peterson, who has worked with Brightman since 1991, opted to give the song an English title rather than the German title "Mit dir werde ich fortgehen". Recording of the song took place at Peterson's Nemo Studio, in Hamburg.
The match took place on 23 November 1996, pitting Maske against American Virgil Hill, and drew a television broadcast audience of over 21 million. Bocelli and Brightman performed the song to open the match, and it was used again during Maske's exit, poignantly, as Hill had won the match by split decision. It was the only loss of Maske's career.
By December, the "Time to Say Goodbye" single, released on 15 November 1996 through East West, had reached number one on the German singles chart, with sales estimated at 40,000–60,000 per day and projected for at least one million by the end of the year. Both singers' albums also received a boost in sales. Airplay on German radio stations such as Norddeutscher Rundfunk was well received by listeners. By February of the following year, the single had broken the all-time sales record in Germany with 1.65 million sales, and would eventually get certified 11× Gold for selling over 2,750,000 copies.
"Time to Say Goodbye" reached number two on the UK Singles Chart upon its release there in May 1997, and was certified gold. It remained in the top 30 for another two months, helped by steady radio airplay on BBC Radio 2, which was overtaking Radio 1 in popularity with an MOR-orientated playlist.
The duet was included on Brightman's 1997 album Timeless, re-titled as Time to Say Goodbye in the US with the song itself moved to the start of the album. Brightman has also recorded a solo version, which was released on the duet single as well as later albums including Classics and Diva: The Singles Collection. A live version was released on The Harem World Tour: Live from Las Vegas CD as well as her various tour DVDs. Bocelli and Brightman have performed the duet together publicly several times including Bocelli's "Statue of Liberty concert" held in New York City, and "Live in Tuscany" concerts.
Brightman's solo version serves as the main theme for the 2009 Japanese film Amalfi: Rewards of the Goddess, where she also made a cameo appearance.
"I Will Go with You (Con te partirò)" is a dance version performed by American singer-songwriter Donna Summer. Summer herself translated the lyrics into English, and her version was produced by Hex Hector. It was released as a single by Epic Records, which went to number one on the US Billboard dance chart. It also peaked at number two on the Spanish singles charts and number three on the Spanish Radio chart. As of 1999, it had sold over 221,000 units in the United States.
Critical reception
Chuck Taylor from Billboard magazine complimented the song as a "deliciously grand interpretation of the smash Andrea Bocelli/Sarah Brightman ballad 'Time to Say Goodbye'-replete with romantic new lyrics. Summer is in peak vocal form, alternating between technically sharp note-scaling and warmly soulful vamping." He also noted that she is "complemented by clubland hero Hex Hector's well-measured production, which couples melodramatic faux-classical string flourishes with time-sensitive dance beats."
Charts
Chart performance for "I Will Go with You (Con te partirò)" by Donna Summer
Since its release, the song has spawned numerous other versions and been performed by numerous other singers. Notable alternative versions include "Por ti volaré", a Spanish version with significantly modified lyrics.
Paloma San Basilio recorded a version sung in Spanish on the album Clásicamente Tuya in 1997.
Nana Mouskouri recorded a version on the 1997 album, Hommages.
Al Bano recorded a version on the 1998 album, Il nuovo concerto and on the 2013 compilation Canta Sanremo.
Welsh mezzo-soprano Katherine Jenkins included the song on her 2004 album, Second Nature. Jenkins' version was also released as a single on 21 February 2005.
American singer Nick Palance recorded this song on his solo CD, Memoirs in Song, in 2006.
Grégory Lemarchal (1983-2007) recorded a version for his album La voix d'un ange (The Voice of an Angel). Lemarchal suffered from cystic fibrosis that affected his lungs and the recording of the track proved difficult. The album was posthumously released on 18 June 2007 shortly after Lemarchal died on 30 April 2007 aged 23, while waiting for a lung transplant.
New Zealand singer Hayley Westenra included a version on her 2007 album, Amazing Grace– The Best of Hayley Westenra.
Swedish singer Sanna Nielsen's English-Swedish version was included in her 2007 album, Sanna 11–22.
André Rieu with Mirusia Louwerse also recorded a version of this song on the album, You'll Never Walk Alone. Mirusia and André Rieu also performed the song at the coronation of the king of Netherlands, Koning Willem Alexander, which was recorded for the DVD and CD Rieu Royale.
South African tenor Fanie de Jager recorded the song on his classical CD, My Classical Soul, in 2007.
Japanese classical-crossover singer Kanon recorded a version of the song and included it on her 2007 album, Precious.
The 2008 film Step Brothers has the song in its climax with Will Ferrell singing "Por ti Volaré", a Spanish-translated version of the song, along with an incorporating drum solo by John C. Reilly; Ferrell actually sang the part for the film.
Internet personality Ludwig Ahgren covered the song, mainly as a ruse to make it seem like an Artificial Intelligence version using his voice, in 2023. A fully produced music video has been uploaded to one of his YouTube channels.
In 2008, Danish pop duo the Loft released their single "Kiss You Goodbye" based on "Con te partirò" / "Time to Say Goodbye" and containing samples from the original.
In 2009, Twenty One Pilots sampled and featured the song throughout their similarly named "Time to Say Goodbye", with Tyler Joseph primarily rapping his verses over its reimagined track.
In May 2019, Jay-Z and Kanye West's unreleased song "Living So Italian", which samples "Con te partirò", surfaced online. It was recorded for their collaborative album Watch the Throne (2011), but was excluded from the final track list as Jay-Z and West were unable to clear the sample.
12"Israeli Charts". 13 May 1997. Archived from the original on 26 June 2026. Retrieved 22 September 2026. Search "Time to Say Goodbye (Con te partirò)" for Israeli chart history.
↑"Andrea Bocelli" (in Portuguese). Rede Manchete. 1998. p.28. Retrieved 19 February 2021. Time To Say Goodbye, que já vendeu cerca de 50 mil cópias no Brasil
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