If I Let You Go

"If I Let You Go" is a song by Irish boy band Westlife. It was released in the United Kingdom on 9 August 1999 as the second single from their self-titled debut album (1999). It became the band's second number-one hit, spending 11 weeks on the UK Singles Chart. The song has received a Platinum sales certification in the UK for selling over 600,000 in combined sales of purchased and streaming-equivalent sales. It is the band's 10th-best-selling single in paid-for sales and combined sales in the UK as of January 2019.^[1]

"If I Let You Go"
One of European artworks
Single by Westlife
from the album Westlife
B-side	"Try Again"
Released	9 August 1999 (1999-08-09)
Studio	Cheiron (Stockholm, Sweden)
Length	3:40
Label	RCA BMG
Songwriter(s)	Jörgen Elofsson Per Magnusson David Kreuger
Producer(s)	Per Magnusson David Kreuger
Westlife singles chronology
"Swear It Again" (1999) "If I Let You Go" (1999) "Flying Without Wings" (1999)
Music video
"If I Let You Go" on YouTube

Composition

"If I Let You Go" composed in the traditional verse–chorus form in B♭ major, with Brian McFadden, Shane Filan, and Mark Feehily's vocals ranging from the chords of D₄ to A₅.^[2]

Music video

The music video was directed by Sven Harding and was filmed in Tenerife, Spain.^[3] It depicts the band walking along a beach and singing by a hillside surrounded by red and yellow flags.^[4]

Track listings

UK CD1[5] "If I Let You Go" (radio edit) "Try Again" Enhanced CD UK CD2[6] "If I Let You Go" (radio edit) "If I Let You Go" (extended version) Interview with Andi Peters

UK cassette single and European CD single[7][8] "If I Let You Go" (radio edit) "Try Again" Australian CD single[9] "If I Let You Go" (radio edit) – 3:38 "Try Again" – 3:34 "If I Let You Go" (extended version) – 6:07 Enhanced CD

Credits and personnel

Credits are lifted from the UK CD1 and Westlife liner notes.^[5][10]

Studios

• Recorded at Cheiron Studios (Stockholm, Sweden)
• Strings recorded at Soundtrade Studios (Stockholm, Sweden)
• Mixed at Mono Music Studios (Stockholm, Sweden)

Personnel

• Jörgen Elofsson – writing
• Per Magnusson – writing, keyboards, production, arrangement, programming
• David Kreuger – writing, arrangement, programming
• Andreas Carlsson – additional backing vocals
• Mats Berntoft – acoustic and electric guitars
• Tomas Lindberg – bass
• Ulf & Henrik Janson – string arrangement
• David Kreuger – production
• Bernard Lohr – recording (strings), mixing

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1999–2000) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[11] 13 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[12] 7 El Salvador (El Siglo de Torreón)[13] 9 Estonia (Eesti Top 20)[14] 17 Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[15] 8 Europe (European Hit Radio)[16] 31 Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[17] 7 Germany (GfK)[18] 50 Guatemala (El Siglo de Torreón)[19] 4 Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[20] 9 Ireland (IRMA)[21] 1 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[22] 20 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[23] 19 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[24] 8 Norway (VG-lista)[25] 1 Scotland (OCC)[26] 3 Spain (PROMUSICAE)[27] 18 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[28] 6 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[29] 25 UK Singles (OCC)[30] 1

Year-end charts Chart (1999) Position Australia (ARIA)[31] 95 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[32] 45 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[33] 100 New Zealand (RIANZ)[34] 28 Sweden (Hitlistan)[35] 35 UK Singles (OCC)[36] 59 Chart (2000) Position Brazil (Crowley)[37] 46

Certifications and sales

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[38]	Gold	35,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[39]	Gold	15,000‡
Sweden (GLF)[40]	Gold	15,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[41]	Platinum	600,000‡
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref.
Sweden	9 August 1999	CD	RCA BMG	[42]
United Kingdom		CD cassette		[43]