Key Largo (song)

"Key Largo" is the debut single by Bertie Higgins, released in September 1981. It became, in early 1982, Higgins' only top 40 hit in the United States, peaking at No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The track spent 17 weeks in the top 40 and was certified gold by the RIAA.^[2] In addition, "Key Largo" topped the Adult Contemporary chart for two weeks.^[3] In the United Kingdom, it reached No. 60 on the UK Singles Chart.

"Key Largo"
Side A of US single
Single by Bertie Higgins
from the album Just Another Day in Paradise
B-side	"White Line Fever"
Released	September 1981
Recorded	1981
Genre	Soft rock[1]
Length	3:20 3:05 (7")
Label	Kat Family, Epic
Songwriter(s)	Bertie Higgins, Sonny Limbo
Producer(s)	Sonny Limbo, Scott MacLellan
Bertie Higgins singles chronology
"Key Largo" (1981) "Just Another Day in Paradise" (1982)

Background and content

The song's lyrics plead with a lover to reconsider ending a romance the singer compares to that depicted by Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, the stars of the 1948 namesake film. The glamorous couple is recalled in the lyric We had it all / Just like Bogie and Bacall / Starring in our own late late show / Sailin' away to Key Largo. The lyrics also draw from the film Casablanca, in the lines "Here's looking at you, kid" and "Please say you will / Play it again". The song "Key Largo" was included on Higgins' album Just Another Day in Paradise.

In 2009, VH1 ranked "Key Largo" #75 on its program 100 Greatest One Hit Wonders of the 80s.

Music video

A promotional music video was produced in 1982, filmed in and around Tarpon Springs, Florida and directed by David Jean Schweitzer. It begins with Bertie Higgins leaning against a pole, smoking a cigarette, reminiscing. Later, the singer is seen walking with a young woman, played by then-17-year-old Patty Wolfe.^[4] The scene then cuts to the pair riding in a motorboat around Anclote Key, off Tarpon Springs. The video also shows them in a car on Fred Howard Park. The final moments depict the two walking along a beach at sunset.

Chart performance

Weekly charts Chart (1981–82) Peak position Australia (Kent Music Report)[5] 2 Canadian RPM Top Singles[6] 3 Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary Tracks[7] 1 Ireland (IRMA)[8] 6 New Zealand Singles Chart 8 South Africa (Springbok)[9] 18 UK Singles Chart[10] 60 US Billboard Adult Contemporary Tracks 1 US Billboard Hot Country Singles 50 US Billboard Hot 100[11] 8 US Cash Box Top 100[12] 7

Year-end charts Chart (1982) Rank Australia (Kent Music Report)[13][14] 5 Canada RPM Top Singles [15] 29 US Billboard Hot 100[16] 17 US Cash Box [17] 41

Certifications and sales

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[18]	Gold	50,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

See also

• List of Billboard Adult Contemporary number ones of 1982

References

1. "VH1's 40 Most Softsational Soft-Rock Songs". Stereogum. SpinMedia. May 31, 2007. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
2. Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 8th Edition (Billboard Publications), page 285.
3. Hyatt, Wesley (1999). The Billboard Book of #1 Adult Contemporary Hits (Billboard Publications), page 262.
4. "Who Say's You Can't Go Home?". Archived from the original on 2016-08-19. Retrieved 2016-08-10.
5. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (Illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 138. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
6. "RPM Top Singles - Volume 36, No. 13". Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
7. "RPM Adult Contemporary - Volume 36, No. 9". Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
8. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Key Largo". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
9. "SA Charts 1969–March 1989". Retrieved 5 September 2018.
10. "Official Charts > Bertie Higgins". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 1, 2019.
11. ""Key Largo" by Bertie Higgins". Music Charts Archive. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
12. Cash Box Top 100 Singles, May 1, 1982^{[dead link]}
13. "National Top 100 Singles for 1982". Kent Music Report. January 3, 1983. Retrieved January 22, 2023 – via Imgur.
14. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (Illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 434. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
15. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2016-08-11. Retrieved 2018-01-17.
16. "Top 100 Hits of 1982/Top 100 Songs of 1982". musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-06-20.
17. "Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 25, 1982". Archived from the original on July 11, 2018. Retrieved January 17, 2018.
18. "Platinum and Gold Singles 1982". Kent Music Report. 28 February 1983. Retrieved 10 November 2021 – via Imgur.

External links

• Single release info at discogs.com
• Key Largo video on youtube.com