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Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite

1954 song performed by The Spaniels

Manuscripts, fine bindings, an engraving plate and preserved performance ephemera
Arts and lettersInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionMay 11, 2026
Entity authorityQ5583553 ↗
Source-derived summary

"Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite" is a popular song that was a hit during the mid-1950s. It was written by Calvin Carter and James "Pookie" Hudson in 1951, and was first recorded by The Spaniels in 1953. It has also been released by some artists as "Goodnight, Well It's Time to Go".

The Spaniels version

The song was originally released by the R&B doo-wop group The Spaniels in March 1954. The original version peaked at No. 5 on Billboard's "Rhythm and Blues Records" chart of "Best Sellers in Stores", No. 5 on Billboard's "Rhythm and Blues Records" chart of "Most Played in Juke Boxes", and No. 3 on Cash Box's Rhythm & Blues Top 15.

The Spaniels' version was ranked No. 20 on Billboard's ranking of "1954's Top R&B Records according to Retail Sales" and No.

Editorial summary

This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite” as 1954 song performed by The Spaniels. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.

Editorial reviewBest approached as a cultural-object dossier: authorship and date matter, but circulation and reception often explain the wider significance. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1951, 1953, 1954—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1954-03. The account is most persuasive where Goodnite, Sweetheart and song can be independently traced.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The subject matters to the arts & letters register because the source frames it as 1954 song performed by The Spaniels. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.

Evidence profile

Reception evidence should be dated and situated: later canonical status may differ sharply from the work’s initial circulation. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 11, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q5583553. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1951, 1953 and 1954.

Critical limits

Rights, attribution and provenance may remain disputed even when a general reference summary presents a stable account. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Separate the work, its editions or performances, and its later reception. Catalogue records, publication histories and object files often preserve different parts of that story.

Best used for
  • Identifying works and editions
  • Tracing reception history
  • Finding collection records
Verify next

The original object or edition, catalogue raisonné, performance record, rights file and holding institution.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite primary sources, Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite archive and Goodnite research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite”?
  2. Where is authorship, date or provenance documented?
  3. Which edition, object, performance or recording is being described?
Subject index

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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.