| Love Me Tender (song) |
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BACKGROUND A song sung by Elvis Presley , to the tune of " Aura Lee " (or "Aura Lea"), a sentimental Civil War ballad with music by George R. Poulton and words by W.W. Fosdick . It was published in 1861 and this Civil War song later became popular with college glee clubs and barbershop quartets. It was also sung at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York. Elvis originally performed it in the 1956 movie '' Love Me Tender ''. The song is credited to Presley and Vera Matson due to royalty issues, but the lyric was written by Ken Darby (her husband). He also arranged the Civil War tune. When asked why he credited his wife along with Presley, Darby responded, "Because she didn't write it either." Darby also wrote the other three songs in '' Love Me Tender '' and it has been said that Elvis didn't like any of these songs, except the title tune. ELVIS PRESLEY RECORDING The song hit #1 on the Billboard charts the week ending November 3 , 1956 , remaining in the position for 5 weeks. It was also an achievement as "Love Me Tender" succeeded another Presley Single , "Hound Dog/Don't Be Cruel" at #1. This occurrence marked two important events in Billboard history. It was the first time an artist had occupied the Top 2 positions of the Hot 100, and more importantly, it was the first time an artist had replaced themselves at #1. During this time, Elvis accomplished another record at the time; the longest consecutive stay at number one by a single artist, sixteen weeks, though this was tied by Boyz II Men in 1994 and stood for forty-eight years until being surpassed by R&B singer Usher in 2004 who spent 19 weeks at the top of the charts. OTHER RECORDINGS ''. It was also covered by Scatman John on the B-side of his 1996 single " Su Su Su Super Kirei ". It was also covered by Mocedades . EXTERNAL LINKS |
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