Are You Lonesome Tonight: A Song History

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"Are You Lonesome To-night?" was written by lyricist Roy Turk and composer Lou Handman, and the 1926 Catalog of Copyright Entries lists it under Irving Berlin, Inc. of New York, with words and music credited to the two men.[1][2] The song is a waltz, and critic Will Friedwald notes that the original sheet music also carried a spoken recitation, with lines drawing on the opera Pagliacci and on the speech in Shakespeare's As You Like It that likens the world to a stage.[2] As a 1926 composition, it entered the United States public domain on January 1, 2022.[3]

Etching of a night landscape with a lone tower on a hilltop and a crescent moon above a dark valley

Samuel Palmer, The Lonely Tower, etching, fourth state of seven, 1879. Shown for its lonely night scene; it has no connection to the song.

Recording companies took it up quickly, and Friedwald counts at least ten versions made in 1927 alone.[2] Tenor Charles Hart recorded it in New York on May 9, 1927, for release on Harmony.[4] Contralto Vaughn De Leath, accompanied by pianist Bill Regis, cut it for Edison on June 13, 1927.[5] Henry Burr's version followed on Victor, recorded that August 5.[6] The Carter Family recorded it for Decca in New York on June 8, 1936, with Sara Carter singing lead, and it was issued as Decca 5240.[7] Friedwald calls theirs "the absolute strangest version," observing that the Carters blended much of Turk and Handman's song with material from elsewhere, and that the record names A. P. Carter as its only composer.[2]

Elvis Presley recorded the song at the request of his manager, Colonel Tom Parker, whose wife, Marie, was fond of it.[8] His single reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on November 28, 1960, and stayed there for six weeks.[9][8] It was also No. 1 on the British singles chart in February 1961.[10] Jim Miller includes it in 15 Tunes In The Public Domain Recorded By The Carter Family, Volume 1, a set of solo mountain dulcimer arrangements with tablature, lyrics and chord symbols, published by Fingers Of Steel.[11]

Our book that contains the song "Are You Lonesome Tonight"

Sources

  1. Library of Congress, Copyright Office (via Internet Archive): "Catalog of Copyright Entries, 1926: Music, New Series Vol. 21, Part 3".
  2. Will Friedwald, Slouching Towards Birdland: "Are You Lonesome To-Night? (Part 1)".
  3. Duke Law, Center for the Study of the Public Domain: "Public Domain Day 2022".
  4. Discography of American Historical Recordings: "Columbia matrix 144106. Are you lonesome to-night? / Charles Hart".
  5. Discography of American Historical Recordings: "Edison matrix 11734. Are you lonesome to-night? / Vaughn De Leath ; Bill Regis".
  6. Discography of American Historical Recordings: "Victor matrix BVE-39941. Are you lonesome to-night? / Henry Burr".
  7. Discography of American Historical Recordings: "Decca matrix 61130. Are you lonesome tonight / Carter Family".
  8. WKNO FM: "It's Lonesome At The Top".
  9. American Songwriter: "On This Day in 1960, the King of Rock and Roll Started a Six-Week Run at No. 1 With a Shakespeare-Inspired Single".
  10. Official Charts: "Official Singles Chart, 16 February 1961 - 22 February 1961".
  11. Fingers Of Steel: "Jim Miller, 15 Tunes In The Public Domain Recorded By The Carter Family, Volume 1".
  12. Image: Samuel Palmer, The Lonely Tower, etching, fourth state of seven, 1879. The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

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