Love Letters (song)
Encyclopedia
"Love Letters" is a 1945 popular
song
with music by Victor Young
and lyrics by Edward Heyman
. The song appeared, without lyrics, in the movie of the same name
, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Song for 1945
.
The song has been performed many times, but the best-known versions were made by:
The song has also been recorded by:
American film director David Lynch
used Ketty Lester's version on the soundtrack for his 1986 film, Blue Velvet.
Popular music
Popular music belongs to any of a number of musical genres "having wide appeal" and is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. It stands in contrast to both art music and traditional music, which are typically disseminated academically or orally to smaller, local...
song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
with music by Victor Young
Victor Young
Victor Young was an American composer, arranger, violinist and conductor. He was born in Chicago.-Biography:...
and lyrics by Edward Heyman
Edward Heyman
Edward Heyman was an American musician and lyricist, best known for his compositions "Body and Soul", "When I Fall in Love", and "For Sentimental Reasons". He also contributed many songs for films.-Biography:...
. The song appeared, without lyrics, in the movie of the same name
Love Letters (1945 film)
Love Letters is a 1945 film adapted by Ayn Rand from the novel Pity My Simplicity by Christopher Massie. It was directed by William Dieterle and stars Jennifer Jones, Joseph Cotten, Ann Richards, Cecil Kellaway, Gladys Cooper and Anita Louise...
, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Song for 1945
1945 in film
The year 1945 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* Paramount Studios releases theatrical short cartoon titled The Friendly Ghost, featuring a ghost named Casper.* With Rossellini's Roma Città aperta, Italian neorealist cinema begins....
.
The song has been performed many times, but the best-known versions were made by:
- Dick HaymesDick HaymesRichard Benjamin "Dick" Haymes was an Argentine actor and one of the most popular male vocalists of the 1940s and early 1950s. He was the older brother of Bob Haymes, who was an actor, television host, and songwriter....
(in 19451945 in music-Events:*The Motion Picture Daily Fame Poll designates Bing Crosby "Top Male Vocalist" for the ninth straight year.*July 26 - Composer Ernest John Moeran marries cellist Peers Coetmore.*August 19 - Dick Powell marries June Allyson....
, US #11) - Ketty LesterKetty LesterKetty Lester is an American singer and actress, who is best known for her 1962 hit single, "Love Letters", which reached the Top 5 of the charts in both the United States and the United Kingdom.-Life and career:...
(in 19621962 in music-Events:*January 1 – The Beatles and Brian Poole and the Tremeloes both audition at Decca Records, a company which has the option of signing one group only...
, US #5, US R&B #2, UK #4) - Elvis PresleyElvis PresleyElvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
(in 19661966 in music-Events:*January 3 – Hullabaloo shows promotional videos of The Beatles songs "Day Tripper" and "We Can Work it Out".*January 8 – Shindig! airs for the last time on ABC, with musical guests the Kinks and the Who...
, US #19, UK #6) - Alison MoyetAlison MoyetAlison Moyet , is an English singer, songwriter and performer noted for her bluesy voice.Her UK album sales have reached a certified 2.3 million, with 800,000 singles sold, all in the UK, where all seven of her studio albums and three compilation albums have charted in the Top 40 UK Album Chart,...
(in 19871987 in musicThis is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1987.See also:Record labels established in 1987-January-February:*January 3 – Aretha Franklin becomes the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame...
, UK #4)
The song has also been recorded by:
- Nat King ColeNat King ColeNathaniel Adams Coles , known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American musician who first came to prominence as a leading jazz pianist. Although an accomplished pianist, he owes most of his popular musical fame to his soft baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz genres...
, on his 1957 album Love Is the ThingLove Is the ThingLove Is the Thing is a 1957 album released by American jazz vocalist Nat King Cole. It is the first of four collaborations between Cole and influential arranger Gordon Jenkins. Launching the charting single "Stardust", which peaked at #79, the album reached #1 on Billboard's "Pop Albums" chart and... - Jack JonesJack Jones (singer)John Allan "Jack" Jones is an American jazz and pop singer. He was one of the most popular vocalists of the 1960s.-Overview:...
, for his 1961 album Lollipops and Roses - Shelley FabaresShelley FabaresMichele Ann Marie "Shelley" Fabares is an American actress and singer. Fabares is known for her roles as Donna Reed's oldest child, Mary Stone, on The Donna Reed Show , and as Craig T. Nelson's love interest and eventual wife, Christine Armstrong Fox, on the sitcom Coach. She also was Elvis...
, on her 1962 album Shelley!Shelley! (album)Shelley! is the self-titled debut pop album by singer and actress Shelley Fabares released in 1962 on Colpix Records. It was available in both mono and stereo, catalogue numbers CP-426 and SCP-426.... - Stanley TurrentineStanley TurrentineStanley William Turrentine, also known as "Mr. T" or "The Sugar Man", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist.-Biography:Turrentine was born in Pittsburgh's Hill District into a musical family...
, on his 1964 album Hustlin'Hustlin' (album)Hustlin' is an album by jazz saxophonist Stanley Turrentine recorded for the Blue Note label and performed by Turrentine with Shirley Scott, Kenny Burrell, Bob Cranshaw, and Otis Finch.-Reception:... - Cilla BlackCilla BlackCilla Black OBE is an English singer, actress, entertainer and media personality, who has been consistently popular as a light entertainment figure since 1963. She is most famous for her singles Anyone Who Had A Heart, You're My World, and Alfie...
, for her 1965 album CillaCillaCilla is an English female given name, originally the diminutive form of Priscilla and less frequently Drusilla. It first appeared in the 20th century.People named Cilla include:*Cilla Black , English singer, actress and entertainer... - Sandie ShawSandie ShawSandie Shaw is an English pop singer, who was one of the most successful British female singers of the 1960s. In 1967 she was the first UK act to win the Eurovision Song Contest...
, for her 1965 album Sandie - Earl GrantEarl GrantEarl Grant was an American easy listening pianist, Hammond organist, and vocalist popular in the 1950s and 1960s.-Career:...
, for his 1965 album Spotlight On Earl Grant - Billy Thorpe & the AztecsBilly Thorpe & the AztecsBilly Thorpe and the Aztecs were an Australian pop and rock group dating from the mid-sixties. The group enjoyed huge success in the mid-1960s, but split in 1967. They re-emerged in the early seventies to become one of the most popular Australian hard-rock bands of the period...
released as a single November 1965 - The LettermenThe LettermenThe Lettermen are an American male pop music vocal trio. The Lettermen's trademark is close-harmony pop songs with light arrangements. The group started in 1959...
, for their 1966 album A New Song for Young Love - Don PattersonDon Patterson (organist)Don Patterson was an American jazz organist.Patterson played piano from childhood and was heavily influenced by Erroll Garner in his youth. In 1956, he switched to organ after hearing Jimmy Smith play the instrument...
, from his 1967 album Soul Happening! - Sergio FranchiSergio FranchiSergio Franchi was an Italian tenor.Franchi was born in Cremona, Italy. His father wanted him to become an electrical engineer, so he studied both music and engineering simultaneously. The family moved to South Africa in 1952, where Sergio worked part-time as a draftsman, while continuing to study...
on his 1968 RCA Victor album I'm A Fool to Want You - FoxFox (band)Fox was a British-based pop band popular in the mid 1970s. Led by American songwriter and record producer Kenny Young, the band was perhaps best known for its charismatic Australian lead singer Susan Traynor, who performed under the name Noosha Fox....
, for their debut 1975 album FoxFox (album)Fox is the debut album by the band of the same name released in 1975. The cover photography was by Gered Mankowitz.-Track listing:All songs by Kenny Young unless noted.#"Love Letters" #"Imagine Me, Imagine You"... - Teresa CarpioTeresa CarpioTeresa Carpio is a Hong Kong English pop and Cantopop singer, actor and singing teacher, born in Hong Kong. She is the mother of singer T. V. Carpio.-Family background:Carpio's father is Filipino and her mother Chinese. Born into a musical family...
& George LamGeorge LamGeorge Lam Chi Cheung, also known professionally by his surname Lam, is a Hong Kong-based veteran Cantopop singer and actor of Xinhui area origin. Lam studied at the Diocesan Boys' School in Kowloon, Hong Kong...
, for their 1978 album Teresa Carpio & Lam - Joe WalshJoe WalshJoseph Fidler "Joe" Walsh is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He has been a member of three commercially successful bands, the James Gang, Barnstorm, and the Eagles, and has experienced notable success as a solo artist and prolific session musician, especially with B.B...
, for his 1983 album You Bought It, You Name ItYou Bought It, You Name ItYou Bought It – You Name It is the sixth studio album by Joe Walsh, released in 1983 .-Reception:Writing for Allmusic, critic James Chrispell wrote of the album "Rather retro in feel, like the title, it harkens back to a wackier time... - Miki MatsubaraMiki Matsubarawas a Japanese singer, lyricist and composer from Nishi-ku, Sakai, Japan.She is known mainly as a pop singer by some hit songs like "Mayonaka no door", "Neat na gogo san-ji", "The Winner", among others. During her career, she has released 16 singles, 9 albums. Despite her work being mainly...
for her 1984 album Blue Eyes - Steve JonesSteve Jones (musician)Stephen Philip "Steve" Jones is an English rock guitarist, singer and actor, best known as guitarist and founding member of the punk rock band the Sex Pistols.-Childhood:...
, Ex-Sex Pistol; for his 1987 Solo Album MercyMercy (Steve Jones album)Mercy is a 1987 hard rock album by Steve Jones. It was the first solo album from Jones, a former member of the Sex Pistols. The single Mercy was used in a Miami Vice episode called "Stone's War" and was also featured on the Miami Vice II soundtrack album.-Track listing:#"Mercy" – 5:04#"Give It Up"... - Jenni Forbes, for the 1990 film "The CrossingThe Crossing (1990 film)The Crossing is a 1990 Australian drama film directed by George Ogilvie and starring Russell Crowe, Robert Mammone and Danielle Spencer, which was filmed in the towns of Junee and Condobolin in New South Wales.-Box office:...
" - Sinéad O'ConnorSinéad O'ConnorSinéad Marie Bernadette O'Connor is an Irish singer-songwriter. She rose to fame in the late 1980s with her debut album The Lion and the Cobra and achieved worldwide success in 1990 with a cover of the song "Nothing Compares 2 U"....
, for her 1992 album Am I Not Your Girl?Am I Not Your Girl?Am I Not Your Girl? is the third album by Irish singer Sinéad O'Connor and the follow-up to the hugely successful I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got. It is a collection of covers of mostly jazz standards, which Sinead describes as "the songs I grew up listening to [and] that made me want to be a... - Elton JohnElton JohnSir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
& Bonnie RaittBonnie RaittBonnie Lynn Raitt is an American blues singer-songwriter and a renowned slide guitar player. During the 1970s, Raitt released a series of acclaimed roots-influenced albums which incorporated elements of blues, rock, folk and country, but she is perhaps best known for her more commercially...
, for the 1993 album DuetsDuets (Elton John album)Duets is the twenty-fourth studio album by British singer/songwriter Elton John, released in 1993. Duets was released on a single CD and also as a double vinyl LP in the UK, with a slightly different running order. It was initially a Christmas project of Elton John's, but that soon grew into an... - Ruth BrownRuth BrownRuth Brown was an American pop and R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, composer and actress, noted for bringing a pop music style to R&B music in a series of hit songs for Atlantic Records in the 1950s, such as "So Long", "Teardrops from My Eyes" and " He Treats Your Daughter Mean".For these...
, for her 1997 album R+B = Ruth Brown - Etta JamesEtta JamesEtta James is an American blues, soul, rhythm and blues , rock and roll, gospel and jazz singer. In the 1950s and 1960s, she had her biggest success as a blues and R&B singer...
, for her 2001 album Blue GardeniaBlue Gardenia (album)Blue Gardenia is an album by Etta James, released in August 2001 through the record label Private Music. Produced by John Snyder, who had worked with James on five of her previous studio albums, Blue Gardenia contains thirteen jazz standards from the 1930s–50s arranged by pianist Cedar Walton... - Diana KrallDiana KrallDiana Jean Krall, OC, OBC is a Canadian jazz pianist and singer, known for her contralto vocals. She has sold more than 6 million albums in the US and over 15 million worldwide; altogether, she has sold more albums than any other female jazz artist during the 1990s and 2000s...
, for her 2001 album The Look of Love - Jason DonovanJason DonovanJason Donovan is an Australian actor and singer. He initially achieved fame in the Australian soap opera Neighbours, before beginning a career in music in 1988. In the UK he has sold over 3 million records, and his début album Ten Good Reasons was one of the highest-selling albums of 1989...
, for his 2008 album Let It Be MeLet It Be Me (album)Let It Be Me is the fourth studio album by the Australian singer Jason Donovan. It was released in November 2008, and was Donovan's first new studio album in 15 years. It reached no.28 in the UK.... - Dex Romweber Duo, from their 2009 album "Ruins of Berlin"
American film director David Lynch
David Lynch
David Keith Lynch is an American filmmaker, television director, visual artist, musician and occasional actor. Known for his surrealist films, he has developed his own unique cinematic style, which has been dubbed "Lynchian", and which is characterized by its dream imagery and meticulous sound...
used Ketty Lester's version on the soundtrack for his 1986 film, Blue Velvet.