Lovesick Blues
Encyclopedia
"Lovesick Blues" is a show tune
written by composer Cliff Friend
and co-lyricist & producer Irving Mills
. It has become a pop standard and an even more popular country song since it helped make Hank Williams famous in the 1940s. Published through Tin Pan Alley
in 1922, the song was first recorded by the popular contralto Elsie Clark. Later that year, it was recorded by Jack Shea (not the 1932 Olympic medalist speed skater) on Vocalion 14333. This recording contains a verse that no later versions include. Emmett Miller
recorded it on Okeh 40465, September 1, 1925. He re-recorded it on June 12 1928, accompanied by his Georgia Crackers (which included Tommy Dorsey
, Jimmy Dorsey
, Eddie Lang
, and Leo McConville). On November 26, 1926, blues singer Bertha "Chippie" Hill recorded a different song titled "Lovesick Blues" (Okeh 8453). The song was a minor hit for her. The first country music version of the song was by Rex Griffin
(Decca 5570), September 25, 1939. The song's most recognizable version did not come until 1948, with Williams' hit rendition.
Though Williams had scored a few hits prior to "Lovesick Blues," the song was the first of many number one hits on Country radio for the singer. It also marked one of the songwriter's few cover songs
. The song's monumental success led to Williams' tenure at the Grand Ole Opry
and remains one of his best remembered songs. In 2004, it was one of 50 recordings chosen that year by the Library of Congress
to be added to the National Recording Registry
. His version of the song appeared in such films as The Last Picture Show
(1971) and The Shawshank Redemption
(1994).
Since Williams' hit rendition of the song, it has been covered by a wide array of performers. Country performers including Slim Whitman
(1957), Patsy Cline
(1960), Glen Campbell
(1974), Charley Pride
(1973), and LeAnn Rimes
(1999), have all recorded their own renditions of the song. Floyd Cramer's rock-and-roll cover crossed over to pop audiences in 1962, while Frank Ifield
took the song to #1 in the United Kingdom
in 1963. In the 1970s, Jerry Lee Lewis
, Little Richard
, Arlo Guthrie
, Don McLean
, and Linda Ronstadt
all covered the song. George Strait
took his cover all the way to #24 on the country chart in 1992 with little traditional promotion of the single. Alt-country artist Ryan Adams
recorded the song for Timeless, a Hank Williams tribute album.
Show tune
A show tune is a popular song originally written as part of the score of a "show" , especially if the piece in question has become a "standard", more or less detached in most people's minds from the original context...
written by composer Cliff Friend
Cliff Friend
Cliff Friend was an accomplished songwriter and pianist. A member of Tin Pan Alley, Friend co-wrote several hits including "Lovesick Blues," "My Blackbirds Are Bluebirds Now" and "The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down," also known as the theme song to the Looney Tunes cartoon series.-Early life:Friend was...
and co-lyricist & producer Irving Mills
Irving Mills
Irving Mills was a jazz music publisher, also known by the name of "Joe Primrose."Mills was born to Jewish parents in the Lower East Side of Manhattan in New York City. He founded Mills Music with his brother Jack in 1919...
. It has become a pop standard and an even more popular country song since it helped make Hank Williams famous in the 1940s. Published through Tin Pan Alley
Tin Pan Alley
Tin Pan Alley is the name given to the collection of New York City music publishers and songwriters who dominated the popular music of the United States in the late 19th century and early 20th century...
in 1922, the song was first recorded by the popular contralto Elsie Clark. Later that year, it was recorded by Jack Shea (not the 1932 Olympic medalist speed skater) on Vocalion 14333. This recording contains a verse that no later versions include. Emmett Miller
Emmett Miller
Emmett Miller was an American minstrel show performer and recording artist known for his falsetto, yodel-like voice. Little-remembered today, Miller was a major influence on many country music singers, including Hank Williams, Jimmie Rodgers, Milton Brown, Tommy Duncan, and Merle Haggard...
recorded it on Okeh 40465, September 1, 1925. He re-recorded it on June 12 1928, accompanied by his Georgia Crackers (which included Tommy Dorsey
Tommy Dorsey
Thomas Francis "Tommy" Dorsey, Jr. was an American jazz trombonist, trumpeter, composer, and bandleader of the Big Band era. He was known as "The Sentimental Gentleman of Swing", due to his smooth-toned trombone playing. He was the younger brother of bandleader Jimmy Dorsey...
, Jimmy Dorsey
Jimmy Dorsey
James "Jimmy" Dorsey was a prominent American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, trumpeter, composer, and big band leader. He was known as "JD"...
, Eddie Lang
Eddie Lang
Eddie Lang was an American jazz guitarist, regarded as the Father of Jazz Guitar. He played a Gibson L-4 and L-5 guitar, providing great influence for many guitarists, including Django Reinhardt.-Biography:...
, and Leo McConville). On November 26, 1926, blues singer Bertha "Chippie" Hill recorded a different song titled "Lovesick Blues" (Okeh 8453). The song was a minor hit for her. The first country music version of the song was by Rex Griffin
Rex Griffin
Alsie "Rex" Griffin was an American country musician and songwriter.-Early years:Griffin was born in Gadsden, Alabama as the second of seven children to Marion and Selma Griffin. He grew up on a farm and received little schooling, eventually finding work in the factory where his father worked as a...
(Decca 5570), September 25, 1939. The song's most recognizable version did not come until 1948, with Williams' hit rendition.
Though Williams had scored a few hits prior to "Lovesick Blues," the song was the first of many number one hits on Country radio for the singer. It also marked one of the songwriter's few cover songs
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
. The song's monumental success led to Williams' tenure at the Grand Ole Opry
Grand Ole Opry
The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, that has presented the biggest stars of that genre since 1925. It is also among the longest-running broadcasts in history since its beginnings as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM-AM...
and remains one of his best remembered songs. In 2004, it was one of 50 recordings chosen that year by the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
to be added to the National Recording Registry
National Recording Registry
The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically important, and/or inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservation Act of 2000, which created the National Recording...
. His version of the song appeared in such films as The Last Picture Show
The Last Picture Show
The Last Picture Show is a 1971 American drama film directed by Peter Bogdanovich, adapted from a semi-autobiographical 1966 novel of the same name by Larry McMurtry....
(1971) and The Shawshank Redemption
The Shawshank Redemption
The Shawshank Redemption is a 1994 American drama film written and directed by Frank Darabont and starring Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman....
(1994).
Since Williams' hit rendition of the song, it has been covered by a wide array of performers. Country performers including Slim Whitman
Slim Whitman
Ottis Dewey Whitman, Jr. , known professionally as Slim Whitman, is an American country music singer and songwriter, known for his yodelling abilities. He has sold in excess of 120 million albums in unit sales and has had numerous successful recordings...
(1957), Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline , born Virginia Patterson Hensley in Gore, Virginia, was an American country music singer who enjoyed pop music crossover success during the era of the Nashville sound in the early 1960s...
(1960), Glen Campbell
Glen Campbell
Glen Travis Campbell is an American country music singer, guitarist, television host and occasional actor. He is best known for a series of hits in the 1960s and 1970s, as well as for hosting a variety show called The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour on CBS television.During his 50 years in show...
(1974), Charley Pride
Charley Pride
Charley Frank Pride is an American country music singer. His smooth baritone voice was featured on thirty-nine number-one hits on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts. His greatest success came in the early- to mid-1970s, when he became the best-selling performer for RCA Records since Elvis...
(1973), and LeAnn Rimes
LeAnn Rimes
LeAnn Rimes is an American country/pop singer. She is known for her rich vocals and her rise to fame as an eight-year-old champion on the original Ed McMahon version of Star Search, followed by the release of the Patsy Cline-intended single "Blue" when Rimes was only age 13, resulting in her...
(1999), have all recorded their own renditions of the song. Floyd Cramer's rock-and-roll cover crossed over to pop audiences in 1962, while Frank Ifield
Frank Ifield
Francis Edward Ifield is an early Australian-English easy listening and country music singer. He achieved considerable success in the early 1960s, especially in the UK Singles Chart, where he had four Number 1 hits between 1962 and 1963....
took the song to #1 in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in 1963. In the 1970s, Jerry Lee Lewis
Jerry Lee Lewis
Jerry Lee Lewis is an American rock and roll and country music singer-songwriter and pianist. An early pioneer of rock and roll music, Lewis's career faltered after he married his young cousin, and he afterwards made a career extension to country and western music. He is known by the nickname 'The...
, Little Richard
Little Richard
Richard Wayne Penniman , known by the stage name Little Richard, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, recording artist, and actor, considered key in the transition from rhythm and blues to rock and roll in the 1950s. He was also the first artist to put the funk in the rock and roll beat and...
, Arlo Guthrie
Arlo Guthrie
Arlo Davy Guthrie is an American folk singer. Like his father, Woody Guthrie, Arlo often sings songs of protest against social injustice...
, Don McLean
Don McLean
Donald "Don" McLean is an American singer-songwriter. He is most famous for the 1971 album American Pie, containing the renowned songs "American Pie" and "Vincent".-Musical roots:...
, and Linda Ronstadt
Linda Ronstadt
Linda Ronstadt is an American popular music recording artist. She has earned eleven Grammy Awards, two Academy of Country Music awards, an Emmy Award, an ALMA Award, numerous United States and internationally certified gold, platinum and multiplatinum albums, in addition to Tony Award and Golden...
all covered the song. George Strait
George Strait
George Harvey Strait is an American country music singer, actor, and music producer. Strait is referred to as the "King of Country," and critics call Strait a living legend. He is known for his unique style of western swing music, bar-room ballads, honky-tonk style, and fresh yet traditional...
took his cover all the way to #24 on the country chart in 1992 with little traditional promotion of the single. Alt-country artist Ryan Adams
Ryan Adams
David Ryan Adams is an American alt-country/rock singer-songwriter, from Jacksonville, North Carolina. Initially part of the group Whiskeytown, Adams left the band and released his first solo album Heartbreaker in 2000...
recorded the song for Timeless, a Hank Williams tribute album.
Hank Williams version
| Chart (1949) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 24 |
Sonny James version
| Chart (1957) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles | 15 |
Floyd Cramer version
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1962 | Billboard Pop Singles Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
87 |
Frank Ifield version
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1963 | Billboard Pop Singles Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
44 |
| 1962 | UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
1 |
George Strait version
| Chart (1992) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks | 24 |
| Canadian RPM Country Tracks | 23 |
Other versions
- Linda RonstadtLinda RonstadtLinda Ronstadt is an American popular music recording artist. She has earned eleven Grammy Awards, two Academy of Country Music awards, an Emmy Award, an ALMA Award, numerous United States and internationally certified gold, platinum and multiplatinum albums, in addition to Tony Award and Golden...
released a version on her 19701970 in music- Events :*January 3**Davy Jones announces he is leaving the Monkees**Former Pink Floyd frontman Syd Barrett releases his first solo album The Madcap Laughs....
album Silk PurseSilk PurseSilk Purse is the second solo album by Linda Ronstadt, released in March 1970, a year after the release of her first solo set, Hand Sown ... Home Grown...
. - Rachael PriceRachael PriceRachael Price is a jazz vocalist from Hendersonville, Tennessee. She is a graduate in Jazz Studies at the New England Conservatory in Massachusetts...
released a version on her 20082008 in music2008 was a huge year in music history with the emergence of pop superstars Lady Gaga and Katy Perry into the mainstream. Also, this is the year that is widely agreed upon by critics as the start of the fall of hip hop from the mainstream and the rise of Synthpop into the mainstream due to acts such...
album Refreshingly Cool.