You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'
Encyclopedia
"You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" is a 1964 song by The Righteous Brothers
which became a number-one hit single in the United States
and the United Kingdom
the following year. In 1999, the performing-rights organization Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) ranked the song as having had more radio and television play in the United States than any other song during the 20th century. Additionally, the song was chosen as one of the Songs of the Century
by RIAA and ranked #34 on the list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time by Rolling Stone
.
, Phil Spector
and Cynthia Weil
, the song is one of the foremost examples of producer Phil Spector
's "Wall of Sound
" technique. Recorded in Studio A of the famed Gold Star Studios
in Los Angeles, it features 'The Wrecking Crew' instrumentally and lead vocals by Bill Medley
. Bobby Hatfield
reportedly expressed his annoyance to Spector upon learning that he would have to wait until the chorus before joining Medley’s vocals. When Hatfield asked Spector just what he was supposed to do during Medley’s solo, Spector replied: “You can go straight to the fucking bank.” The strings were arranged by legendary arranger Gene Page
. Among the background singers in the song's crescendo is a young Cher
.
Cynthia Weil recalled that, "After Phil, Barry and I finished [writing it], we took it over to the Righteous Brothers. Bill Medley, who has the low voice, seemed to like the song." Even with his interest in the song, however, Medley had his doubts. In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, he recalled, "We had no idea if it would be a hit. It was too slow, too long, and right in the middle of The Beatles and the British Invasion." Indeed, the song ran for nearly four minutes when released. This was much too long by contemporary AM standards, but Spector refused to cut it shorter. On the label where the time is indicated, he had "3:05" printed, instead of the track's actual running time of 3:45. He also added a false ending which made the recording more dramatic, and would also trick radio deejays into thinking it was a shorter song. Upon being played the finished record over the phone, co-writer Barry Mann reacted to Medley’s deep baritone by telling Spector, “Phil, you have it on the wrong speed!”
To Spector's surprise, "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin topped the Billboard Hot 100
dated 6 February 1965 and remained at #1 the week of 13 February 1965. In addition the song crossed over to the R&B charts peaking at number two.
"You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" is a 1964 song by The Righteous Brothers
which became a number-one hit single in the United States
and the United Kingdom
the following year. In 1999, the performing-rights organization Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) ranked the song as having had more radio and television play in the United States than any other song during the 20th century. Additionally, the song was chosen as one of the Songs of the Century
by RIAA and ranked #34 on the list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time by Rolling Stone
.
, Phil Spector
and Cynthia Weil
, the song is one of the foremost examples of producer Phil Spector
's "Wall of Sound
" technique. Recorded in Studio A of the famed Gold Star Studios
in Los Angeles, it features 'The Wrecking Crew' instrumentally and lead vocals by Bill Medley
. Bobby Hatfield
reportedly expressed his annoyance to Spector upon learning that he would have to wait until the chorus before joining Medley’s vocals. When Hatfield asked Spector just what he was supposed to do during Medley’s solo, Spector replied: “You can go straight to the fucking bank.”Hinckley, David (1991). Notes from Phil Spector: Back to Mono (1958-1969) boxed-set booklet. see Recording Details The strings were arranged by legendary arranger Gene Page
. Among the background singers in the song's crescendo is a young Cher
.
Cynthia Weil recalled that, "After Phil, Barry and I finished [writing it], we took it over to the Righteous Brothers. Bill Medley, who has the low voice, seemed to like the song." Even with his interest in the song, however, Medley had his doubts. In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, he recalled, "We had no idea if it would be a hit. It was too slow, too long, and right in the middle of The Beatles and the British Invasion." Indeed, the song ran for nearly four minutes when released. This was much too long by contemporary AM standards, but Spector refused to cut it shorter. On the label where the time is indicated, he had "3:05" printed, instead of the track's actual running time of 3:45. He also added a false ending which made the recording more dramatic, and would also trick radio deejays into thinking it was a shorter song. Upon being played the finished record over the phone, co-writer Barry Mann reacted to Medley’s deep baritone by telling Spector, “Phil, you have it on the wrong speed!”
To Spector's surprise, "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin topped the Billboard Hot 100
dated 6 February 1965 and remained at #1 the week of 13 February 1965. In addition the song crossed over to the R&B charts peaking at number two.
"You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" is a 1964 song by The Righteous Brothers
which became a number-one hit single in the United States
and the United Kingdom
the following year. In 1999, the performing-rights organization Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) ranked the song as having had more radio and television play in the United States than any other song during the 20th century. Additionally, the song was chosen as one of the Songs of the Century
by RIAA and ranked #34 on the list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time by Rolling Stone
.
, Phil Spector
and Cynthia Weil
, the song is one of the foremost examples of producer Phil Spector
's "Wall of Sound
" technique. Recorded in Studio A of the famed Gold Star Studios
in Los Angeles, it features 'The Wrecking Crew' instrumentally and lead vocals by Bill Medley
. Bobby Hatfield
reportedly expressed his annoyance to Spector upon learning that he would have to wait until the chorus before joining Medley’s vocals. When Hatfield asked Spector just what he was supposed to do during Medley’s solo, Spector replied: “You can go straight to the fucking bank.”Hinckley, David (1991). Notes from Phil Spector: Back to Mono (1958-1969) boxed-set booklet. see Recording Details The strings were arranged by legendary arranger Gene Page
. Among the background singers in the song's crescendo is a young Cher
.
Cynthia Weil recalled that, "After Phil, Barry and I finished [writing it], we took it over to the Righteous Brothers. Bill Medley, who has the low voice, seemed to like the song." Even with his interest in the song, however, Medley had his doubts. In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, he recalled, "We had no idea if it would be a hit. It was too slow, too long, and right in the middle of The Beatles and the British Invasion." Indeed, the song ran for nearly four minutes when released. This was much too long by contemporary AM standards, but Spector refused to cut it shorter. On the label where the time is indicated, he had "3:05" printed, instead of the track's actual running time of 3:45. He also added a false ending which made the recording more dramatic, and would also trick radio deejays into thinking it was a shorter song. Upon being played the finished record over the phone, co-writer Barry Mann reacted to Medley’s deep baritone by telling Spector, “Phil, you have it on the wrong speed!”
To Spector's surprise, "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin topped the Billboard Hot 100
dated 6 February 1965 and remained at #1 the week of 13 February 1965. In addition the song crossed over to the R&B charts peaking at number two.
debuted at #28. Black had become a recording star by covering Dionne Warwick
's newly released American hit "Anyone Who Had a Heart" for the UK market with a resultant #1 in February 1964; Black's producer Gordon Mills
had repeated the strategy that had given Black her first #1 hit by having the songtress cover the Righteous Brothers new American release "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling". (Black's version had an abbreviated bridge which she explained saying: "I don't want people to get bored";the abridgment also removed the necessity of Black's attempting to match the Righteous Brothers' climactic vocal trade-off.)The 24 January chart saw Black remain in ascendancy at #12 while the Righteous Brothers at #20 but while the 6 February chart saw Black jump to #2 the Righteous Brothers made a larger jump to #3 powered by a full-page ad Andrew Oldham had run in Melody Maker
:
The UK Top 40 dated 20 February saw the Righteous Brothers' "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin at #1 - it would remain there 27 February - while Black's version began its descent dropping to #5. Although Black's version of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin would prove to be her highest charting UK single apart from her two #1's: "Anyone Who Had a Heart" and "You're My World", and also reached #2 in Australia
- where the Righteous Brothers' version was also a hit at #5 - the eclipse of Black's version by the original did usher in a downtime in Black's recording career: after the followup "I've Been Wrong Before" fell short of the Top Ten at #17 in the spring of 1965 Black spent the remainder of the year concentrating on performing and resumed recording only at the start of 1966 when "Love's Just a Broken Heart" (#5) began the most successful year of her recording career.
Cilla Black remade "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" for her 1985 Surprisingly Cilla
album.
The Righteous Brothers' "You've Lost that Lovin' Feelin is the only single to enter the UK Top 10 three times, having successful re-releases in 1969 (#10) and 1990 (#3), the last release being to follow-up the re-release of "Unchained Melody", which had hit #1 due to being featured in the film Ghost
. "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin also reached #42 after a 1977 re-release and in 1988 reached #87.
Nottingham Forest FC fans frequently sing this to taunt away fans after Nottingham Forest score
Hall & Oates
' US Top 20 remake of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin in 1980 was a minor UK hit at #55. More successful was Telly Savalas
' 1975 version which reached #47; Savalas' single was the follow-up to his novelty #1 "If
" and was similarly talked rather than sung.
a 1969 release aimed to showcase Dionne Warwick
as more of an R&B singer than was evidenced by her work with Burt Bacharach
. Co-produced by Warwick and Chips Moman
and recorded at American Sound Studios in Memphis, Tennessee
, Soulful was one of Warwick's most successful albums with a #11 peak and the single "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling" peaked at #16 on the Billboard Hot 100. In Australia the Go-Set
Top 40 chart ranked Warwick's version of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling" with a #34 peak in January of 1970.http://www.poparchives.com.au/gosetcharts/1970/1970.html (Warwick's version spells the last word of the title out fully as "feeling" rather than the usual "feelin.)
Roberta Flack
and Donny Hathaway
's self-titled 1972 album
featured a version of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin which was released as the second single after the Top 30 version of "You've Got a Friend
". The Flack/Hathaway take on "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin reached #30 R&B with a Billboard Hot 100
peak of #71 (Cash Box Top 100 Singles peak was #57;Record World
100 Pop Chart rank peak was #53).
http://www.cashboxmagazine.com/archives/70s_files/19711120.htmlhttp://www.geocities.com/muggy59/100f.html
In 1979 Long John Baldry
featured "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin on Baldry's Out the Jimmy Horowitz produced disc which was Baldry's first recording in his newly adopted homeland of Canada
. This version is performed as a duet with Kathi McDonald
who in singing the latter half of the first and second verse inverts the usual order. Released as a single, the mild Canadian chart success (#45) of Baldry's "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin spilled over into the US charts at #89. However the track did reach #2 in Australia
in 1980 and Bill Medley of the Righteous Brothers has called the Baldry/McDonald version the best remake of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin. Baldry had first recorded the song for his 1966 album Looking at Long John.
The 1980 Hall & Oates
Voices
album featured a remake of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin with a spare arrangement contrasting with the lavish Righteous Brothers version ; the second non-original song Hall & Oates had ever recorded, the track was issued as the album's second single after the original "How Does It Feel to Be Back" peaked at a disappointing #30. The November peak of #12 made "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin the first Hall & Oates single to ascend higher than #20 since the #1 hit "Rich Girl
" in the spring of 1977. The Hall & Oates comeback which began with "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin was strengthened by the follow-up single "Kiss on My List
" which inaugurated the duo's 80s superstardom attaining a #1 chart position and refocusing attention on Hall & Oates' original material.
In 1986 a remake of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin by Grant & Forsyth (formerly of Guys 'n' Dolls) reached #48 in the Netherlands
, where the song was a #57 chart item in 2002 for André Hazes
& Johnny Logan
.
The Righteous Brothers
The Righteous Brothers were the musical duo of Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield. They recorded from 1963 through 1975, and continued to perform until Hatfield's death in 2003...
which became a number-one hit single in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and 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...
the following year. In 1999, the performing-rights organization Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) ranked the song as having had more radio and television play in the United States than any other song during the 20th century. Additionally, the song was chosen as one of the Songs of the Century
Songs of the Century
The "Songs of the Century" list is part of an education project by the Recording Industry Association of America , the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scholastic Inc. that aims to "promote a better understanding of America’s musical and cultural heritage" in American schools...
by RIAA and ranked #34 on the list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time by Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
.
Writing, recording and public reception
Written by Barry MannBarry Mann
Barry Mann is an American songwriter, and part of a successful songwriting partnership with his wife, Cynthia Weil.-Career:...
, Phil Spector
Phil Spector
Phillip Harvey "Phil" Spector is an American record producer and songwriter, later known for his conviction in the murder of actress Lana Clarkson....
and Cynthia Weil
Cynthia Weil
Cynthia Weil is a prominent American songwriter. She is famous for having written many songs together with her husband Barry Mann....
, the song is one of the foremost examples of producer Phil Spector
Phil Spector
Phillip Harvey "Phil" Spector is an American record producer and songwriter, later known for his conviction in the murder of actress Lana Clarkson....
's "Wall of Sound
Wall of Sound
The Wall of Sound is a music production technique for pop and rock music recordings developed by record producer Phil Spector at Gold Star Studios in Los Angeles, California, during the early 1960s...
" technique. Recorded in Studio A of the famed Gold Star Studios
Gold Star Studios
Gold Star Studios was a major independent recording studio located in Los Angeles, California, United States. For more than thirty years, from 1950 to 1984, Gold Star was one of the most influential and successful commercial recording studios in the world....
in Los Angeles, it features 'The Wrecking Crew' instrumentally and lead vocals by Bill Medley
Bill Medley
William Thomas Medley is an American singer and songwriter, best known as one half of The Righteous Brothers....
. Bobby Hatfield
Bobby Hatfield
Robert Lee "Bobby" Hatfield was an American singer, best known as one half of the Righteous Brothers.-Early life:...
reportedly expressed his annoyance to Spector upon learning that he would have to wait until the chorus before joining Medley’s vocals. When Hatfield asked Spector just what he was supposed to do during Medley’s solo, Spector replied: “You can go straight to the fucking bank.” The strings were arranged by legendary arranger Gene Page
Gene Page
Eugene Edgar "Gene" Page, Jr. was an influential conductor, composer, arranger and record producer most active from the mid-1960s through the mid-1980s....
. Among the background singers in the song's crescendo is a young Cher
Cher
Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...
.
Cynthia Weil recalled that, "After Phil, Barry and I finished [writing it], we took it over to the Righteous Brothers. Bill Medley, who has the low voice, seemed to like the song." Even with his interest in the song, however, Medley had his doubts. In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, he recalled, "We had no idea if it would be a hit. It was too slow, too long, and right in the middle of The Beatles and the British Invasion." Indeed, the song ran for nearly four minutes when released. This was much too long by contemporary AM standards, but Spector refused to cut it shorter. On the label where the time is indicated, he had "3:05" printed, instead of the track's actual running time of 3:45. He also added a false ending which made the recording more dramatic, and would also trick radio deejays into thinking it was a shorter song. Upon being played the finished record over the phone, co-writer Barry Mann reacted to Medley’s deep baritone by telling Spector, “Phil, you have it on the wrong speed!”
To Spector's surprise, "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin topped the Billboard Hot 100
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...
dated 6 February 1965 and remained at #1 the week of 13 February 1965. In addition the song crossed over to the R&B charts peaking at number two.
"You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" is a 1964 song by The Righteous Brothers
The Righteous Brothers
The Righteous Brothers were the musical duo of Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield. They recorded from 1963 through 1975, and continued to perform until Hatfield's death in 2003...
which became a number-one hit single in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and 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...
the following year. In 1999, the performing-rights organization Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) ranked the song as having had more radio and television play in the United States than any other song during the 20th century. Additionally, the song was chosen as one of the Songs of the Century
Songs of the Century
The "Songs of the Century" list is part of an education project by the Recording Industry Association of America , the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scholastic Inc. that aims to "promote a better understanding of America’s musical and cultural heritage" in American schools...
by RIAA and ranked #34 on the list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time by Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
.
Writing, recording and public reception
Written by Barry MannBarry Mann
Barry Mann is an American songwriter, and part of a successful songwriting partnership with his wife, Cynthia Weil.-Career:...
, Phil Spector
Phil Spector
Phillip Harvey "Phil" Spector is an American record producer and songwriter, later known for his conviction in the murder of actress Lana Clarkson....
and Cynthia Weil
Cynthia Weil
Cynthia Weil is a prominent American songwriter. She is famous for having written many songs together with her husband Barry Mann....
, the song is one of the foremost examples of producer Phil Spector
Phil Spector
Phillip Harvey "Phil" Spector is an American record producer and songwriter, later known for his conviction in the murder of actress Lana Clarkson....
's "Wall of Sound
Wall of Sound
The Wall of Sound is a music production technique for pop and rock music recordings developed by record producer Phil Spector at Gold Star Studios in Los Angeles, California, during the early 1960s...
" technique. Recorded in Studio A of the famed Gold Star Studios
Gold Star Studios
Gold Star Studios was a major independent recording studio located in Los Angeles, California, United States. For more than thirty years, from 1950 to 1984, Gold Star was one of the most influential and successful commercial recording studios in the world....
in Los Angeles, it features 'The Wrecking Crew' instrumentally and lead vocals by Bill Medley
Bill Medley
William Thomas Medley is an American singer and songwriter, best known as one half of The Righteous Brothers....
. Bobby Hatfield
Bobby Hatfield
Robert Lee "Bobby" Hatfield was an American singer, best known as one half of the Righteous Brothers.-Early life:...
reportedly expressed his annoyance to Spector upon learning that he would have to wait until the chorus before joining Medley’s vocals. When Hatfield asked Spector just what he was supposed to do during Medley’s solo, Spector replied: “You can go straight to the fucking bank.”Hinckley, David (1991). Notes from Phil Spector: Back to Mono (1958-1969) boxed-set booklet. see Recording Details The strings were arranged by legendary arranger Gene Page
Gene Page
Eugene Edgar "Gene" Page, Jr. was an influential conductor, composer, arranger and record producer most active from the mid-1960s through the mid-1980s....
. Among the background singers in the song's crescendo is a young Cher
Cher
Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...
.
Cynthia Weil recalled that, "After Phil, Barry and I finished [writing it], we took it over to the Righteous Brothers. Bill Medley, who has the low voice, seemed to like the song." Even with his interest in the song, however, Medley had his doubts. In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, he recalled, "We had no idea if it would be a hit. It was too slow, too long, and right in the middle of The Beatles and the British Invasion." Indeed, the song ran for nearly four minutes when released. This was much too long by contemporary AM standards, but Spector refused to cut it shorter. On the label where the time is indicated, he had "3:05" printed, instead of the track's actual running time of 3:45. He also added a false ending which made the recording more dramatic, and would also trick radio deejays into thinking it was a shorter song. Upon being played the finished record over the phone, co-writer Barry Mann reacted to Medley’s deep baritone by telling Spector, “Phil, you have it on the wrong speed!”
To Spector's surprise, "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin topped the Billboard Hot 100
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...
dated 6 February 1965 and remained at #1 the week of 13 February 1965. In addition the song crossed over to the R&B charts peaking at number two.
"You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" is a 1964 song by The Righteous Brothers
The Righteous Brothers
The Righteous Brothers were the musical duo of Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield. They recorded from 1963 through 1975, and continued to perform until Hatfield's death in 2003...
which became a number-one hit single in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and 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...
the following year. In 1999, the performing-rights organization Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) ranked the song as having had more radio and television play in the United States than any other song during the 20th century. Additionally, the song was chosen as one of the Songs of the Century
Songs of the Century
The "Songs of the Century" list is part of an education project by the Recording Industry Association of America , the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scholastic Inc. that aims to "promote a better understanding of America’s musical and cultural heritage" in American schools...
by RIAA and ranked #34 on the list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time by Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
.
Writing, recording and public reception
Written by Barry MannBarry Mann
Barry Mann is an American songwriter, and part of a successful songwriting partnership with his wife, Cynthia Weil.-Career:...
, Phil Spector
Phil Spector
Phillip Harvey "Phil" Spector is an American record producer and songwriter, later known for his conviction in the murder of actress Lana Clarkson....
and Cynthia Weil
Cynthia Weil
Cynthia Weil is a prominent American songwriter. She is famous for having written many songs together with her husband Barry Mann....
, the song is one of the foremost examples of producer Phil Spector
Phil Spector
Phillip Harvey "Phil" Spector is an American record producer and songwriter, later known for his conviction in the murder of actress Lana Clarkson....
's "Wall of Sound
Wall of Sound
The Wall of Sound is a music production technique for pop and rock music recordings developed by record producer Phil Spector at Gold Star Studios in Los Angeles, California, during the early 1960s...
" technique. Recorded in Studio A of the famed Gold Star Studios
Gold Star Studios
Gold Star Studios was a major independent recording studio located in Los Angeles, California, United States. For more than thirty years, from 1950 to 1984, Gold Star was one of the most influential and successful commercial recording studios in the world....
in Los Angeles, it features 'The Wrecking Crew' instrumentally and lead vocals by Bill Medley
Bill Medley
William Thomas Medley is an American singer and songwriter, best known as one half of The Righteous Brothers....
. Bobby Hatfield
Bobby Hatfield
Robert Lee "Bobby" Hatfield was an American singer, best known as one half of the Righteous Brothers.-Early life:...
reportedly expressed his annoyance to Spector upon learning that he would have to wait until the chorus before joining Medley’s vocals. When Hatfield asked Spector just what he was supposed to do during Medley’s solo, Spector replied: “You can go straight to the fucking bank.”Hinckley, David (1991). Notes from Phil Spector: Back to Mono (1958-1969) boxed-set booklet. see Recording Details The strings were arranged by legendary arranger Gene Page
Gene Page
Eugene Edgar "Gene" Page, Jr. was an influential conductor, composer, arranger and record producer most active from the mid-1960s through the mid-1980s....
. Among the background singers in the song's crescendo is a young Cher
Cher
Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...
.
Cynthia Weil recalled that, "After Phil, Barry and I finished [writing it], we took it over to the Righteous Brothers. Bill Medley, who has the low voice, seemed to like the song." Even with his interest in the song, however, Medley had his doubts. In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, he recalled, "We had no idea if it would be a hit. It was too slow, too long, and right in the middle of The Beatles and the British Invasion." Indeed, the song ran for nearly four minutes when released. This was much too long by contemporary AM standards, but Spector refused to cut it shorter. On the label where the time is indicated, he had "3:05" printed, instead of the track's actual running time of 3:45. He also added a false ending which made the recording more dramatic, and would also trick radio deejays into thinking it was a shorter song. Upon being played the finished record over the phone, co-writer Barry Mann reacted to Medley’s deep baritone by telling Spector, “Phil, you have it on the wrong speed!”
To Spector's surprise, "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin topped the Billboard Hot 100
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...
dated 6 February 1965 and remained at #1 the week of 13 February 1965. In addition the song crossed over to the R&B charts peaking at number two.
In the UK
The Righteous Brothers' "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin debuted at #35 on the UK Top 40 chart dated 16 January 1965: on the same chart a rival version by Cilla BlackCilla Black
Cilla 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...
debuted at #28. Black had become a recording star by covering Dionne Warwick
Dionne Warwick
Dionne Warwick is an American singer, actress and TV show host, who became a United Nations Global Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization, and a United States Ambassador of Health....
's newly released American hit "Anyone Who Had a Heart" for the UK market with a resultant #1 in February 1964; Black's producer Gordon Mills
Gordon Mills
Gordon William Mills , was a successful London-based music industry manager and songwriter who was born in Madras, India and grew up in Trealaw in the Rhondda Valley, South Wales...
had repeated the strategy that had given Black her first #1 hit by having the songtress cover the Righteous Brothers new American release "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling". (Black's version had an abbreviated bridge which she explained saying: "I don't want people to get bored";the abridgment also removed the necessity of Black's attempting to match the Righteous Brothers' climactic vocal trade-off.)The 24 January chart saw Black remain in ascendancy at #12 while the Righteous Brothers at #20 but while the 6 February chart saw Black jump to #2 the Righteous Brothers made a larger jump to #3 powered by a full-page ad Andrew Oldham had run in Melody Maker
Melody Maker
Melody Maker, published in the United Kingdom, was, according to its publisher IPC Media, the world's oldest weekly music newspaper. It was founded in 1926 as a magazine targeted at musicians; in 2000 it was merged into "long-standing rival" New Musical Express.-1950s–1960s:Originally the Melody...
:
"This advert is not for commercial gain, it is taken as something that must be said about the great new PHIL SPECTOR Record, THE RIGHTEOUS BROTHERS singing "YOU'VE LOST THAT LOVIN' FEELING". Already in the American Top Ten, this is Spector's greatest production, the last word in Tomorrow's sound Today, exposing the overall mediocrity of the Music Industry.
Signed,
Andrew Oldham"Ribowsky, Mark (2000). He's A Rebel: Phil Spector, Rock and Roll's Legendary Producer, pg. 186-187.
The UK Top 40 dated 20 February saw the Righteous Brothers' "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin at #1 - it would remain there 27 February - while Black's version began its descent dropping to #5. Although Black's version of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin would prove to be her highest charting UK single apart from her two #1's: "Anyone Who Had a Heart" and "You're My World", and also reached #2 in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
- where the Righteous Brothers' version was also a hit at #5 - the eclipse of Black's version by the original did usher in a downtime in Black's recording career: after the followup "I've Been Wrong Before" fell short of the Top Ten at #17 in the spring of 1965 Black spent the remainder of the year concentrating on performing and resumed recording only at the start of 1966 when "Love's Just a Broken Heart" (#5) began the most successful year of her recording career.
Cilla Black remade "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" for her 1985 Surprisingly Cilla
Surprisingly Cilla
Surprisingly Cilla is the title of Cilla Black's twelfth solo studio album. It was a spin-off from her television series, Surprise, Surprise, and the opening track is the show's theme tune...
album.
The Righteous Brothers' "You've Lost that Lovin' Feelin is the only single to enter the UK Top 10 three times, having successful re-releases in 1969 (#10) and 1990 (#3), the last release being to follow-up the re-release of "Unchained Melody", which had hit #1 due to being featured in the film Ghost
Ghost
In traditional belief and fiction, a ghost is the soul or spirit of a deceased person or animal that can appear, in visible form or other manifestation, to the living. Descriptions of the apparition of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to...
. "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin also reached #42 after a 1977 re-release and in 1988 reached #87.
Nottingham Forest FC fans frequently sing this to taunt away fans after Nottingham Forest score
Hall & Oates
Hall & Oates
Hall & Oates are an American musical duo composed of Daryl Hall and John Oates. They achieved their greatest fame in the late 1970s and early to mid-1980s. Both sing and play instruments. They specialized in a fusion of rock and roll and rhythm and blues styles, which they dubbed "rock and soul."...
' US Top 20 remake of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin in 1980 was a minor UK hit at #55. More successful was Telly Savalas
Telly Savalas
Aristotelis "Telly" Savalas was an American film and television actor and singer, whose career spanned four decades. Best known for playing the title role in the 1970s crime drama Kojak, Savalas was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Birdman of Alcatraz...
' 1975 version which reached #47; Savalas' single was the follow-up to his novelty #1 "If
If (Bread song)
"If" is a song written by American singer-songwriter David Gates in 1971. Originally popularized by his group Bread, the song charted at number four on the Billboard Hot 100 when released as a single in 1971. The song also spent three weeks at number one on the Easy Listening chart...
" and was similarly talked rather than sung.
Other hit versions
"You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling" was the only single released off Soulful,a 1969 release aimed to showcase Dionne Warwick
Dionne Warwick
Dionne Warwick is an American singer, actress and TV show host, who became a United Nations Global Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization, and a United States Ambassador of Health....
as more of an R&B singer than was evidenced by her work with Burt Bacharach
Burt Bacharach
Burt F. Bacharach is an American pianist, composer and music producer. He is known for his popular hit songs and compositions from the mid-1950s through the 1980s, with lyrics written by Hal David. Many of their hits were produced specifically for, and performed by, Dionne Warwick...
. Co-produced by Warwick and Chips Moman
Chips Moman
Lincoln Wayne "Chips" Moman is an American record producer, guitarist, and songwriter. As a record producer, Moman is known for recording Elvis Presley, Bobby Womack, Carla Thomas, and Merrilee Rush, as well as guiding the career of the Box Tops in Memphis, Tennessee during the 1960s...
and recorded at American Sound Studios in Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
, Soulful was one of Warwick's most successful albums with a #11 peak and the single "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling" peaked at #16 on the Billboard Hot 100. In Australia the Go-Set
Go-Set
Go-Set was the first Australian pop music newspaper, published weekly from 2 February 1966 to 24 August 1974, and was founded in Melbourne by Phillip Frazer, Peter Raphael and Tony Schauble...
Top 40 chart ranked Warwick's version of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling" with a #34 peak in January of 1970.http://www.poparchives.com.au/gosetcharts/1970/1970.html (Warwick's version spells the last word of the title out fully as "feeling" rather than the usual "feelin.)
Roberta Flack
Roberta Flack
Roberta Flack is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who is notable for jazz, soul, R&B, and folk music...
and Donny Hathaway
Donny Hathaway
Donny Edward Hathaway was an American soul singer-songwriter and musician. Hathaway contracted with Atlantic Records in 1969 and with his first single for the Atco label, "The Ghetto, Part I" in early 1970, Rolling Stone magazine "marked him as a major new force in soul music."His collaborations...
's self-titled 1972 album
Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway
The 1971 Atlantic release Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway is a duet album by Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway produced by Joel Dorn and Arif Mardin....
featured a version of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin which was released as the second single after the Top 30 version of "You've Got a Friend
You've Got a Friend
"You've Got a Friend" is a song from 1971, originally written and performed by Carole King. It was included in her album Tapestry of 1971, but was made famous by James Taylor's cover version the same year...
". The Flack/Hathaway take on "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin reached #30 R&B with a Billboard Hot 100
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...
peak of #71 (Cash Box Top 100 Singles peak was #57;Record World
Record World
Record World magazine was one of the three main music industry trade publications in the United States, along with Billboard and Cash Box magazines. It was founded in 1946 under the name Music Vendor, but since 1964 changed it to Record World, under the ownership of Sid Parnes and Bob Austin, both...
100 Pop Chart rank peak was #53).
http://www.cashboxmagazine.com/archives/70s_files/19711120.htmlhttp://www.geocities.com/muggy59/100f.html
In 1979 Long John Baldry
Long John Baldry
John William "Long John" Baldry was an English and Canadian blues singer and a voice actor. He sang with many British musicians, with Rod Stewart and Elton John appearing in bands led by Baldry in the 1960s. He enjoyed pop success in the UK where Let the Heartaches Begin reached No...
featured "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin on Baldry's Out the Jimmy Horowitz produced disc which was Baldry's first recording in his newly adopted homeland of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. This version is performed as a duet with Kathi McDonald
Kathi McDonald
Kathryn Marie McDonald , popularly known as Kathi McDonald, is a blues and rock singer. She currently performs with Kathi McDonald & Friends. She has appeared on an extensive list of rock and blues albums and toured extensively with Long John Baldry prior to his death...
who in singing the latter half of the first and second verse inverts the usual order. Released as a single, the mild Canadian chart success (#45) of Baldry's "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin spilled over into the US charts at #89. However the track did reach #2 in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
in 1980 and Bill Medley of the Righteous Brothers has called the Baldry/McDonald version the best remake of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin. Baldry had first recorded the song for his 1966 album Looking at Long John.
The 1980 Hall & Oates
Hall & Oates
Hall & Oates are an American musical duo composed of Daryl Hall and John Oates. They achieved their greatest fame in the late 1970s and early to mid-1980s. Both sing and play instruments. They specialized in a fusion of rock and roll and rhythm and blues styles, which they dubbed "rock and soul."...
Voices
Voices (Hall & Oates album)
Voices is the title of the ninth studio album by Hall & Oates, released in 1980.-History:The album slowly became a massive hit, spinning off four singles into the top 40 of the American pop charts: "How Does It Feel to Be Back" , "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" , "Kiss on My List" , and "You Make...
album featured a remake of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin with a spare arrangement contrasting with the lavish Righteous Brothers version ; the second non-original song Hall & Oates had ever recorded, the track was issued as the album's second single after the original "How Does It Feel to Be Back" peaked at a disappointing #30. The November peak of #12 made "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin the first Hall & Oates single to ascend higher than #20 since the #1 hit "Rich Girl
Rich Girl (Hall & Oates song)
"Rich Girl" is a song by Daryl Hall and John Oates. On March 26, 1977, it became their first number one single on Billboard Hot 100 chart. The single originally appeared on the 1976 album Bigger Than Both of Us.-Content:...
" in the spring of 1977. The Hall & Oates comeback which began with "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin was strengthened by the follow-up single "Kiss on My List
Kiss on My List
"Kiss on My List" is a 1981 song recorded by Daryl Hall and John Oates. It was the third single from their album Voices, and became their second Billboard Hot 100 number-one single in 1981 ....
" which inaugurated the duo's 80s superstardom attaining a #1 chart position and refocusing attention on Hall & Oates' original material.
In 1986 a remake of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin by Grant & Forsyth (formerly of Guys 'n' Dolls) reached #48 in the Netherlands
Mega Top 50
The Mega Top 50 is a Dutch music chart, originally started on May 23, 1969 as the Hilversum 3 Top 30. Throughout the years, the chart has had several names and lengths:*1969 - 1974: Hilversum 3 Top 30...
, where the song was a #57 chart item in 2002 for André Hazes
André Hazes
André Gerardus Hazes was a Dutch singer in a genre called levenslied which is a form of emotional folk music about everyday life sung in the Dutch language. André Hazes was one of the most successful singers in this genre...
& Johnny Logan
Johnny Logan (singer)
Johnny Logan , is an Australian-born Irish singer and composer. He is regarded as "Mister Eurovision", having participated in the Eurovision Song Contest many times since the 1970s, and, since 1992, has been the most successful artist in Eurovision history.Logan has won the international contest on...
.