Love Letters in the Sand
| "Love Letters in the Sand" | |
|---|---|
| Song | |
| Language | English |
| Published | 1931 |
| Released | 1931 |
| Composer(s) | J. Fred Coots |
| Lyricist(s) | Nick Kenny, Charles Kenny |
"Love Letters in the Sand" is a popular song first published in 1931.
It began life as a poem by Nick Kenny. J. Fred Coots read the poem in the New York Daily Mirror, and obtained Kenny's permission to set the poem to music. He went through 4 different melodies before settling on the published version known today. The melody bears similarity to the 1881 song The Spanish Cavalier.[1] Lyrics were credited to both Nick Kenny and his brother Charles Kenny.
The song was first recorded on 26 August 1931, as a "vocal chorus" sung by Helen Rowland within a foxtrot played by the Majestic Dance Orchestra.[2] George Hall popularized the song on his radio show, later making it his theme song. Ted Black and His Orchestra, with vocalist Tom Brown, had the first major hit recording of the song in 1931. Pat Boone had a major hit with the song in 1957.[1]
The melody has been used for songs in at least eight other languages.[3]
Pat Boone version
[edit]| "Love Letters in the Sand" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Pat Boone | ||||
| from the album Pat's Great Hits | ||||
| A-side | "Bernardine" | |||
| Released | April 1957 | |||
| Recorded | 1957 | |||
| Genre | Traditional pop | |||
| Length | 2:12 | |||
| Label | Dot | |||
| Songwriter(s) | J. Fred Coots, Nick Kenny and Charles Kenny | |||
| Producer(s) | Billy Vaughn | |||
| Pat Boone singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Pat Boone's version became a major hit in June and July 1957, spending 5 weeks at number one on the Billboard Top 100, with 34 weeks in total on the chart. Billboard ranked it as the No. 2 song for 1957.[4] In Canada, the song spent two weeks at number one.[5] The song was used in Boone's 1957 film Bernardine. Boone did the whistling in the instrumental portion of the song as well. The song originally had a short instrumental introduction, but most versions begin with Boone's voice.
Charts
[edit]| Chart (1957) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia[citation needed] | 1 |
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[6] | 2 |
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[7] | 5 |
| Canada (CHUM Hit Parade)[5] | 1 |
| Netherlands (Single Top 100)[8] | 1 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[9] | 2 |
| US Billboard Top 100[10] | 1 |
| US Cash Box Top 100[11] | 1 |
Other versions
[edit]- In 1931, the song was recorded separately by Gene Austin, Lee Morse, and American dance band Ted Black and His Orchestra, with "Vocal refrain by Tom Brown".[12]
- Kenneth W. Griffin also released an organ discography in 1957, featuring the song, in his album, "Love Letters in the Sand".
- Johnny Dorelli recorded a Jazz version on his 1957 album “Dance With...”
- Bob Eberly released a version on his Spanish-oriented album Bob Eberly Con Enoch Light Y Su Orquesta in 1957, sung in English but subtitled Cartas De Amor En La Arena.
- The Norman Petty Trio released a recording on Columbia in 1958.[13]
- Andy Williams released a version on his 1959 album, Two Time Winners.
- Bill Haley and His Comets recorded a version on the 1960 covers album Bill Haley and His Comets.
- Leroy Van Dyke released a version on his 1961 album, Movin' Van Dyke.
- Sonny James on his 1964 album You're the Only World I Know which reached No. 2 on the US Country charts.
- The English singer, Vince Hill, reached No. 23 in the UK Singles Chart in 1967, with his cover version of the track.[14]
- Marie Osmond on her 1975 album Who's Sorry Now which reached No. 20 on the US Country charts.
- Tom T. Hall's version reached No. 79 on the U.S. Country chart in 1986.
- Little Willie Littlefield recorded a version for his 1990 album Singalong with Little Willie Littlefield.
- Sixpence None the Richer recorded a version for their 1996 album Tickets for a Prayer Wheel.
See also
[edit]- List of number-one singles in Australia during the 1950s
- List of Top 25 singles for 1957 in Australia
- List of Billboard number-one singles of 1957
- Billboard year-end top 50 singles of 1957
- List of Cash Box Best Sellers number-one singles of 1957
- List of CHUM number-one singles of 1957
References
[edit]- ^ a b Tyler, Don (2007-04-16). Hit Songs, 1900-1955: American Popular Music of the Pre-Rock Era. McFarland. p. 180. ISBN 978-0-7864-2946-2.
- ^ Love Letters in the Sand by Majestic Dance Orchestra - Vocal Chorus by Helen Rowland, retrieved 2024-03-30
- ^ Love Letters in the Sand by Majestic Dance Orchestra - Vocal Chorus by Helen Rowland, retrieved 2024-03-30
- ^ Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1957
- ^ a b "CHUM's Top 10, June 24, 1957". CHUM Tribute Page. 1957-06-24. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
- ^ "Pat Boone – Love Letters in the Sand" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
- ^ "Pat Boone – Love Letters in the Sand" (in French). Ultratop 50.
- ^ "Pat Boone – Love Letters in the Sand" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
- ^ "Pat Boone: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
- ^ "Billboard Top 100". Billboard. June 17, 1958.
- ^ "Cash Box Top 100 Singles, week ending July 13, 1957".
- ^ "Ted Black and his Orchestra "Love letters in the sand" 1931". YouTube. Archived from the original on 15 April 2023. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
- ^ Commerce, United States Congress Senate Committee on (1958). Hearings. p. 362.
- ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 253. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
External links
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