"Tell Me Why" is a popular song written by Marty Gold with the lyrics by

Al Alberts Al Alberts (born Al Albertini, August 10, 1922 – November 27, 2009) was an American popular singer and composer. Biography Born Al Albertini in Chester, Pennsylvania, United States, he went to South Philadelphia High School. As a teenager, h ...

. The song was published in 1951. The first version of the song released was a recording by Jerry Gray and his orchestra, released by Decca company in 1951, as catalog number 27621, with the flip side "Restringing the Pearls", by Skeets McDonald (released by

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

as catalog number 1957, with the flip side "

Be My Life's Companion "Be My Life's Companion" is a popular music, popular song. It was written by Bob Hilliard (lyricist) and Milton De Lugg (composer) and published in 1951. Major recorded versions Best selling versions of the song were recorded by Rosemary Clooney ...

").

Renditions

*A successful version of the song was recorded by Al Alberts' group, the Four Aces, on October 23, 1951, and released later the same year by

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

as catalog number 27860. It first reached the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' charts on September 7, 1951, and lasted 24 weeks on the chart, peaking at number two. The flip side was " A Garden in the Rain," also a success for the Aces. *It was also recorded a brief time later by

Eddie Fisher Edwin Jack Fisher (August 10, 1928 – September 22, 2010) was an American singer and actor. He was one of the most popular artists during the 1950s, selling millions of records and hosting his own TV show, ''The Eddie Fisher Show''. Actress Eli ...

in a version that scored the Top 10. This version was recorded on December 5, 1951, and released by RCA Victor Records as catalog number 20-4444. It first reached the ''Billboard'' charts on December 28, 1951 and lasted 19 weeks on the chart, peaking at number seven. The flip side featured the song " Trust in Me." * Bobby Vinton released "Tell Me Why" in 1964. Vinton's version spent eight weeks on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, peaking at number 13, while reaching number three on ''

'''s Pop-Standards Singles chart, and number 11 on the ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' Top 100. In Canada, Vinton's version debuted at number 11 in the first issue of the ''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...

'' "Top Forty-5s" chart. Vinton's version was ranked number 63 on ''Cash Box''s "Top 100 Chart Hits of 1964". *A version was recorded by Dinah Washington (recorded January 1952, released by Mercury Records as catalog number 8267, with the flip side "

Wheel of Fortune The Wheel of Fortune or ''Rota Fortunae'' has been a concept and metaphor since ancient times referring to the capricious nature of Fate. Wheel of Fortune may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Art * ''The Wheel of Fortune'' (Burne-Jo ...

"). * Alberto Semprini with Rhythm Acc. recorded it in London on March 26, 1952 as the third song of the medley "Part 2. Hit Medley of Foxtrots" along with " The Little White Cloud That Cried" and "I'm Lucky to Have You". It was released by EMI on the His Master's Voice label as catalog number B 10263. *The Mastertouch Piano Roll Company of Australia released the song on a piano roll, catalogue number AD 4657, in 1951.

References

1951 songs The Four Aces songs Eddie Fisher (singer) songs Bobby Vinton songs Number-one singles in Australia {{1950s-pop-song-stub