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"The Last Letter" is a song written by country music singer
Rex Griffin Alsie "Rex" Griffin ( – ) was an American country musician and songwriter. Biography 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 schoo ...
. Griffin wrote the song in 1937, after he was left by his wife. The song tells through a suicidal letter the feelings of an older man who is left by his young wife. The song, released on
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 ...
became a hit for Griffin. A standard of country music, the tune was covered by diverse acts.
Jimmie Davis James Houston Davis (September 11, 1899 – November 5, 2000) was an American politician, singer and songwriter of both sacred and popular songs. Davis was elected for two nonconsecutive terms from 1944 to 1948 and from 1960 to 1964 as the ...
' 1939 version became a hit, while it was covered by diverse country acts.


Writing and original recording

In 1937, singer-songwriter
Rex Griffin Alsie "Rex" Griffin ( – ) was an American country musician and songwriter. Biography 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 schoo ...
wrote "The Last Letter" while he was living in
New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster.
; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...
. He was inspired to write the song after he was left by his wife. The lyrics told the story of a suicide letter written by a common man directed to a woman seeking a rich husband and the finer things in life. It described his bitterness, and pain for the end of their romance. The song probably inspired Hank Williams's similar "
A Mansion on the Hill "A Mansion on the Hill" is a song written by Hank Williams and Fred Rose and originally recorded by Williams on MGM Records. It peaked at No. 12 on the Most Played Jukebox Folk Records chart in March 1949. Background The details surrounding ...
." Griffin recorded "The Last Letter" during a New York session on May 13, 1937. The single, backed with "Over the River" on the flipside was released the same year on
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 ...
. Despite that "The Last Letter" turned into a hit, the poor sales of Griffin caused his dismissal by the label in 1939. That year, Griffin wrote and recorded a sequel called "Answer To The Last Letter". The song became later considered a standard of
Country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...
. By 1941, ''
The Birmingham News ''The Birmingham News'' is the principal newspaper for Birmingham, Alabama, United States. The paper is owned by Advance Publications and was a daily newspaper from its founding through September 30, 2012. After that day, the ''News'' and its two ...
'' reported it to be "one of the most popular boots and saddle songs played by drugstore cowboys".


Cover versions

Country singer
Jimmie Davis James Houston Davis (September 11, 1899 – November 5, 2000) was an American politician, singer and songwriter of both sacred and popular songs. Davis was elected for two nonconsecutive terms from 1944 to 1948 and from 1960 to 1964 as the ...
recorded the song again in 1939, turning it again into a hit. It was covered as well by
The Blue Sky Boys The Blue Sky Boys were an American country music duo consisting of the brothers Earl Bolick (November 16, 1919 – April 19, 1998) and Bill Bolick (October 28, 1917 – March 13, 2008), whose careers spanned over forty years. Biography The brother ...
and
The Carter Family Carter Family was a traditional American folk music group that recorded between 1927 and 1956. Their music had a profound impact on bluegrass, country, Southern Gospel, pop and rock musicians as well as on the U.S. folk revival of the 1960s. ...
. In 1963,
Ernest Tubb Ernest Dale Tubb (February 9, 1914 – September 6, 1984), nicknamed the Texas Troubadour, was an American singer and songwriter and one of the pioneers of country music. His biggest career hit song, "Walking the Floor Over You" (1941), m ...
recorded a cover version for his Rex Griffin tribute album ''Just Call Me Lonesome''. The song was recorded at Bradley's Barn Studio on April 19, 1962, produced by
Owen Bradley William Owen Bradley (October 21, 1915 – January 7, 1998) was an American musician and record producer who, along with Chet Atkins, Bob Ferguson, Bill Porter, and Don Law, was one of the chief architects of the 1950s and 1960s Nashville sou ...
Tubb, who was influenced by Griffin, had originally learned the song and others by Griffin that he would often perform. Both singers toured together, remaining friend until Griffin's death in 1958. The same year,
Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album ''Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of ''Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (197 ...
recorded the song.
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 ...
released the song as the flipside of the single "
Half a Man One half ( : halves) is the irreducible fraction resulting from dividing one by two or the fraction resulting from dividing any number by its double. Multiplication by one half is equivalent to division by two, or "halving"; conversely, ...
". The following year,
Jack Greene Jack Henry Greene (January 7, 1930 – March 14, 2013) was an American country musician. Nicknamed the "Jolly Greene Giant" due to his height and deep voice, Greene was a long time member of the Grand Ole Opry. A three-time Grammy Award nomine ...
released his version of the song on the album ''Ernest Tubb Presents the Texas Troubadours'', becoming after its success a solo act. "The Last Letter" was also covered by
Waylon Jennings Waylon Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He pioneered the Outlaw Movement in country music. Jennings started playing guitar at the age of eight and performed at age f ...
,
Merle Haggard Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler. Haggard was born in Oildale, California, toward the end of the Great Depression. His childhood was troubled af ...
and
Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, actor and television host. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodt ...
.
Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
's To Ramona is a nod to Rex Griffin and his song The Last Letter.


Footnotes


References

* * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Last Letter, The Songs about suicide Songs about letters (message) 1937 songs Decca Records singles Songs written by Rex Griffin Willie Nelson songs