"Melody of Love" is a

popular Popularity or social status is the quality of being well liked, admired or well known to a particular group. Popular may also refer to: In sociology * Popular culture * Popular fiction * Popular music * Popular science * Populace, the total ...

song A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetit ...

. The music was originally written by Hans Engelmann in

1903 Events January * January 1 – Edward VII is proclaimed Emperor of India. * January 19 – The first west–east transatlantic radio broadcast is made from the United States to England (the first east–west broadcast having bee ...

. The lyrics were added by

Tom Glazer Thomas Zachariah Glazer (September 2, 1914 – February 21, 2003) was an American folk singer and songwriter known primarily as a composer of ballads, including: "Because All Men Are Brothers", recorded by The Weavers and Peter, Paul and M ...

in 1954.

Instrumental

Although recorded by

Edison Records Edison Records was one of the early record labels that pioneered sound recording and reproduction, and was an important player in the early recording industry. The first phonograph cylinders were manufactured in 1888, followed by Edison's found ...

within a year of its release, the song's breakthrough came in 1955 with an instrumental version recorded by Billy Vaughn. Other charting versions in 1955 were by David Carroll, by

The Four Aces The Four Aces are an American male traditional pop quartet popular since the 1950s. Over the last half-century, the group amassed many gold records. Its million-selling songs include " Love is a Many-Splendored Thing", " Three Coins in the Fo ...

, and by Leo Diamond. The recording by Billy Vaughn was released by

Dot Records Dot Records was an American record label founded by Randy Wood (record producer), Randy Wood and Gene Nobles that was active between 1950 and 1978. The original headquarters of Dot Records were in Gallatin, Tennessee. In 1956, the company moved ...

as catalog number 15247. It first reached the ''Billboard'' Best Seller chart on December 1, 1954, and lasted 27 weeks on the chart, peaking at #2. The recording by David Carroll was released by

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it i ...

as catalog number 70516. It first reached the ''Billboard'' Best Seller chart on December 29, 1954, and lasted 17 weeks on the chart, peaking at #9. This was Carroll's only hit on the Billboard best seller chart. Another Carroll version, featuring a narration by Paul Tremaine, was released on Mercury 70521. This version was shown as a best-selling version in Cashbox for most of "Melody Of Love"'s extensive chart run. The instrumental recording by Leo Diamond was released by

RCA Victor Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also Ari ...

as catalog number 20-5973. It reached the ''Billboard'' Best Seller chart on February 9, 1955, its only week on the chart, at #30. With so many versions, the '' Cash Box'' chart, which combined all versions of a song, had a much higher standing for the song than Billboard, and the song was a #1 hit for 7 weeks there.

Version with lyrics by Tom Glazer

supplied lyrics to the song in 1954, which begin: "Hold me in your arms, dear. Dream with me. Cradled by your kisses. Tenderly While a choir of angels. From above. Sings our melody of love." The recording of Glazer's version by

vocal quartet In music, a quartet or quartette (, , , , ) is an ensemble of four singers or instrumental performers; or a musical composition for four voices and instruments. Classical String quartet In classical music, one of the most common combinations ...

was released by Decca Records as catalog number 29395. It first reached the ''Billboard'' Best Seller chart on January 12, 1955, and lasted 17 weeks on the chart, peaking at #11. A solo sung version by Frank Sinatra with band led by

Ray Anthony Raymond Antonini (born January 20, 1922), known as Ray Anthony, is an American bandleader, trumpeter, songwriter, and actor. He is the last surviving member of the Glenn Miller Orchestra. Biography Anthony was born to an Italian family in Ben ...

was released. In the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, a version by the

Ink Spots The Ink Spots were an American pop vocal group who gained international fame in the 1930s and 1940s. Their unique musical style presaged the rhythm and blues and rock and roll musical genres, and the subgenre doo-wop. The Ink Spots were widely ac ...

was the sole hit version, charting at #10. It was also recorded by the

Beverley Sisters The Beverley Sisters ( MBE) were an English female close harmony pop vocal and light entertainment trio, consisting of three siblings from London. They were most popular during the 1950s and 1960s, and became well-known through their radio and ...

and Shirley Wilson. Jim Reeves posthumously brought the song the country charts as "Why Do I Love You (Melody Of Love)" in late 1969-early 1970.

Unrelated songs

1957 1957 ( MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1957th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 957th year of the 2nd millennium, the 57th year of the 20th century, and the 8th year ...

a song unrelated, except by title, by

The Ames Brothers ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

, " Melodie D'Amour" (Melody Of Love) charted at #5.

Other recorded versions

* Stanley Black *

Pat Boone Patrick Charles Eugene Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer and actor. He was a successful pop singer in the United States during the 1950s and early 1960s. He sold more than 45 million records, had 38 Top 40 hits, and appeared in mo ...

& Shirley Boone for their album ''Side by Side'' (1959). * Bing Crosby recorded the song in 1955 for use on his radio show and it was subsequently included in the box set ''The Bing Crosby CBS Radio Recordings (1954-56)'' issued by Mosaic Records (catalog MD7-245) in 2009. *

Connie Francis Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero (born December 12, 1937), known professionally as Connie Francis, is an American pop singer, actress, and top-charting female vocalist of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Called the “First Lady of Rock & Roll” ...

- for her album ''

Greatest American Waltzes ''Greatest American Waltzes'' is a studio album recorded by American entertainer Connie Francis. Background An album containing waltzes popular in the US had already been planned in 1961 but had been abandoned in favor of other album projects. A ...

'' (1963) * Gatlin Brothers *

Spike Jones Lindley Armstrong "Spike" Jones (December 14, 1911 – May 1, 1965) was an American musician and bandleader specializing in spoof arrangements of popular songs and classical music. Ballads receiving the Jones treatment were punctuated with gun ...

Pee Wee King Julius Frank Anthony Kuczynski (February 18, 1914 – March 7, 2000), known professionally as Pee Wee King, was an American country music songwriter and recording artist best known for co-writing "Tennessee Waltz". Pee Wee King is credited with ...

& His Golden West Cowboys *

Wayne King Harold Wayne King (February 16, 1901 – July 16, 1985) was an American musician, songwriter, and bandleader with a long association with both NBC and CBS. He was referred to as "the Waltz King" because much of his most popular music involved ...

The Lennon Sisters The Lennon Sisters are an American vocal group made up of four sisters. The quartet originally consisted of Dianne (aka DeeDee; born Dianne Barbara, December 1, 1939), Peggy (born Margaret Anne, April 8, 1941), Kathy (born Kathleen Mary, Augu ...

Hank Locklin Hank Locklin (born Lawrence Hankins Locklin; February 15, 1918 – March 8, 2009) was an American country music singer-songwriter. He had 70 chart singles, including two number one hits on ''Billboard''s country chart. His biggest hits included ...

Al Martino Al Martino (born Jasper Cini; October 7, 1927 – October 13, 2009) was an American singer and actor. He had his greatest success as a singer between the early 1950s and mid-1970s, being described as "one of the great Italian American pop croone ...

- for his album ''My Cherie'' (1965). *

The McGuire Sisters The McGuire Sisters were a singing trio in American popular music. The group was composed of three sisters: * Ruby Christine McGuire (July 30, 1926 – December 28, 2018) * Dorothy "Dottie" McGuire (February 13, 1928 – September 7, 2012) * Ph ...

*Moms & Dads * Patti Page - for her album ''I've Heard That Song Before'' (1958). *

Dinah Shore Dinah Shore (born Frances Rose Shore; February 29, 1916 – February 24, 1994) was an American singer, actress, and television personality, and the top-charting female vocalist of the 1940s. She rose to prominence as a recording artist during ...

and Tony Martin (1954) * Frank Sinatra and

(1955) *Brad Swanson * Billy Vaughn *

Slim Whitman Ottis Dewey Whitman Jr. (January 20, 1923 – June 19, 2013), known as Slim Whitman, was an American country music singer-songwriter and guitarist known for his yodeling abilities and his use of falsetto. He claimed he had sold in excess of ...

* Roger Williams

References

{{authority control 1903 songs 1955 singles Songs with lyrics by Tom Glazer

Instrumental

Version with lyrics by Tom Glazer

Unrelated songs

Other recorded versions

See also

References