"Let Me Go, Lover!", a popular

song A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usu ...

, was written by

Jenny Lou Carson Jenny Lou Carson, (January 13, 1915 – December 16, 1978), born Virginia Lucille Overstake, was an American country music singer-songwriter and the first woman to write a No. 1 country music hit. From 1945 to 1955 she was one of the most prolif ...

and Al Hill, a

pen name A pen name or nom-de-plume is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen name may be used to make the author's na ...

used by Fred Wise, Kathleen Twomey, and

Ben Weisman Benjamin Weisman (November 16, 1921 – May 20, 2007) was an American composer. He wrote 57 songs recorded by Elvis Presley, more than any other songwriter. Biography Weisman was born in Providence, Rhode Island, and grew up in Brooklyn, New Yor ...

. It is based on an earlier song called " Let Me Go, Devil", about

alcoholism Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World He ...

Background

"Let Me Go, Lover!" was first featured on the

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

program '' Studio One'' on November 15, 1954, and caught the fancy of the public. The episode was a murder mystery that revolved around a hit record and a disc jockey. Producer Felix Jackson asked

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

Mitch Miller Mitchell William Miller (July 4, 1911 – July 31, 2010) was an American choral conductor, record producer, record-industry executive, and professional oboist. He was involved in almost all aspects of the industry, particularly as a conductor ...

for a recording to use in the show, and Miller provided

Joan Weber Joan Weber (December 12, 1935 – May 13, 1981) was an American popular music singer. Early years Weber was raised in Paulsboro, New Jersey, and married to George Verfaillie, a young bandleader. She was pregnant in 1954 when she was introduc ...

's version of "Let Me Go, Lover!" Miller took advantage of the recording's exposure on national television and sent copies of the record to 2,000 disc jockeys, who began to play it on their radio stations. Weber was pregnant when she recorded the song. A result of the program was to illustrate how efficiently a song could be promoted by introducing it to the public via radio or a TV production. The recording was released by

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

as catalog number 40366.

stocked national record stores the week before the program and because of its availability the record sold over 100,000 in the first week of its release.

Chart performance

Weber's record of the song first reached the ''Billboard'' magazine charts on December 4, 1954. By January 1955, it had hit No. 1 on all the ''Billboard'' charts (the Disk Jockey chart, the Best Seller chart, and the Juke Box chart). The song reached No. 16 in the UK Singles Chart, and was awarded a

gold record Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

Other versions

It was also

covered Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of ...

by a number of other singers: *Among the cover versions was one by

Patti Page Clara Ann Fowler (November 8, 1927 – January 1, 2013), better known by her stage name Patti Page, was an American singer. Primarily known for Pop music, pop and Country music, country music, she was the top-charting female vocalist and b ...

. This recording 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. Mercury Records released ...

as catalog number 70511. It first reached the ''Billboard'' charts on December 18, 1954. On the Disk Jockey chart, it peaked at No. 8; on the Best Seller chart, at No. 24; on the Juke Box chart, at No. 12. *Another cover, by

Teresa Brewer Teresa Brewer (born Theresa Veronica Breuer; May 7, 1931 – October 17, 2007) was an American singer whose style incorporated pop, country, jazz, R&B, musicals, and novelty songs. She was one of the most prolific and popular female singers of th ...

and The Lancers, was recorded on November 18, 1954, and released by

Coral Records Coral Records was a subsidiary of Decca Records that was formed in 1949. Coral released music by Patsy Cline, Buddy Holly, the McGuire Sisters and Teresa Brewer. Coral issued jazz and swing music in the 1940s, but after Bob Thiele became head ...

as catalog number 61315. It reached No. 6 on the ''Billboard'' chart and No. 9 on the UK Singles Chart. *

Peggy Lee Norma Deloris Egstrom (May 26, 1920 – January 21, 2002), known professionally as Peggy Lee, was an American jazz and popular music singer, songwriter, and actress whose career spanned seven decades. From her beginning as a vocalist on local r ...

also released the song in 1954, reaching No. 26. On the ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is 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 ...

'' Best-Selling Records chart, all the versions were combined, and the song was also a No. 1 hit on that chart. *

Hank Snow Clarence Eugene "Hank" Snow (May 9, 1914 – December 20, 1999) was a Canadian country music guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He recorded 140 albums and charted more than 85 singles on the ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' country charts betw ...

's version ("Let Me Go, Woman") went to No. 1 on the country music charts in 1955. *

Dean Martin Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor, and comedian. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Cool", he is regarded as one of the most popular entertainers of ...

had the song released as a single in 1955, reaching No. 3 in the UK Singles Chart. *In March 1955,

Ruby Murray Ruby Florence Murray (29 March 1935 – 17 December 1996) was a Northern Irish singer. One of the most popular singers in Britain and Ireland in the 1950s, she scored ten hits in the UK Singles Chart between 1954 and 1959. She also made pop ch ...

reached No. 5 in the UK Singles Chart with her version. *

Ann-Margret Ann-Margret Olsson (born 28 April 1941), credited as Ann-Margret, is a Swedish-American actress and singer with a career spanning seven decades. Her many screen roles include '' Pocketful of Miracles'' (1961), ''State Fair'' (1962), '' Bye Bye B ...

recorded a version on her 1962 album '' On the Way Up'' *

Kathy Kirby Kathy Kirby (born Catherine Ethel O'Rourke; 20 October 1938 – 20 May 2011) was an English singer. She is best known for her cover version of Doris Day's " Secret Love" and for representing the United Kingdom in the 1965 Eurovision Song C ...

's version of the song went to No. 10 on the UK Singles Chart in 1964. *It was also covered by

Billy Fury Ronald Wycherley (17 April 1940 – 28 January 1983), better known by his stage name Billy Fury, was an English musician. An early star of rock and roll, he spent 332 weeks on the UK singles chart. His hit singles include " Wondrous Place", " H ...

, and turned out to one of the last songs he recorded before his death in 1983. *Sunny Gale recorded a version in January 1955 that reached No. 17 on the ''Billboard'' chart.

References

Bibliography

*Rogers, Arnold & Langley, Jerry (2005). ''Many Tears Ago: The Life and Times of Jenny Lou Carson''. Nova/Nashville Books. {{Authority control 1954 singles 1955 singles Billy Fury songs Dean Martin songs Hank Snow songs Joan Weber songs Kathy Kirby songs Patti Page songs Peggy Lee songs Ruby Murray songs Teresa Brewer songs Number-one singles in the United States Songs written by Jenny Lou Carson Songs with lyrics by Fred Wise (songwriter) 1954 songs Columbia Records singles