| "Release Me" | |
|---|---|
| Single by Little Esther Phillips | |
| Released | 1962 |
| Writer(s) | Eddie Miller James Pebworth Robert Yount |
"Release Me" is a popular song written by Eddie Miller, Robert Yount, and James Pebworth [1], published in 1946.
Miller wrote the song in 1946 but could not get anyone to record it for years, so he recorded it himself in 1953. Shortly afterward it was covered by Jimmy Heap, and with even better success by Ray Price and Kitty Wells. Subsequently a big seller was recorded by Little Esther Phillips, who reached number one on the R&B chart and number eight on the pop chart.[2] A version by Engelbert Humperdinck reached number one on the UK Singles Chart.
The Engelbert Humperdinck song has the distinction in the UK of holding the number-one slot in the chart for six weeks during March and April 1967, and preventing The Beatles single, "Penny Lane" / "Strawberry Fields Forever", from reaching the top. "Release Me" was also the highest selling single of 1967 in the UK, recording over one million sales, and eventually became one of the best selling singles of all time.
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In country music, "Release Me" became a hit for both Jimmy Heap and Ray Price, both in 1954. Even though Price had several major hits beforehand, "Release Me" is sometimes considered his breakthrough hit. The song had elements of the 4/4 shuffle, Price's signature sound that would become more evident on future successes such as "Crazy Arms."
| "Release Me" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Engelbert Humperdinck | ||||
| B-side | "Ten Guitars" | |||
| Released | 1967 | |||
| Format | 7" | |||
| Genre | Pop | |||
| Length | 3:18 | |||
| Label | Decca Records | |||
| Producer | Charles Blackwell | |||
| Engelbert Humperdinck singles chronology | ||||
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The story of how the song reached number one in the UK Singles Chart[3] is one of pure chance and being in the right place at the right time. In 1965, Humperdinck, who at the time was performing under the name of Gerry Dorsey, met up again with an old friend of his, Gordon Mills. By this time Mills was successfully managing Tom Jones. He took him onto his management roster and changed his name. He released a couple of near misses in the UK although one song "Dommage, Dommage" had been successful in Europe.
Early in 1967 Humperdinck was asked to stand in for Dickie Valentine, who was ill, on the variety TV show Sunday Night at the London Palladium. The show was one of the biggest rating shows in the UK at the time. He sang his latest song, "Release Me", an old US country hit, on the show and it reached number one in the charts on 2 March and stayed there for six weeks, keeping "Penny Lane"/"Strawberry Fields Forever" by The Beatles off the top of the charts in the process. The record stayed in the charts for a record fifty-six consecutive weeks.[4]
In 1994, an instrumental version of the song was adopted as the theme music to British sketch show The Fast Show. One sketch also featured a performance of the song by comedian Paul Whitehouse as character Kenny Valentine.
The Engelbert Humperdinck recording was featured in the episode "Going to Pot" of the 1970s British sitcom The Good Life.
| Chart (1967) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Irish Singles Chart | 1 |
| UK Singles Chart | 1 |
| Dutch Singles Chart | 2 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 2 |
| Australian Kent Music Report | 3 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 4 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks | 28 |
| Preceded by "Big Girls Don't Cry" by The Four Seasons |
Billboard Hot R&B Singles number-one single (Little Esther Phillips version) December 8, 1962 December 22, 1962 – December 29, 1962 |
Succeeded by "You Are My Sunshine" by Ray Charles |
| Preceded by "This Is My Song" by Petula Clark |
UK number-one single (Engelbert Humperdinck version) 2 March 1967 (6 weeks) |
Succeeded by "Somethin' Stupid" by Nancy Sinatra and Frank Sinatra |
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