OUT of the over 700 songs performed and recorded by Elvis Aaron Presley (1935-1977), one song stands out despite not being one of his top hits. The song Unchained Melody is not his original song as it was recorded and pioneered by The Righteous Brothers. The lyrics go as follows:
It starts with “Woah, my love, my darling I’ve hungered for your touch, A long, lonely time and time goes by so slowly, And time can do so much, Are you still mine? I need your love, I need your love, God speed your love to me. Lonely rivers flow, To the sea, To the open sea, To the arms of the sea yeah, Lonely rivers sigh, “Wait for me, wait for me”, I’ll be coming home, wait for me. Woah my love, my darling, I’ve hungered for your touch, A long lonely time, And time goes by so slowly, And time can do so much, Are you still mine? I need your love, I need your love, God speed your love to me.”
Unchained Melody is perhaps one of the few if not the only song by any artiste that does not feature or mention its title in the lyrics. One can check with the full lyrics above that there is no ‘Unchained Melody’ said or mentioned in its lyrics. This makes the song stand out from others.
Performed by Elvis on his last show on June 21, 1977 at Indianapolis, USA, while playing the piano, Elvis belted out the number in his best ever voice despite being not in his best health. Just weeks later he was found dead in his bathroom in Graceland, his mansion that has now been turned into a museum.
During the same show Elvis performed other songs but fumbled a melody or two with songs such as Don’t Be Cruel and Such a Night. But he did not play the piano for the other songs, reserving his best piano play for Unchained Melody in which it appears that he shed a tear or two in his special EP jumpsuit and accessories.
When viewing the video recording of his last performance, I was really mesmerised by Elvis’ rendition of Unchained Melody accompanied by his own piano play. He seemed to be having problem breathing as he looked bloated and certainly not in his best physical fitness.
Written by Hy Zaret the song’s melody was provided by Alex North. Unchained Melody was not the only song Elvis borrowed from other artistes. He borrowed some from Tom Jones, including Green Green Grass of Home, I’ll Never Fall In Love Again and a few more. He also sang My Way in his own way despite the song being originally done by Frank Sinatra. He also took some from Engelbert Humperdinck including Am I Easy To Forget. Other singers from whom he borrowed songs included Little Richard (Tutty Frutty), Carl Perkin (Blue Suede Shoes), Ray Charles (I Can’t Stop Loving You) and many more including jazz specialist Nat King Cole as well as his contemporary Johnny Cash with whom he was acquainted.
But among these, he and Tom Jones were great friends. It started in 1967 when Tom Jones did a show attended by Elvis who was then not doing well as far as his music was concerned. Tom Jones acknowledged his (Elvis) presence and invited him to perform Green Green Grass of Home together on stage to the great enjoyment and excitement of the audience. They later met back stage and became good friends thereafter. Now Sir Tom Jones who is still active judging The Voice always speaks well of his friendship with Elvis.
On the Unchained Melody number, I remember singing it karaoke-style in pubs as well as performing it live using CD in shows and functions. One of the functions where I sang it was at the wedding of my distant cousin Jennifer Lendai Kundat to her husband Nicholas Jana Badindang in 2017 at Riverside Majestic Hotel in Kuching. I was backed by the Maya Band led by Johnson and did it reasonably well, earning me thunderous applause from the audience that included former deputy chief minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Alfred Jabu Numpang and his wife Tan Sri Empiang Jabu as well as the present Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah with his wife. For me it was a great moment to savour and reminded me of the last performance by Elvis in Indianapolis on June 21, 1977.
Other Malaysian Elvis Tribute Artistes who have performed Unchained Melody on stage include Elvis Jo, Paul Lee (Elvis of Penang), Sunny Tai (Elvis of Selangor), Chris Gomez (Sabah Elvis), Wilfred Vincent Ragam (twice Elvis of Sarawak titleholder) and the late Ges Barundang aka Elges Presley (Elvis of Kuching) in their stage appearances in KL, KK and in Sarawak.
We all take pride in the song that became number one in the US chart in 1956 after it was written as theme song for the film “Unchained” in the US in 1955. Hy Zaret reportedly refused to include the word “unchained” in the lyrics and it became known as “Unchained Melody” – without either word in its lyrics.
The film centred on a man who contemplates either escaping from prison to live life on the run or finishing his sentence and returning to his wife and family. Todd Duncan sang the vocals in the film. Lying on a bed, he sings it accompanied by another prisoner on guitar, while others listen sadly.
It was nominated for an Oscar in 1955, but it went to the hit song ‘Love is a Many-Splendoured Thing’ from the movie of the same name. Nevertheless, Unchained Melody still stands out from thousands of other songs the way I see it.
