Unchained Melody

"Unchained Melody" is a 1955 popular song with music by Alex North and lyrics by Hy Zaret. Re-recorded in 1965, it became one of the most recorded songs of the 20th century, by some counts having spawned over 500 versions in hundreds of different languages. In 1955, North used the... Read More

"Unchained Melody" is a 1955 popular song with music by Alex North and lyrics by Hy Zaret. Re-recorded in 1965, it became one of the most recorded songs of the 20th century, by some counts having spawned over 500 versions in hundreds of different languages.

In 1955, North used the music as a theme for the obscure prison film Unchained, hence the name. Todd Duncan sang the vocals for the film soundtrack. Les Baxter released an instrumental version which reached #2. Then song recordings were released by Al Hibbler, reaching #3 on the Billboard charts, Jimmy Young, which hit #1 on the British charts, and Roy Hamilton, reaching #1 on the R&B Best Sellers list and #6 on the pop chart. Hundreds of other recordings followed.

It was the July 1965 version by The Righteous Brothers that became a jukebox standard for the late 20th century, regaining massive popularity when used in the 1990 blockbuster film Ghost. See Less