Unchained Melody cover by Jack Kunkels ( Righteous Brothers )

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Recording by Jody Kunkels & Jack Kunkels

"Unchained Melody" is a 1955 song with music by Alex North and lyrics by Hy Zaret. North wrote the music as a theme for the little-known prison film Unchained (January 1955),[1] hence the song title. Todd Duncan sang the vocals for the film soundtrack.[2] It has since become a standard and one of the most recorded songs of the 20th century, most notably by the Righteous Brothers.[3] According to the song's publishing administrator, over 1,500 recordings of "Unchained Melody" have been made by more than 670 artists, in multiple languages.[4]

In 1955, three versions of the song (by Les Baxter, Al Hibbler, and Roy Hamilton) charted in the Billboard top 10 in the United States,[5] and four versions (by Al Hibbler, Les Baxter, Jimmy Young, and Liberace) appeared in the top 20 in the United Kingdom simultaneously, a record for any song.[6][7] The song continued to chart in the 21st century, and it was the only song to reach number one with four different recordings in the UK until it was joined by Band Aid 30's "Do They Know It's Christmas?" in 2014.[8][9]

Of the hundreds of recordings made, the Righteous Brothers' version in July 1965, with a solo by Bobby Hatfield, became the jukebox standard after its release. Hatfield changed the melody in the final verse and many subsequent covers of the song are based on his version. The Righteous Brothers recording achieved a second round of great popularity when featured in the film Ghost in 1990. In 2004, it was number 27 on AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs survey of top tunes in American cinema.

Origin of song
In 1954, North was contracted to compose the score for the prison film Unchained (released in 1955). North composed and recorded the score, and then was asked to write a song based upon the movie's theme. North asked Hy Zaret to write the lyrics, but Zaret initially declined, saying he was too busy painting his house. North was able to convince him to take the job, and together they wrote "Unchained Melody."[10][11] Zaret refused the producer's request to include the word "unchained" in his lyrics.[12] The song eventually became known as the "Unchained Melody" even though the song does not actually include the word "unchained". Instead, Zaret chose to focus on someone who pines for a lover he has not seen in a "long, lonely time". The film centered on a man who contemplates either escaping from prison to live life on the run or completing his sentence and returning to his wife and family.[13] The song has an unusual harmonic device as the bridge ends on the tonic chord rather than the more usual dominant chord. With Todd Duncan singing the vocals,[2] the song was nominated for 1955's Oscars, but the Best Song award went to the hit song "Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing".[13]

William Stirrat falsely claimed over many years that he wrote the song.[14]

Early versions
Todd Duncan sang the vocals for the film soundtrack. He performs an abbreviated version in the film, playing one of the prisoners. Lying on a bed, he sings it accompanied by another prisoner on guitar while others listen sadly.[2]

Bandleader Les Baxter released a version (Capitol Records catalog number 3055) which reached number 1 on the US charts and number 10 in the UK.[16] The words "unchain me" are sung repeatedly at the beginning and the lyrics are sung by a choir. Billboard ranked this version as the No. 5 song of 1955.[17]