My Prayer

"My Prayer"
Single by The Platters
from the album The Platters (Mercury Records)
B-side	"Heaven on Earth"
Released	July 1956
Genre	Pop
Length	2:48
Label	Mercury
Writer(s)	Georges Boulanger, Jimmy Kennedy
Producer(s)	Buck Ram
The Platters singles chronology
"(You've Got) The Magic Touch" (1956) "My Prayer" (1956) "Heaven on Earth" (1956)

"My Prayer" is a 1939 popular song with music by salon violinist Georges Boulanger and lyrics by Jimmy Kennedy. It was originally written by Boulanger with the title "Avant de Mourir" in 1926. The lyrics for this version were added by Kennedy in 1939. Glenn Miller recorded the song that year for a number two hit and The Ink Spots' version featuring Bill Kenny reached number three, as well, that year.^[1] It has been recorded many times since, but the biggest hit version was a revival in 1956 by The Platters.^[2] This version reached number one on the charts and was featured in the 2008 film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, as well as the 1985 film Mischief and the 1999 film October Sky. Billboard ranked this version as the number-four song for 1956.^[3] The Ink Spots' version of the song was featured in the 1992 movie, Malcolm X. The song also became a tango in the Italian version by Norma Bruni and Cinico Angelini's orchestra (1940), "Sì, voglio vivere ancor!".^[4]

Recordings

• Franck Pourcel (1958)
• Ambrose
• Chet Atkins
• Pat Boone
• Dee Dee Bridgewater
• Solomon Burke (1973)
• Glen Campbell
• Vikki Carr
• Frank Chacksfield
• Harry Connick Jr. (2004)
• Ray Conniff
• Mike Brant (1972)
• Johnny Desmond
• Jimmy Dorsey
• Shelley Fabares (1965)
• Narvel Felts (1976)
• Ella Fitzgerald
• The Four Seasons
• Roy Hamilton
• Lionel Hampton
• Chick Henderson
• Engelbert Humperdinck
• Leslie (Hutch) Hutchinson
• Jack Hylton
• The Ink Spots feat. Bill Kenny (1939)
• Jay and the Americans (1969)
• Tom Jones (1967)
• Bert Kaempfert
• Gene Krupa
• Brenda Lee
• Joe Longthorne
• Joe Loss
• Vera Lynn
• Johnny Maestro & the Brooklyn Bridge
• Mantovani (1971)
• Dean Martin
• Gerry Monroe
• Wayne Newton
• Eva Olmerová (1968)
• Roy Orbison
• Patti Page
• Esther Phillips
• Gene Pitney
• P.J. Proby (1964)
• Sue Raney - Songs for A Raney Day (2010)
• The Righteous Brothers
• Edna Savage (1956)
• John Lloyd Young "My Turn..." (2014)
• Rosita Serrano, German lyrics by Curth Flatow entitled "Eine Saite zersprang". Rosita Serrano with Kurt Wege's orchestra Violin solo: Barnabas Bakos recorded it in Berlin on November 22, 1951. The song was released by Electrola as catalog number EG 7702. Serrano also performed it in the West German film Dark Eyes (Schwarze Augen)^[5]
• Bobby Vee
• Victor Wood

References

1. Notes on the song by its publisher
2. Gilliland, John (1969). "Show 5 - Hail, Hail, Rock 'n' Roll: The rock revolution gets underway. [Part 1]" (audio). Pop Chronicles. Digital.library.unt.edu.
3. Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1956
4. First italian version of "My prayer", titled "Sì, voglio vivere ancor!" by Norma Bruni on YouTube
5. Rosita Serrano "Avant de mourir" on YouTube

External links

• Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics