An unforgettable day….

16th December will always be etched in my mind as well as our family. With a family history of more than a score of men over three generations (the most senior being my Dad’s uncle who took a bullet in the head in Iraq in WWII , was operated in a field hospital, survived and recovered fully, got married after that and lived half a century afterwards) it would be a surprise if anyone of us could ever forget this day. Never before in the history of war in the modern era has a similar instrument of surrender been signed unconditionally on this day.

An unconditional surrender non pareil in human history with 93000 plus one gave up their arms and gave in to the might of the righteous and the victor, not knowing what the future would hold.

That said, the future didn’t work out on one front as it should have, with peace remaining elusive at best. The other front meanwhile, ensconced in a warm embrace, prospered and resorted to an insidious infiltration over the last so many decades.

To those bravehearts who made the surrender possible, this is one from the past that saw a huge resurgence a quarter of a century after its creation. https://youtu.be/IYj2hex99gY

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 sea
To the open 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, 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” released in the mid 50s with music by Alex North (written as theme for the ’55 prison movie Unchained – giving the song it’s title ) and lyrics by Hy Zaret. Todd Duncan sang the vocals for the film soundtrack.

It has since become a standard and one of the most recorded songs of the 20th century, most notably by the Righteous Brothers in 1965.

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.

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, 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.

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

Of the hundreds of recordings made, the Righteous Brothers’ version, 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.

A memory rekindled on a momentous day that just can’t be forgotten.

Stay safe, folks, stay healthy, happy. Love and be loved. I will enjoy my weekend in the countryside.

Advertisement