Throwing back to the week of July 25, 1956, we find those stalwarts Pat Boone and Gogi Grant holding on to the top spots with ‘I Almost Lost My Mind‘ and ‘The Wayward Wind,’ respectively.

Hot on their heels was that young whippersnapper Elvis Presley, whose second single, ‘I Want You, I Need You, I Love You,’ tried to replicate the success of smash hit ‘Heartbreak Hotel.’ It didn’t quite make it — peaking at #3 on this chart — but it did give Elvis his first #1 on the Country chart.

The story of this song’s recording is a good one.

The suits at RCA Victor were eager to capitalize on ‘Heartbreak Hotel’s million-selling performance, so they chartered a plane to fly Presley and his band to Nashville for a day of recording between concert dates. En route, the plane’s engines sputtered, causing it to suffer frightening drops in altitude.

Shaken by the experience and overtired, the band stumbled through one bad take after another of this song before giving up and going home.

Frustrated by the wasted expense, producer Steve Sholes tried to salvage what he could from the day’s recordings and ended up stitching together this song from different takes (not a common practice at the time).

The result was another Platinum-selling classic that helped cement the young star’s status.

Note: Happy Anniversary to me! Today marks 18 years since I published my first Song of the Day post, and I haven’t missed a day since.

Old songs. Great memories.
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