"Theme from ''A Summer Place''" is a song with lyrics by Mack Discant and music by Max Steiner, written for the 1959 film ''

A Summer Place ''A Summer Place'' may refer to: * A Summer Place (novel), ''A Summer Place'' (novel), a 1958 novel by Sloan Wilson * A Summer Place (film), ''A Summer Place'' (film), a 1959 American romantic drama film based on the novel * Theme from A Summer Pla ...

'', which starred

Sandra Dee Sandra Dee (born Alexandra Zuck; April 23, 1942 – February 20, 2005) was an American actress. Dee began her career as a child model, working first in commercials, and then film in her teenage years. Best known for her portrayal of ingén ...

and

Troy Donahue Troy Donahue (born Merle Johnson Jr., January 27, 1936 – September 2, 2001) was an American film and television actor and singer. He was a popular sex symbol in the 1950s and 1960s. Biography Early years Born in New York City, Donahue was ...

. It was recorded for the film as an instrumental by Hugo Winterhalter. Originally known as the "Molly and Johnny Theme", this lush extended cue, as orchestrated by

Murray Cutter Murray Cutter (15 March 1902, Nice, France – 19 April 1983, Burbank, California) was a versatile Hollywood orchestrator, working mainly for film composer Max Steiner, with over 150 credits spanning the mid-1930s to early 1960s. Nevertheless, he ...

, is not the main title theme of the film, but an oft-heard secondary love theme for the characters played by Dee and Donahue. Following its introduction in the film by the Warner Bros. studio orchestra, the theme was recorded by many artists in both instrumental and vocal versions, and has also appeared in a number of subsequent films and television programs. The best-known version of the theme is an instrumental version by

Percy Faith and his Orchestra Percy Faith (April 7, 1908 – February 9, 1976) was a Canadian-American bandleader, orchestrator, composer and conductor, known for his lush arrangements of pop and Christmas standards. He is often credited with popularizing the "easy listeni ...

that was a Number One hit for nine weeks on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in 1960.

Percy Faith version

Percy Faith recorded the most popular version of the theme, an instrumental orchestral arrangement, at the

Columbia 30th Street Studio CBS 30th Street Studio, also known as Columbia 30th Street Studio, and nicknamed "The Church", was an American recording studio operated by Columbia Records from 1948 to 1981 located at 207 East 30th Street, between Second and Third Avenues in Ma ...

in New York City. Cf. especially, p.23-24 with an article on "The Church" It was released in September 1959 as a single on

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. It was founded on January 15, 1889, evolving from the A ...

, credited to "Percy Faith and his Orchestra", prior to the November 1959 release of the film ''

''. The single was not an immediate hit, but after it entered the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 singles chart at No. 96 on 11 January 1960, it ascended to number one in just six more weeks, on 22 February 1960, going on to set an at-the-time record of nine consecutive weeks at number one, a record which would not be broken until 1977, when " You Light Up My Life" spent ten weeks at the top of the chart. ( Perez Prado's "

Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White "Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White" or "Cerezo Rosa" or "Ciliegi Rosa" or "Gummy Mambo", is the English version of "Cerisiers Roses et Pommiers Blancs", a popular song with music by Louiguy written in 1950. French lyrics to the song by Jac ...

" remained at number one for 10 weeks on the Best Sellers in Stores chart in 1955, and

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the " King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. His ener ...

's double-sided hit "

Don't Be Cruel "Don't Be Cruel" is a song that was recorded by Elvis Presley and written by Otis Blackwell in 1956.Victor (2008), ''The Elvis Encyclopedia'', p.115-116 It was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2002. In 2004, it was listed #197 in '' Rol ...

/ Hound Dog" remained at number one for 11 weeks on the Best Sellers in Stores and Jockeys charts in 1956, all prior to the 4 August 1958, creation of the Hot 100 chart;

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

' "

Hey Jude "Hey Jude" is a song by the English rock music, rock band the Beatles that was released as a non-album single in August 1968. It was written by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. The single was the Beatles' fir ...

" tied, but did not break, the nine-week record in 1968.)Bronson, p
939
The single was also in front of five consecutive No. 2 singles, none of which ever reached the Hot 100's summit: Jimmy Jones' " Handy Man" (29 February),

Jim Reeves James Travis Reeves (August 20, 1923July 31, 1964) was an American country and popular music singer-songwriter. With records charting from the 1950s to the 1980s, he became well known as a practitioner of the Nashville Sound. Known as "Gentlem ...

' "

He'll Have to Go "He'll Have to Go" is an American country and pop hit recorded on October 15, 1959, by Jim Reeves. The song, released in the fall of 1959, went on to become a hit in both genres early in 1960. Background The song is about a man who's talking by t ...

" ( 7–21 March),

Bobby Rydell Robert Louis Ridarelli (April 26, 1942 – April 5, 2022), known by the stage name Bobby Rydell, was an American singer and actor who mainly performed rock and roll and traditional pop music. In the early 1960s he was considered a teen idol. Hi ...

's " Wild One" (28 March),

Paul Anka Paul Albert Anka (born July 30, 1941) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter and actor. He is best known for his signature hit songs including " Diana", " Lonely Boy", " Put Your Head on My Shoulder", and "(You're) Having My Baby". Anka also ...

's "

Puppy Love Puppy love, also known as a crush, is an informal term for feelings of romantic love, often felt during childhood and early adolescence. It is an infatuation usually developed by someone's looks and attractiveness at first sight. Such feelings f ...

" ( 4–11 April),

The Brothers Four The Brothers Four is an American folk singing group, founded in 1957 in Seattle, Washington, and known for their 1960 hit song "Greenfields." History Bob Flick, John Paine, Mike Kirkland, and Dick Foley met at the University of Washington, wher ...

's "Greenfields" (sometimes spelled "Green Fields") (18 April), with

's " Stuck on You" (25 April – 9 May) in front of "Greenfields" during its last three weeks at No. 2. "Theme From ''A Summer Place''" remains the longest-running number one instrumental in the history of the Hot 100. ''Billboard'' ranked Faith's version as the Number One song for 1960. The Faith version reached number 2 in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, spending 31 weeks on the chart, and it was also a number 1 hit in Italy under the title "Scandalo Al Sole." Faith won a

Grammy Award for Record of the Year The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without re ...

in 1961 for his recording. This was the first movie theme and the first instrumental to win a Record of the Year Grammy. Faith re-recorded the song twice: first, in 1969, as a female choral version, then, in 1976, as a

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric p ...

version titled "Summer Place '76." As reported by

Casey Kasem Kemal Amin "Casey" Kasem (April 27, 1932 – June 15, 2014) was an American disc jockey, actor, and radio personality, who created and hosted several radio countdown programs, notably ''American Top 40''. He was the first actor to voice No ...

on the ''

American Top 40 ''American Top 40'' (previously abbreviated to ''AT40'') is an internationally syndicated, independent song countdown radio program created by Casey Kasem, Don Bustany, Tom Rounds, and Ron Jacobs. The program is currently hosted by Ryan Sea ...

'' broadcast of 25 September 1976, "Theme from ''A Summer Place''" is the biggest hit on the American charts by a Canadian artist. In 2008 Faith's original version was ranked at number 18 on ''Billboard'''s top 100 songs during the first 50 years of the Hot 100 chart. ''The Billboard Book of Number One Hits'' called it "the most successful instrumental single of the rock era."

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

All-time charts

Other notable cover versions

"Theme from ''A Summer Place''" has been covered by a number of artists in addition to Percy Faith, in both non-vocal instrumental versions, and with one or more vocalists either singing the Discant lyrics or a wordless melody line. The theme has also been referenced, sampled, or otherwise adapted into several other songs.

Instrumental versions

* In 1960,

Billy Vaughn Richard Smith "Billy" Vaughn (April 12, 1919 – September 26, 1991) was an American singer, multi-instrumentalist, orchestra leader, and A&R man for Dot Records. Biography Vaughn was born in Glasgow, Kentucky, United States, where his father, ...

included an instrumental orchestral arrangement of the theme as the title cut to his album ''Theme From A Summer Place'' released on

Dot Records Dot Records was an American record label founded by Randy Wood (record producer), Randy Wood and Gene Nobles that was active between 1950 and 1978. The original headquarters of Dot Records were in Gallatin, Tennessee. In 1956, the company moved ...

, which peaked at number one on the Billboard LP chart. * In 1961,

Mantovani Annunzio Paolo Mantovani (; 15 November 1905 – 29 March 1980) was an Anglo-Italian conductor, composer and light orchestra-styled entertainer with a cascading strings musical signature. The book ''British Hit Singles & Albums'' sta ...

recorded an orchestral rendition of the theme for his

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...

''Mantovani Plays Music From 'Exodus' and Other Great Themes''; the album reached the Top Ten on the UK charts.

Vocal versions

Most vocal versions of the theme have featured the Discant lyrics. However, some featured wordless vocals by singers who voiced the melody line. * In 1960, British producer, bandleader and arranger

Norrie Paramor Norman William Paramor (15 May 1914 – 9 September 1979), known professionally as Norrie Paramor, was a British record producer, composer, arranger, pianist, bandleader, and orchestral conductor. He is best known for his work with Cliff R ...

released his arrangement of the theme as a single on Columbia Records, featuring wordless vocals by

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880& ...

Patricia Clarke and credited to "Norrie Paramor & His Orchestra". The single reached number 36 on the UK chart. * In 1962,

Andy Williams Howard Andrew Williams (December 3, 1927 – September 25, 2012) was an American singer. He recorded 43 albums in his career, of which 15 have been gold certified and three platinum certified. He was also nominated for six Grammy Awards. He hos ...

covered the theme for his gold-certified album ''

Moon River and Other Great Movie Themes ''Moon River and Other Great Movie Themes'' is the ninth studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams and was released on March 26, 1962 by Columbia Records and covered film songs that were mostly from the previous decade. The album made ...

''. * In 1965, the male vocal group

The Lettermen The Lettermen are an American male pop vocal trio. The Lettermen's trademark is close-harmony pop songs with light arrangements. The group started in 1959. They have had two Top 10 singles (both No. 7), 16 Top 10 singles on the Adult Contempor ...

had a hit with their harmony arrangement of the theme, released as a single on

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of not ...

; it reached number 16 on the Billboard Hot 100, and was included on their album ''The Hit Sounds of the Lettermen''.

In popular culture

"Theme from ''A Summer Place''" is frequently used as period background or soundtrack music in films and television programs set between 1959 and the mid-1960s. The theme has also become a ubiquitous representation of "peaceful music" and has been employed frequently in films, television shows and other popular culture to suggest peacefulness or in situations where inoffensive music is common (e.g. as stereotypical "

elevator music Elevator music (also known as Muzak, piped music, or lift music) is a type of background music played in rooms where many people come together (that is, with no intention whatsoever to listen to music), and during telephone calls when placed on ...

"). It is also used for intentionally stereotypical comic effect when a show cuts away from a scene deemed to be too violent to display and shows peaceful images instead. The theme from Mario Kart: Super Circuit's Shy Guy Beach racetrack uses the same melody as "Theme from "''A Summer Place''."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Theme from a Summer Place 1959 singles 1962 singles 1965 singles Percy Faith songs The Lettermen songs Andy Williams songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles Grammy Award for Record of the Year 1950s instrumentals Film theme songs Love themes Songs written for films 1959 songs Capitol Records singles Columbia Records singles