"Tennessee Waltz" is a popular

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

song with lyrics by Redd Stewart and music by

Pee Wee King Julius Frank Anthony Kuczynski (February 18, 1914 – March 7, 2000), known professionally as Pee Wee King, was an American country music songwriter and recording artist best known for co-writing "Tennessee Waltz". Pee Wee King is credited with ...

written in 1946 and first released in January 1948. The song became a multimillion seller via a 1950 recording – as "The Tennessee Waltz" – by

Patti Page Clara Ann Fowler (November 8, 1927 – January 1, 2013), better known by her stage name Patti Page, was an American singer. Primarily known for Pop music, pop and Country music, country music, she was the top-charting female vocalist and b ...

. All versions of the lyrics narrate a situation in which the

persona A persona (plural personae or personas) is a strategic mask of identity in public, the public image of one's personality, the social role that one adopts, or simply a fictional Character (arts), character. It is also considered "an intermediary ...

has introduced his or her sweetheart to a friend who then waltzes away with her or him. The lyrics are altered for pronoun gender on the basis of the gender of the singer. The popularity of "Tennessee Waltz" made it the fourth official song of the state of

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

in 1965. Page's recording was inducted into

Grammy Hall of Fame The Grammy Hall of Fame is a hall of fame to honor musical recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of ...

in 1998.

Composition and early recordings

, Redd Stewart, and their fellow Golden West Cowboys members were en route to

Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

"close to Christmas in 1946" when King and Stewart, who were riding in a truck carrying the group's equipment, heard

Bill Monroe William Smith Monroe ( ; September 13, 1911 – September 9, 1996) was an American mandolinist, singer, and songwriter who created the bluegrass music genre. Because of this, he is often called the " Father of Bluegrass". The genre takes its n ...

's new song " Kentucky Waltz" on the radio. Stewart had an idea to write a Tennessee waltz using the melody of King's theme song: "No Name Waltz", and wrote the lyrics on a matchbox as he and King thought up the words. King and Stewart presented "Tennessee Waltz" to music publisher Fred Rose the next day, and Rose adjusted one line in the bridge of Stewart's lyric from "O the Tennessee waltz, O the Tennessee Waltz," to "I remember the night and the Tennessee Waltz." Almost a year passed before Pee Wee King's Golden West Cowboys were able to record "Tennessee Waltz". Their recording, made on December 2, 1947 at the RCA Victor Studio in Chicago was released as Victor (20–2680) the following month. 300,000 copies were sold for this release.

Acuff-Rose Music Acuff-Rose Music, Inc. was an American music publishing firm formed in 1942 by Roy Acuff and Fred Rose (songwriter), Fred Rose in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Currently, the company's catalog is owned by Sony Music Publishing. Early hi ...

, the publisher, did not immediately register a copyright to the song when it was presented to the company by King and Stewart and did not obtain the "consummate proof of ownership, and the key to protecting a songwriter's property" until February 1948. A version by

Cowboy Copas Lloyd Estel Copas (July 15, 1913 – March 5, 1963), known by his stage name Cowboy Copas, was an American country music singer. He was popular from the 1940s until his death in the 1963 plane crash that also killed country stars Patsy Cline an ...

, a former member of the Golden West Cowboys was released by King Records (King 696) two months later in March 1948. 80,000 copies were sold. Both singles became Top Ten C&W hits – the chart was then known as "Best Selling Folk Retail Records" – in the spring and summer of 1948 with respective peaks of No. 3 (Pee Wee King's Golden West Cowboys) and No. 6 (Cowboy Copas).

Patti Page version

The most successful version of the song was recorded by Patti Page. In October 1950, an R&B version by Erskine Hawkins was released and reviewed on ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'', and the reviewer

Jerry Wexler Gerald Wexler (January 10, 1917 – August 15, 2008) was a music journalist turned music producer, and was a major influence on American popular music from the 1950s through the 1980s. He coined the term "rhythm and blues", and was integra ...

brought the song to the attention of Page's manager, Jack Rael, and suggested that the song could be a hit for Page. Page and Rael listened to Hawkins' version, and proceeded to record the song quickly despite lacking an arrangement for the song. Page cut "The Tennessee Waltz" in a November 1950 session in New York City with Rael conducting his orchestra: her vocal was cut multitracked with three voices, two voices, and a single voice, and Page herself selected the two-voice multitracked vocal on the released single. Patti Page's recording was originally intended to serve as an obscure

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

to "Boogie Woogie Santa Claus" (Catalog# 5534), as the label

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. Mercury Records released ...

was more interested in the seasonal single at that time of the year. However, it was "The Tennessee Waltz" that became a hit. After the initial pressings "Boogie Woogie Santa Claus" was replaced as the B-side by " Long Long Ago". "The Tennessee Waltz" entered the Pop Music chart of ''Billboard'' dated November 10, 1950 for a 30-week chart run, peaking at number one on the December 30, 1950 chart, and remained at number one for a total of nine weeks. A No. 2 C&W hit, "The Tennessee Waltz" became Page's career record. On the ''Cash Box'' charts, "Tennessee Waltz" reached No. 1 on December 30, 1950, with the Patti Page, Jo Stafford, Guy Lombardo and Les Paul/Mary Ford versions being given a single ranking; as such "Tennessee Waltz" remained No. 1 in ''Cash Box'' through the February 3, 1951 chart. The song was also ranked No. 1 in England for multiple weeks. Page's recording was reported to have sold 2.3 million copies by May 1951. Page's recording also inspired many other versions, and 4.8 million copies were sold for the various major versions combined, in addition to 1.8 million copies of sheet music sold, which made the song likely the most successful song in the history of pop music up to 1951 in the US. In Japan, the song was the biggest-selling song ever as of 1974. The song was later included on Page's 1957 Mercury album '' This Is My Song''. It was also re-recorded (in stereo, and with a different arrangement) for her 1966

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

album ''Patti Page's Greatest Hits''. In 2024, the single was added to the

National Recording Registry The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservation ...

by the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

as being "culturally, historically, and/or aesthetically significant".

Charts

Other contemporary versions

The success of the Patti Page version led to covers by

Les Paul Lester William Polsfuss (June 9, 1915 – August 12, 2009), known as Les Paul, was an American jazz guitarist, jazz, country guitarist, country, and blues guitarist, songwriter, luthier, and inventor. He was one of the pioneers of the solid body ...

with

Mary Ford Mary Ford (born Iris Colleen Summers; July 7, 1924 – September 30, 1977) was an American guitarist and vocalist, comprising half of the husband-and-wife musical team Les Paul and Mary Ford. Between 1950 and 1954, the couple had 16 top-ten hi ...

( Capitol 1316) and

Jo Stafford Jo Elizabeth Stafford (November 12, 1917July 16, 2008) was an American traditional pop singer, whose career spanned five decades from the late 1930s to the early 1980s. Admired for the purity of her voice, she originally underwent classical tr ...

( Columbia 39065) both of which reached the Top Ten – Stafford's at No. 7 and Paul/Ford at No. 6 (the latter was a double-sided hit with "Little Rock Getaway" reaching number 18). Also in 1951, the version by

Guy Lombardo Gaetano Alberto "Guy" Lombardo (June 19, 1902 – November 5, 1977) was a Canadian and American bandleader, violinist, and hydroplane racing, hydroplane racer whose unique "sweet jazz" style remained popular with audiences for nearly five decade ...

and his Royal Canadians (

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, record label * Decca Gold, classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, musical theater record label * Decca Studios, recording facility in West ...

27336) reached No. 6 in the US. Guy Lombardo's version sold nearly 600,000 copies while Les Paul sold 500,000 copies by May 1951.

The Fontane Sisters The Fontane Sisters were a trio (Bea, Geri and Marge Rosse) from New Milford, New Jersey. Early years Born to an Italian family, their mother, Louise Rosse, was both a soloist and the leader of the St. Joseph's Church choir in New Milford. B ...

made their first solo recording cutting "Tennessee Waltz" in a November 1950 session at RCA Victor Studios in New York City; the track would reach the Top 20 in 1951. In addition, the original version – credited to Pee Wee King – was re-released to reach No. 6 C&W in 1951. A further 100,000 copies were sold in addition to the 300,000 copies sold in the previous release. Spike Jones and his City Slickers recorded a parody featuring a duet with singers sporting

Yiddish Yiddish, historically Judeo-German, is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated in 9th-century Central Europe, and provided the nascent Ashkenazi community with a vernacular based on High German fused with ...

accents, and this version reached No. 13 in January 1951. A version by

Anita O'Day Anita Belle Colton (October 18, 1919 – November 23, 2006), known professionally as Anita O'Day, was an American jazz singer and self-proclaimed “song stylist” widely admired for her sense of rhythm and dynamics, and her early big band appe ...

& the All Stars Top Songs reached No. 24. Other recordings were made by

Petula Clark Sally "Petula" Clark (born 15 November 1932) is a British singer, actress, and songwriter. She started her professional career as a child actor, child performer and has had the longest career of any British entertainer, spanning more than 85 y ...

for the UK market, and by Chiemi Eri for the Japanese market.

Later recordings

Ivo Robić Ivo Robić (28 January 1923 – 9 March 2000) was a Croatian singer-songwriter. Domestic career Robić began his career as a soloist with the Radio Zagreb Orchestra, while studying at the same time in Zagreb. He performed during World War II o ...

recorded "Tennessee Waltz" for his 1957 album ''Cowboyske Pjesme'' ("Cowboy Songs").

Margaret Whiting Margaret Eleanor Whiting (July 22, 1924 – January 10, 2011) was an American singer of popular music who gained popularity in the 1940s and 1950s.Mapes, Jillian.Margaret Whiting, Iconic Standards Singer, Dies at 86. ''Billboard'', January 12, ...

recorded the song for her album ''Margaret'' in 1958. "Tennessee Waltz" returned to the charts in the fall of 1959 with a

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre, it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western musi ...

version recorded by both Bobby Comstock & the Counts and Jerry Fuller: on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 the versions respectively reached No. 52 and No. 63 while ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' assigned both versions a joint ranking on its Top 100 Singles chart with a peak position of No. 42. The two versions were co-charted in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

reaching No. 13. In 1962, Damita Jo had a non-charting single release of "Tennessee Waltz".

Patsy Cline Patsy Cline (born Virginia Patterson Hensley; September 8, 1932 – March 5, 1963) was an American singer. One of the most influential vocalists of the 20th century, she was known as one of the first country music artists to successfully Cross ...

also recorded The Tennessee Waltz for Decca records in 1962. In 1964, "Tennessee Waltz" was recorded in a

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

ballad style by

Alma Cogan Alma Angela Cohen Cogan (19 May 1932 – 26 October 1966) was an English singer of traditional pop in the 1950s and early 1960s. Dubbed the "Girl with the Giggle in Her Voice", she was the highest paid British female entertainer of her era. Ch ...

; this version was No. 1 in Sweden for five weeks and also reached No. 14 in Denmark while a German language rendering (with lyrics by Theo Hansen) reached No. 10 in Germany. Cogan's version served as template for the arrangement of the 1974 Danish-language rendering "Den Gamle Tennessee Waltz" by Birthe Kjær which spent 17 weeks in the Top Ten of the Danish hit parade with a two-week tenure at No. 1 also spending an additional eight weeks at No. 2. The arrangement of Cogan's version was also borrowed for remakes of "Tennessee Waltz" by Swedish singers

Kikki Danielsson Ann-Kristin "Kikki" Danielsson (born 10 May 1952) is a Swedish country music, country, dansband and pop singer. Sometimes, she also plays the accordion and she has also written some lyrics. She has gained notice for yodeling in some songs. Danie ...

( Wizex (on the 1978 album '' Miss Decibel'')) and

Lotta Engberg Anna Charlotte "Lotta" Engberg (born Pedersen; 5 March 1963) is a Swedish singer. She represented Sweden in Eurovision Song Contest 1987 with "Boogaloo (song), Boogaloo" after winning Melodifestivalen 1987. She also tried many times in Melodif ...

(on the 2000 album '' Vilken härlig dag'') and – with the German lyrics – by Heidi Brühl, Gitte, Renate Kern and

Ireen Sheer Ireen Sheer (born 25 February 1949) is a German-English singer. She had her first major hit in 1970 with ''Hey Pleasure Man''. She had a top five hit on the German singles chart with "Goodbye Mama" in 1973. She went on to finish fourth at the E ...

Sam Cooke Samuel Cooke (; January 22, 1931 – December 11, 1964) was an American singer and songwriter. Considered one of the most influential soul music, soul artists of all time, Cooke is commonly referred to as the "King of Soul" for his distin ...

recorded a

double-time Double-Time Records (a.k.a. Double-Time Jazz) is a jazz record company and label founded by Jamey D. Aebersold in New Albany, Indiana in 1995. Its catalogue includes albums by John Abercrombie, Bruce Barth, Jerry Bergonzi, Conrad Herwig, And ...

version of "Tennessee Waltz" for his '' Ain't That Good News'' album recorded January 28, 1964 at the RCA Studio in Hollywood. Released 1 March 1, 1964, ''Ain't That Good News'' would be the final album release of new material by Cooke, and "Tennessee Waltz", coupled with another album track: "

Good Times ''Good Times'' is an American television sitcom that aired for six seasons on CBS, from February 8, 1974, to August 1, 1979. Created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans (actor), Mike Evans and developed by executive producer Norman Lear, it was televis ...

", would be the final Sam Cooke single released during the singer's lifetime, with "Tennessee Waltz", the original B-side, becoming sufficiently popular to chart at No. 35. Cooke performed "Tennessee Waltz" – and also "

Blowin' in the Wind "Blowin' in the Wind" is a song written by Bob Dylan in 1962. It was released as a single and included on his album '' The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan'' in 1963. It has been described as a protest song and poses a series of rhetorical questions about ...

" – as a guest on the premiere of ''

Shindig! ''Shindig!'' is an American musical variety series which aired on ABC from September 16, 1964 to January 8, 1966. The show was hosted by Jimmy O'Neill, a disc jockey in Los Angeles,Sam Cooke at the Copa'' also features "Tennessee Waltz".

Al Hirt Alois Maxwell "Al" Hirt (November 7, 1922 – April 27, 1999) was an American trumpeter and bandleader. He is best remembered for his million-selling recordings of "Java (instrumental), Java" and the accompanying album ''Honey in the Horn (album ...

released a version on his 1965 album, '' Live at Carnegie Hall''. A French-language pop version of the song (as "Cette danse") was recorded by Canadian singer

Renée Martel Renée Martel (26 June 1947 – 18 December 2021) was a French Canadian French Canadians, referred to as Canadiens mainly before the nineteenth century, are an ethnic group descended from French people, French colonists first arriving in ...

in 1965. Ray Brown & the Whispers had a No. 4 hit in Australia in 1966 with a

version of "Tennessee Waltz" released as "Tennessee Waltz Song". In 1966,

Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...

recorded a version of "Tennessee Waltz" featuring Booker T & the MGs on his R&B album, '' Complete & Unbelievable: The Otis Redding Dictionary of Soul'' cut at the

Stax Stax can refer to: * StAX, (Computer Programming) Streaming API for reading and writing XML in Java * Stax Ltd, a Japanese brand of electrostatic headphones * Stax Records Stax Records is an American record company, originally based in Memphis, ...

Studio in

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...

: Redding was familiar with "Tennessee Waltz" from the album ''Sam Cooke at the Copa''.

Manfred Mann Manfred Mann were an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. They were named after their keyboardist Manfred Mann (musician), Manfred Mann, who later led the successful 1970s group Manfred Mann's Earth Band. The group had two l ...

included a version of the song on their number-one EP in 1966. In 1967, Dobie Gray recorded "Tennessee Waltz" as the

of a non-charting version of " River Deep - Mountain High": both sides of the single were produced and arranged by

Leon Russell Leon Russell (born Claude Russell Bridges; April 2, 1942 – November 13, 2016) was an American musician and songwriter who was involved with numerous bestselling records during his 60-year career that spanned multiple genres, including rock a ...

. Johnny Jones – a native of

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

who had briefly replaced Sam Cooke in

the Soul Stirrers The Soul Stirrers were an American gospel music group, whose career spans over eighty years. The group was a pioneer in the development of the quartet style of gospel, and a major influence on Soul, R&B, Doo-wop, and Southern soul, some of th ...

before

Johnnie Taylor Johnnie Harrison Taylor (May 5, 1934 – May 31, 2000) was an American recording artist and songwriter who performed a wide variety of genres, from blues, rhythm and blues, soul, and gospel to pop, doo-wop, and disco. He was initially suc ...

joined the group – reached No. 49 R&B in 1968 with his deep soul rendition of "Tennessee Waltz" cut for producer Bobby Robinson's

Fury Records Fury Records was set up by Bobby Robinson in 1957. In 1959 it had a Billboard Hot 100 number-one hit with "Kansas City", sung by Wilbert Harrison. In the early 1970s, it helped launch Grandmaster Flash. See also * List of record labels Fil ...

. In July 1971,

Cymarron Cymarron was an American soft rock band from Memphis, Tennessee. They are most famous for their song " Rings", a number 17 hit in 1971. The recording went to No. 6 on the ''Billboard'' Adult Contemporary chart and peaked at number 66 in Austral ...

recorded "Tennessee Waltz" in the sessions for their self-titled album produced by

Chips Moman Lincoln Wayne "Chips" Moman (June 12, 1937 – June 13, 2016) was an American record producer, guitarist, and songwriter. He is known for working in R&B, pop music and country music, operating American Sound Studios and producing hit albums li ...

at his

American Sound Studio The American Sound Studio was a recording studio located in Memphis, Tennessee which operated from 1964 to 1972. Founded by Chips Moman, the studio at 827 Thomas Street came to be known as American North, and the studio at 2272 Deadrick Street ...

in Memphis. In 1972, American Spring recorded a cover of "Tennessee Waltz" produced by

Brian Wilson Brian Douglas Wilson (June 20, 1942 – June 11, 2025) was an American musician, songwriter, singer and record producer who co-founded the Beach Boys. Often Brian Wilson is a genius, called a genius for his novel approaches to pop compositio ...

to open their debut album, '' Spring''. David Bromberg includes a live version on his 1972 album, '' Demon in Disguise'', on Columbia Records. Lacy J. Dalton recorded "Tennessee Waltz" for her 1979 self-titled debut album recorded at CBS Studio in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

: issued as a single in 1980 Dalton's gritty reworking of the song reached No. 18 on the C&W – the sole C&W charting of "Tennessee Waltz" since 1951. Ultimate hipster

Mose Allison Mose John Allison Jr. (November 11, 1927 – November 15, 2016) was an American jazz and blues pianist, singer, and songwriter. He became notable for playing a unique mix of blues and modern jazz, both singing and playing piano. After moving to N ...

featured a "cool jazz" version of the song on his album '' Middle Class White Boy'' (1982). In 1983, the song was featured on the

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, and record producer. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th-century music, he is referred to by Honorific nick ...

album ''Bring It On'' (Churchill Records). American R&B and

boogie-woogie Boogie-woogie is a genre of blues music that became popular during the late 1920s, but already developed in African-American communities since the 1870s.Paul, Elliot, ''That Crazy American Music'' (1957), Chapter 10, p. 229. It was eventually ex ...

pianist and singer

Little Willie Littlefield Willie Littlefield, Jr., billed as Little Willie Littlefield (September 16, 1931 – June 23, 2013), was an American R&B and boogie-woogie pianist and singer whose early recordings "formed a vital link between boogie-woogie and rock and roll". ...

recorded a version for his 1990 album '' Singalong with Little Willie Littlefield''.

Norah Jones Norah Jones ( ; born Geethali Shankar; March 30, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She has won several awards for her music and, , has sold more than 53 million records worldwide. '' Billboard'' named her the top jazz artist of ...

performed "Tennessee Waltz" as an encore during a live show at the

House of Blues House of Blues is an American chain of live music concert halls and restaurants. It was founded by Isaac Tigrett, the co-founder of Hard Rock Cafe, and Dan Aykroyd, co-star of the 1980 film ''The Blues Brothers (film), The Blues Brothers''. The ...

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

on August 24, 2002. It is featured as extra material on the following DVD-release of the show.

Leonard Cohen Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian songwriter, singer, poet, and novelist. Themes commonly explored throughout his work include faith and mortality, isolation and depression, betrayal and redemption, soc ...

released a live version of "Tennessee Waltz" recorded in 1985– one of the few covers he's ever cut – on his 2004 album '' Dear Heather''; this version featured an additional verse written by Cohen himself.

Belle and Sebastian Belle and Sebastian are a Scottish indie pop band formed in Glasgow in 1996. Led by Stuart Murdoch, the band has released twelve studio albums. They are often compared with acts such as the Smiths and Nick Drake. The band took their name from ...

used the melody from "Tennessee Waltz" in their song "Slow Graffiti". Other artists who have recorded "Tennessee Waltz" (with the parent album) include:

LaVern Baker Delores LaVern Baker (born Delores Evans; November 11, 1929 – March 10, 1997) was an American rhythm and blues singer who had several hit records on the pop charts in the 1950s and early 1960s. Her most successful records were " Tweedle Dee" ...

(''Woke Up This Mornin 1993),

Pat Boone Patrick Charles Eugene Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, author, television personality, radio host and philanthropist. He sold nearly 50 million records, had 38 Top 40 hits, and has acted in many films. Boone ...

(''I'll See You in My Dreams''/ 1962),

Eva Cassidy Eva Marie Cassidy (February 2, 1963 – November 2, 1996) was an American singer and musician known for her interpretations of jazz, Folk music, folk, and blues music, sung with a powerful, emotive soprano voice. In 1992, she released her f ...

('' Imagine''/ 2002),

Holly Cole Holly Cole (born November 25, 1963) is a Canadian jazz singer and actress. For many years she performed with her group The Holly Cole Trio. Background Cole was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Halifax, Nova Scotia. Her father, Leon Cole, was a note ...

('' Don't Smoke in Bed'' 1993),

Connie Francis Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero ( ; born December 12, 1937), known as Connie Francis, is a retired American Pop music, pop singer, actress, and top-charting female vocalist of the late 1950s and early 1960s. She is estimated to have sold more th ...

(''Country & Western Golden Hits''/ 1959),

Emmylou Harris Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, bandleader, and activist. She is considered one of the leading music artists behind the country rock genre in the 1970s and the Americana (music), Americana genre ...

('' Cimarron'' 1981),

Tom Jones Tom Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Tom Jones (singer) (born 1940), Welsh singer *Tom Jones (writer) (1928–2023), American librettist and lyricist *''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'', a novel by Henry Fielding published in 1 ...

backed by

The Chieftains The Chieftains were a traditional Irish folk band formed in Dublin in 1962, by Paddy Moloney, Seán Potts and Michael Tubridy. Their sound, which is almost entirely instrumental and largely built around uilleann pipes, has become synonymous w ...

('' Long Black Veil'' 1995), (1995), Pete Molinari (''Today, Tomorrow and Forever'' 2009),

Anne Murray Morna Anne Murray (born June 20, 1945) is a retired Canadian country, pop and adult contemporary music singer who has sold over 55 million album copies worldwide during her over 40-year career. Murray has won four Grammys including the Grammy ...

('' Let's Keep It That Way'' 1978),

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

Billie Jo Spears Billie Jo Spears (born Billie Jean Moore; January 14, 1938 – December 14, 2011) was an American country music singer. She was known for a series of Single (music), singles whose characters often represented women in assertive positions. Among t ...

(''Country Girl'' 1981), Lenny Welch,

Kitty Wells Ellen Muriel Deason (August 30, 1919 – July 16, 2012), known professionally as Kitty Wells, was an American pioneering female country music singer. She broke down a barrier for women in country music with her 1952 hit recording " It Wasn't God ...

(''Kitty's Choice''/ 1960),

Dottie West Dottie West (born Dorothy Marie Marsh; October 11, 1932 – September 4, 1991) was an American country singer and songwriter. She also had several credits as an actress. A distinguished figure in the country genre, West was among several people ...

('' Feminine Fancy''/ 1968),

(''Margaret''/ 1958), Broadway's Kerry Conte and Mike Rosengarten (''An Evening With... Vol. 1''/ 2019).

Kelly Clarkson Kelly Brianne (born Kelly Brianne Clarkson, April 24, 1982), known professionally as Kelly Clarkson, is an American singer, songwriter, and television personality. Rising to fame after winning the American Idol season 1, first season of ''Ameri ...

performed the song at the 2013 Grammy Awards as part of a tribute to Patti Page.

The Longest Johns The Longest Johns are an English folk musical group from Bristol, England, consisting of Andy Yates, Jonathan "JD" Darley, and Robbie Sattin. They are known for performing folk music and sea shanties in the English tradition, and they also comp ...

and El Pony Pisador performed this song together on their collaboration album
The Longest Pony
released in March of 2023.

Other performances

The

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (or The University of Tennessee; UT; UT Knoxville; or colloquially UTK or Tennessee) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee, United St ...

Pride of the Southland Band performs Tennessee Waltz at the end of each home game at

Neyland Stadium Neyland Stadium ( ) is a sports stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States. It serves primarily as the home of the Tennessee Volunteers football team, but is also used to host large conventions and has been a site for several National Footba ...

and Thompson–Boling Arena in Knoxville as the fans are filing out of those venues.

East Tennessee State University East Tennessee State University (ETSU) is a public research university in Johnson City, Tennessee. It was historically part of the State University and Community College System of Tennessee under the Tennessee Board of Regents, but since 2016, ...

's Marching Bucs perform the song during their pregame show. After every home game, the Appalachian State University Marching Mountaineers and the Middle Tennessee State University Band of Blue perform the song during their post-game show.

Baylor University Baylor University is a Private university, private Baptist research university in Waco, Texas, United States. It was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Te ...

's Golden Wave Band plays the song at the end of each home game, a tradition possibly begun with a request from former head coach Grant Teaff. The Tennessee Waltz is also the corps song of Music City Drum and Bugle Corps, a Drum Corps International World Class corps from

. The UTC Marching Mocs perform the Tennessee Waltz during their pregame show.

Use in media

The song was also used in an instrumental form in the final scenes of the film ''

Primary Colors Primary colors are colorants or colored lights that can be mixed in varying amounts to produce a gamut of colors. This is the essential method used to create the perception of a broad range of colors in, e.g., electronic displays, color printin ...

'' where Jack Stanton dances with his wife at his Inauguration Ball. It was also used briefly during the 1983 drama film, '' The Right Stuff''. John Huston's 1979 '' Wise Blood'', an adaptation of a Flannery O'Connor novel, uses an instrumental version during the opening montage and as a recurrent musical theme throughout the picture. Also at the beginning of the French movie ''Les Cowboys'' (2015), the song was played by François Damiens.

's version features in ''

Zabriskie Point Zabriskie Point is a part of the Amargosa Range located east of Death Valley in Death Valley National Park in California, United States, noted for its erosional landscape. It is composed of sediments from Furnace Creek Lake, which dried up 5 mil ...

''. The song is also featured in the Schitt's Creek TV series, season 1 episode 12, "Surprise Party" and in the 1999 Japanese film ''Poppoya''. In season 2 episode 11, "Triangle" of the original TV series Dallas it is faintly heard being played during a cocktail party.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tennessee Waltz 1946 songs 1948 singles 1950 singles Songs written by Pee Wee King Songs written by Redd Stewart Patti Page songs The Fontane Sisters songs Lacy J. Dalton songs Roy Acuff songs Little Willie Littlefield songs Al Hirt songs Guy Lombardo songs Number-one singles in the United States Number-one singles in Sweden United States state songs Waltzes Music of Tennessee Songs about Tennessee RCA Victor singles Mercury Records singles United States National Recording Registry recordings