It's Now or Never (song)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
"It's Now or Never"
Single by Elvis Presley
B-side "A Mess of Blues"
Released July 5, 1960
Format Vinyl single
Recorded April 3, 1960
Genre Pop
Length 3:15
Label RCA
Writer(s) Wally Gold, Aaron Schroeder, Eduardo di Capua
Elvis Presley singles chronology
"Stuck on You"
(1960)		 "It's Now or Never"
(1960)		 "Are You Lonesome Tonight?"
(1960)

"It's Now or Never" is a popular song recorded by Elvis Presley and published by Gladys Music, Elvis Presley's publishing company, in 1960. The melody of the song is adapted from the Italian standard, "'O Sole Mio", but the inspiration for it came from the song, "There's No Tomorrow", recorded by U.S. singer, Tony Martin, in 1949. The lyrics were written by Aaron Schroeder and Wally Gold.

In the late 1950s, while stationed in Germany with the U.S. Army, Presley heard Martin's recording. According to The New York Times, quoting from the 1986 book Behind The Hits, "he told the idea to his music publisher, Freddy Bienstock, who was visiting him in Germany...Mr. Bienstock, who many times found songwriters for Presley, returned to his New York office, where he found songwriters, Mr. [Aaron] Schroeder and Wally Gold, the only people in that day. The two wrote lyrics in half an hour. Selling more than 20 million records, the song became number one in countries all around and was Presley's best selling single ever...a song [they] finished in 20 minutes to a half hour was the biggest song of [their] career."[1]

In 1960, "It's Now or Never" was a number-one record in the U.S., spending five weeks at number one and the U.K., where it spent eight weeks at the top in 1960 and an additional week at number one in 2005 as a re-issue, and numerous other countries, selling in excess of 25 million copies worldwide, his biggest international single ever. Its British release was delayed for some time because of rights issues, allowing the song to build up massive advance orders and to enter the UK Singles Chart at number one, a very rare occurrence at the time. "It's Now or Never" peaked at number seven on the R&B charts.[2]

Barry White heard this song in 1960 when he was in jail for stealing tires. The song had such an impact on White that it convinced him to pursue a career in music.[citation needed]

A live version featuring "O Sole Mio" is available on the 1977 live album Elvis in Concert. "O Sole Mio" is sung by tenor Sherrill Nielson.

In early 2005, the song was re-released along with the other Presley singles in the UK, and again reached number one on the UK Singles Chart for the week of February 5, 2005. The song also appears in the TV mini-series Elvis.

Contents

Charts and certifications [edit]

Weekly charts [edit]

Chart (1960-1961) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[3] 1
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[4] 1
Germany (Der Musikmarkt)[5] 2
Netherlands (Mega Single Top 100)[6] 1
Norway (VG-lista)[7] 1
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[8] 1
US Billboard Hot 100[9] 1
US Billboard Hot R&B Sides[10] 7
US Singles (Cash Box)[11] 1
Chart (1977) Peak
position
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[8] 39
Chart (2005) Peak
position
Ireland (IRMA)[13] 6
Netherlands (Mega Single Top 100)[6] 58
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[14] 47
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[8] 1

Year-End charts [edit]

Chart (1960) Peak
position
US Billboard Hot 100[15] 7
US Singles (Cash Box)[16] 2

Sales and certifications [edit]

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Finland (Musiikkituottajat)[17] 31,000[17]
Germany (BVMI)[18] Gold 1,000,000[18]
United Kingdom (BPI)[18] Gold 1,260,000[19]
United States (RIAA)[20] Platinum 1,000,000^

^shipments figures based on certification alone

Chart succession [edit]

Preceded by
"Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini" by Brian Hyland		 US Cash Box number-one single
August 13, 1960– September 3, 1960
(4 weeks)		 Succeeded by
"The Twist" by Chubby Checker
US Billboard Hot 100 number-one single of 1960
August 15, 1960 – September 12, 1960
(5 weeks)
Preceded by
"Only the Lonely (Know the Way I Feel)" by Roy Orbison		 UK Singles Chart number-one single
3 November 1960 – 22 December 1960
(8 weeks)		 Succeeded by
"I Love You" by Cliff Richard and The Shadows
Preceded by
"A Mess of Blues" by Elvis Presley		 European Hitkrant number-one single
1 October 1960 – 21 January 1961
(17 weeks)		 Succeeded by
"Are You Lonesome Tonight?" by Elvis Presley
Preceded by
"Goodies" by Ciara featuring Petey Pablo		 UK Singles Chart number-one single
30 January 2005
(1 week)		 Succeeded by
"Like Toy Soldiers" by Eminem

John Schneider version [edit]

"It's Now or Never"
Single by John Schneider
from the album Now or Never
B-side "Stay"
Released 1981
Genre Country
Length 3:22
Label Scotti Brothers
John Schneider singles chronology
"It's Now or Never"
(1981)		 "Them Good Ol' Boys Are Bad"
(1981)

American country music singer and actor John Schneider released a cover of the song as his first single and the title track of his debut album. Schneider's version was a top five hit on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart and peaked at #14 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Chart performance [edit]

Chart (1981) Peak
position
Canadian RPM Country Tracks 7
Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary Tracks 5
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 14
U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles 4
U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks 5

See also [edit]

References [edit]

  1. ^ Martin, Douglas (December 6, 2009). "Aaron Schroeder, Writer of Hit Songs for Elvis Presley, Dies at 83". The New York Times. 
  2. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 468. 
  3. ^ Kent, David (2005). Australian Chart Book: 1940-1969: the Hit Songs and Records from Thirty Years of Specially Compiled Charts. Australian Chart Book Limited. Retrieved 2013-03-04. 
  4. ^ "Ultratop.be – Elvis Presley – It's Now or Never" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Ultratop & Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. Retrieved March 4, 2013.
  5. ^ "Elvis Presley - It's Now or Never". Charts.de. Media Control. Retrieved March 4, 2013. 
  6. ^ a b "Dutchcharts.nl – Elvis Presley – It's Now or Never" (in Dutch). Mega Single Top 100. Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. Retrieved March 4, 2013.
  7. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Elvis Presley – It's Now or Never". VG-lista. Hung Medien. Retrieved March 4, 2013.
  8. ^ a b c "Archive Chart" UK Singles Chart. Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 4, 2013.
  9. ^ "Elvis Presley Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Hot 100 for Elvis Presley. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved March 4, 2013.
  10. ^ "Elvis Presley - Awards". Allmusic. Retrieved March 4, 2013. 
  11. ^ Joel Whitburn's top pop singles 1955-2006. Record Research. 2008-01-08. Retrieved March 3, 2013. 
  12. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search charts". Irish Recorded Music Association. 2008. To use, type "Now or Never" in the "Search by Song Title" search var and click search. Retrieved 2013-03-04. 
  13. ^ "Chart Track". Irish Singles Chart. Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved March 4, 2013.
  14. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Elvis Presley – It's Now or Never". Singles Top 60. Hung Medien. Retrieved March 4, 2013.
  15. ^ "Billboard Top 50 - 1956". Billboard. Longbored Surfer. 1956. Retrieved 2013-03-04. 
  16. ^ "The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1960". Cash Box Magazine. 1960. Retrieved 2013-03-04. 
  17. ^ a b "Finnish single certifications – Elvis Presley – O Sole Mio" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved August 20, 2012. 
  18. ^ a b c Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2, illustrated ed.). Barrie & Jenkins. ISBN 0-214-20480-4. 
  19. ^ Ami Sedghi (4 November 2012). "UK's million-selling singles: the full list". The Guardian. Retrieved 8 November 2012. 
  20. ^ "American single certifications – Elvis Presley – It's Now or Never". Recording Industry Association of America.  If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH

External links [edit]

Preceded by
"Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini" by Brian Hyland		 Billboard Hot 100 number one single
August 15, 1960 (five weeks)		 Succeeded by
"The Twist" by Chubby Checker
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=It%27s_Now_or_Never_(song)&oldid=551231542"