Elvis Presley Had His Biggest Year Ever In 1960 Thanks To A Classic Song From The Roaring '20s

Elvis Presley is closely associated with the 1950s, but an argument can be made that 1960 was the biggest year in the storied career of the King of Rock 'n' Roll, in part because his revival of the 1920s hit "Are You Lonesome Tonight" became the singer's longest-running No. 1. In no one calendar year after the establishment of the modern pop chart in 1958 did Presley have more smash hit singles. Out of his seven total No. 1 singles on the Hot 100, three of them reached the apex in 1960. After the popping "Stuck on You" and the pleading "It's Now or Never," the tender and simple ballad "Are You Lonesome To-Night?"  hit the summit, spending a total of six weeks at the top.

While Presley helped bring rock 'n' roll, still in its formative and early stages, to the masses, the inspiration for the songs he recorded came from a variety of cultural sources. The origin story of "Are You Lonesome To-Night" is especially couched in long-gone entertainment history. Here's how a moody, offbeat, and very old song from the vaudeville era of the 1920s became a chart-topper in the hands of Elvis Presley in his prime.

The 1927 film, "The Jazz Singer" (remade in the '70s by Neil Diamond), is remembered today for being the first movie with synced sound. It starred Al Jolson, who was one of the most popular entertainers in America in the early 20th century. An actor, comic, musician, and performer on the vaudeville theatrical variety show circuit, he made the first recording of "Are You Lonesome To-Night" after it was composed by Lou Handman and Roy Turk in 1926. Pop singer Jaye P. Morgan revived it in 1959, and Presley essentially covered that cover for the soundtrack to his movie musical "G.I. Blues," interpreting it as a romantic and intimate slow number that veered away from his usual rockabilly-meets-gospel formula. The song wonders if the intended audience is lonesome, but it's made clear by the lyrics and the tone that the lonely one here is the singer, and he's merely hopefully projecting his feelings onto a long-gone ex. 

Presley begging for companionship proved irresistible to record buyers, but what really took it over the top is the lengthy, low-key monologue in the middle, in which Presley riffs on the "All the world's a stage and merely players" monologue from "As You Like It," by William Shakespeare, word inventor and dramatist. First performed in London in 1599, that play is centuries older than even the rest of "Are You Lonesome To-Night," which was already a bit dated at 34 years old.