 |
| "What Now My Love" | |
|---|---|
| Song | |
| Published | 1961 |
| Songwriter(s) | Pierre Delanoë (Original French) Carl Sigman (English) |
| Composer(s) | Gilbert Bécaud |
"What Now, My Love?" is the English title of a popular song whose original French version, "Et maintenant" (English: "And Now") was written in 1961 by composer Gilbert Bécaud and lyricist Pierre Delanoë. The recurring rhythmic pattern in the background is the Boléro, an 18th century traditional Spanish dance perhaps best known for Maurice Ravel's reworking in 1928. English lyrics and the title were written by Carl Sigman.
Early English versions of the song were recorded by Jane Morgan, Shirley Bassey and Ben E. King. Shirley Bassey's Columbia Single peaked at #5 on the United Kingdom charts in 1962.
Gilbert Bécaud's original version of this song topped the French chart in 1961. Director Claude Lelouch used the song at the climax of his 1974 film Toute une vie, which led to it being released in America under the title And Now My Love.
US Top 40 covers include Sonny & Cher (#14 US, #13 UK) in 1966, Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass instrumentally in the same year, and Mitch Ryder the following year. Alpert's recording was nominated for the 1967 Grammy Award for Record of the Year. On January 14, 1973, Elvis Presley performed the song before a live audience of 1 billion people, as part of his satellite show, "Aloha from Hawaii", which was beamed to 43 countries via Intelsat. Judy Garland sang a memorable version of "What Now My Love" on Perry Como's Kraft Music Hall television show in 1966.
