I Will Always Love You (song)

"I Will Always Love You" is a song by American singer-songwriter Dolly Parton. The country track was released on June 6, 1974 as the second single from Parton's thirteenth solo studio album, Jolene (1974). Recorded on June 13, 1973, the singer wrote the song for her one-time partner and mentor Porter Wagoner, from whom she was professionally splitting at the time. "I Will Always Love You" received positive comments from critics and attained commercial success, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart two times. With the accomplishment, Parton became the first artist ever to earn a number one record twice with the same song as a singer, and three times as a writer. "I Will Always Love You" is the second song ever to reach the top three on the Billboard Hot 100 in separate chart runs.

Whitney Houston recorded a version of the song for the 1992 film The Bodyguard which is one of the best selling singles of all time.

Background and composition
Parton wrote the track in 1973 for her one-time partner and mentor Porter Wagoner, from whom she was separating professionally at the time. She recorded it on June 13, 1973. Parton later re-recorded the song in 1982, when it was included on the soundtrack of The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. Author Curtis W. Ellison stated that the song "speaks about the breakup of a relationship between a man and a woman that does not descend into unremitting domestic turmoil, but instead envisions parting with respect – because of the initiative of the woman." According to sheet music published at musicnotes.com by Hal Leonard Corporation, the country love track is set in time signature of common time with a tempo of 66 beats per minute. During an interview, Parton's manager Danny Nozel said that "one thing we found out from American Idol is that most people don't know that Dolly Parton wrote [the track]".

In addition to the Best Little Whorehouse in Texas soundtrack, Parton's original 1974 recording of the song also appeared in Martin Scorsese's film Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore.

Reception
In his book Country music culture: from hard times to Heaven (1995), Ellison stated, "in the early 1990s, when ambiguity in romantic relationships accompanies changing expectations for both men and women, this song demonstrates Dolly Parton's appeal as a songwriter in the pop music market." Ken Knight, author of The Midnight Show: Late Night Cable-TV "Guy-Flicks" of the 80's (2008), commented that Parton is the only singer who can sing "I Will Always Love You" and "make it memorable". Writer Paul Simpson criticized the singer, stating that the track was only written to "soften the blow" of Parton and Wagoner's split. On its first release, "I Will Always Love You" reached number four in Canada and number one on the Billboard Hot Country Songs, becoming one of the best selling singles of 1974.

Around the time the song reached number one on the country charts, Elvis Presley indicated that he wanted to cover the song. Parton was interested until Presley's manager, Colonel Tom Parker, told her that it was standard procedure for the songwriter to sign over half of the publishing rights to any song Elvis recorded. Parton refused, and that decision is credited with helping to make her many millions of dollars in royalties from the song over the years. After being re-released in 1982, the track once again peaked at number one on Hot Country Songs, making Parton the first artist ever to earn a number one record twice with the same song. After recording a duet with Vince Gill in 1995, "I Will Always Love You" re-entered the Billboard chart and peaked at number 15.

Track listing

 * 7" vinyl
 * 1) "I Will Always Love You" – 2:53
 * 2) "Lonely Comin' Down" – 3:09

Whitney Houston version
In 1992, singer Whitney Houston recorded the song for the soundtrack to The Bodyguard, her film debut. Houston was originally to record Jimmy Ruffin's "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted" as the lead single from The Bodyguard. However, when it was discovered the song was to be used for Fried Green Tomatoes, Houston requested a different song and her co-star Kevin Costner brought her Linda Ronstadt's 1975 version of "I Will Always Love You" from her album Prisoner in Disguise. Houston and producer David Foster re-arranged the song as a soul ballad. Her record company did not feel a song with an a cappella introduction would be as successful; however, Houston and Costner insisted on retaining the a cappella intro. The tenor saxophone solo was played by Kirk Whalum. Whitney Houston's recording is not the only version of the song featured in the movie. In a scene where she dances with Kevin Costner, a version by John Doe can be heard playing on a jukebox.

Houston's version was a massive worldwide success, appearing at number 68 on Billboard's "Greatest Songs of All Time."

Jennifer Hudson performed the song in front of Houston in 2010. On February 12, 2012 Hudson performed the song as a tribute during the 54th Grammy Awards, the day after Houston's death alongside images of musicians who had died in 2011 and 2012 including Amy Winehouse and Etta James. The song was played at Houston's funeral as her casket was brought out of the church. "Eternally good-hearted, Parton complimented Hudson on her performance of the song at the Grammys and praised Houston's amazing gift in a statement earlier Monday (February 13), saying, "I was brought to tears again last night, as I'm sure many were, when Jennifer Hudson sang 'I Will Always Love You' on the Grammys in memory of Whitney. Like everybody else, I am still in shock. But I know that Whitney will live forever in all the great music that she left behind. I will always have a very special piece of her in the song we shared together and had the good fortune to share with the world. Rest in peace, Whitney. Again, we will always love you."

Music video
The single's music video, credited to Alan Smithee (who was actually director Nick Brandt, who removed his name due to the way Clive Davis re-edited the video), and produced by Rob Newman, begins with the performance of the song Houston gives at the end of The Bodyguard. The video then cuts to Houston in a dark blue suit sitting in an empty theater with the spotlight shining on her, singing of her love. The video is intercut with scenes from The Bodyguard and gives the viewer the experience of reliving the moments with the singer. Because at the time of the video's shooting Houston was pregnant with her daughter Bobbi Kristina, she is shown only sitting on the theater scenes. Until May 28,2013, the music video for I Will Always Love You reached 55 million views on YouTube

Chart performance
The single spent 14 weeks at the top of the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, which at the time was a record. The single became Houston's longest run at number one, smashing her previous record, which was three weeks with 1986's, "Greatest Love of All." It is also the longest running number one single from a soundtrack album.

The single debuted at number 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 and became Houston's tenth number one hit a mere two weeks later. It also dominated various other Billboard charts, spending 14 weeks at the top of Billboard Hot 100 Single Sales chart and 11 weeks at number one on its Hot 100 Airplay chart. The song also stayed at number one for five weeks on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks and for 11 weeks on the Hot R&B Singles chart becoming the longest running number one on the R&B charts at the time, and remained in the top 40 for 24 weeks. It became Arista Records' biggest hit. The song was number one on the Hot 100, Adult Contemporary, and R&B chart simultaneously for a record-equaling five weeks; Ray Charles' I Can't Stop Loving You in 1962 achieved the same feat on the same charts.

Houston's single sold approximately 400,000 copies in its second week on the summit, making it the best-selling song in a single week (taking the record from Bryan Adams' "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You"). It broke its own record in the following three weeks, peaking at 632,000 copies in the week ended December 27, 1992, Billboard the issue date of January 9, 1993 (the week it broke its own record for most copies sold in a single week for any song). The record was broken by Elton John's "Candle in the Wind 1997/Something About the Way You Look Tonight", selling 3.4 million in the final week of September 1997. "I Will Always Love You" was certified 4&times; Platinum in the U.S. for shipments of over 4 million copies by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on January 12, 1993, making Houston the first female artist with a single to reach that level in the RIAA history. According to Nielsen SoundScan, as of 2009, the single sold 4,591,000 copies, and became the second best-selling physical single in U.S. alone, only behind Elton John's single in 1997.

Houston's single made a massive international success, peaking at number one of the singles charts in almost all countries, including the Eurochart Hot 100 Singles, spent 13 weeks at the top. The single also hit pole position for ten weeks in Australia, five weeks in Austria, seven weeks for Belgium, eight weeks in France, six weeks in Germany, eight weeks in Ireland, two weeks in Italy, six weeks in Netherlands, 11 weeks in New Zealand, nine weeks in Norway, six weeks in Sweden, eight weeks in Switzerland, and ten weeks in the United Kingdom. Houston's 10-week reign in the U.K. set the record for the longest run at the top by a solo female artist in the history of the British singles chart. It is the only single to have ever topped the U.S., the U.K. and Australian singles charts for at least ten weeks. In the United Kingdom, the single sold over 1,550,000 copies, becoming the tenth best-selling single of 1990s, and was certified 2&times; Platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) on January 1, 1993. It was certified Platinum for shipments of over 500,000 copies by the Bundesverband Musikindustrie (BVMI) in Germany. In Japan, "I Will Always Love You" sold over 810,000 copies, staying for 27 weeks on the chart, and became the best-selling single by a foreign female artist at the time, though the single did not top the record chart unlike most other countries.

The song stayed at number one in the United States throughout January and February in 1993, making it the first time Billboard didn't rank a new number one single until March of the new year. Houston's "I Will Always Love You" was also the year-end single of 1993 in the U.S. Similarly, in the U.K., Houston's version was ranked the number one single of 1992, and then made the countdown again in 1993 where it was ranked number nine, marking the first time any artist or group had the same single ranked in the top 10 of the year-end review two years in a row. In Australia, it was the number 17 single of 1992 and the number two song of 1993.

Only a few hours after Houston's death on February 11, 2012, "I Will Always Love You" topped the U.S. iTunes Charts. Also, that same week after her death, the single returned to the Billboard Hot 100, after almost 20 years, debuting at number 7, and becoming a posthumous top-ten single for Houston, the first one since 2001. The song eventually peaked at #3, two spots shy of becoming the first song to return to the #1 position after falling off the chart since "The Twist" by Chubby Checker. It debuted on the Billboard Hot Digital Singles Chart at number 3 on the chart dated February 25, 2012 with over 195,000 copies downloaded. In the United Kingdom, the song charted at number 10 the week of Houston's death. The song has sold over 20 million records World Wide as of January 2013, making it the best selling song by a female artist of all time, and one of the best selling songs of all time.

Critical response
Upon its release, Houston's version was acclaimed by many critics, called it her "signature song" or "iconic performance." Stephen Holden of The New York Times praised the work as a "magnificent rendition," commenting "Houston transforms a plaintive country ballad into a towering pop-gospel assertion of lasting devotion to a departing lover. Her voice breaking and tensing, she treats the song as a series of emotional bursts in a steady climb toward a final full-out declamation. Along the way, her virtuosic gospel embellishments enhance the emotion and never seem merely ornamental." Writing for USA Today on November 17, 1992, James T. Jones IV simply called it "the tour-de-force," and added "[Houston] gives a 3$1⁄2$-star [out of four] performance. Where Dolly Parton's original I Will Always Love You was plaintive and tear- stained, Houston's is gospel-infused and dramatic." Chris Willman from the Los Angeles Times also gave good comments on her vocal performance, stating "Houston has the goods to deliver on the tune's haunting beauty and resists overpowering itㅡuntil the finale, when the key change and stratospheric notes drain all the heart-rending sadness out of the song and make it sound like just another anthem of survival." Amy Linden of Entertainment Weekly wrote Houston's version "is artistically satisfying and uncharacteristically hip for the MOR songbird."

Accolades
"I Will Always Love You" won the Record of the Year, and Best Pop Vocal Performance, Femaleㅡwhich was Houston's third award for this category after 1986 and 1988ㅡ at the 36th Grammy Awards in 1994. (During the Grammy Award telecast, the Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female award was presented to Houston by composer Dolly Parton, along with David Foster.) The single topped the 1993 Billboard Hot 100 Single and Hot R&B Single year-end chart simultaneously, becoming the first single by a female artist and the second overall to achieve that feat behind Prince's "When Doves Cry" in 1984. In addition, it received Favorite Pop/Rock Single and Favorite Soul/R&B Single awards at the 21st American Music Awards, which was the first record by a solo female artist to win both categories, and the third overall in AMA history behind "Endless Love" by Lionel Richie & Diana Ross in 1982 and "Beat It" by Michael Jackson in 1984. "I Will Always Love You" won two Japan Gold Disc Awards for 1993 International Song of the Year, and for 1994 International Song of the Year Special Award, presented to the product which released before that year, sales over one million units or sales higher than product get award on same category, selling 600,000 copies in 1993 only, in Japan

Formats and track listings

 * UK / Europe 12" Vinyl Single
 * A "I Will Always Love You" ― 4:31
 * B1 "Jesus Loves Me" ― 5:11
 * B2 "Do You Hear What I Hear? ― 3:31


 * UK / Europe / US 7" Vinyl Single
 * A "I Will Always Love You" ― 4:31
 * B "Jesus Loves Me" ― 5:11


 * US / Europe Maxi-CD Single
 * 1) "I Will Always Love You" ― 4:31
 * 2) "Jesus Loves Me" ― 5:11
 * 3) "Do You Hear What I Hear?" ― 3:31


 * Maxi-CD Singles (1999 Remixes)
 * 1) "I Will Always Love You" (Hex Hector Radio Edit) ― 4:50
 * 2) "I Will Always Love You" (Hex Hector 12" Club Mix) ― 9:51

Credits and personnel

 * Performed by Whitney Houston
 * Produced and arranged by David Foster
 * Vocal arrangement – Whitney Houston
 * Directed by Rickey Minor
 * Sax solo – Kirk Whalum
 * Recording engineers – Bill Schnee, Dave Reitzas, Peter J. Yianilos
 * Mixing engineer – Dave Reitzas

Other versions
One of the earliest covers was Linda Ronstadt's version of the song, which she included on her 1975 Prisoner in Disguise album. Ronstadt's version included the first two verses, but omitted the spoken bridge. LeAnn Rimes covered "I Will Always Love You" on her first compilation CD Unchained Melody: The Early Years, released in 1997. Leona Lewis performed "I Will Always Love You" on series 3 of The X Factor, during "songs from the movies" week, as well as performing it again in the finale, in which she won. Rock singer Chris Cornell of Soundgarden and Audioslave fame played his version during an acoustic solo tour in 2012. In Hong Kong, singer Amanda Lee covered "I Will Always Love You" on 1991 to 1994.

Lulu Roman (of Hee Haw fame) covered "I Will Always Love You" with Dolly Parton providing harmony vocals. Roman's version was released on her 2013 album At Last. Veggie Tales also covered "I Will Always Love You" on their 2012 album, "Bob & Larry Go Country." Jessica Sanchez sang "I Will Always Love You" on American Idol on Season 11, during the Top 13 night of Whitney Houston (girls) and Stevie Wonder (boys). Sanchez sang the full version of the song on the season finale of the show. "I Will Always Love You" was also featured on Full House (Season 6) Episode 22, "Prom Night." The song was covered on the 2012 Glee episode "Heart" as performed by Amber Riley as her character, Mercedes Jones.

The song was also covered by Rik Waller in 2002.

Hank Marvin did an instrumental version of the song in 1993 on his album Heartbeat.

Beyoncé Knowles version
In 2012, following Houston's death American recording artist Beyoncé Knowles performed a tribute to the singer during her revue Revel Presents: Beyoncé Live in Atlantic City, New Jersey at the Revel resort. Wearing a red dress, Knowles began the performance of her song "Halo" singing the first verse of Whitney Houston's "I Will Always Love ". Her live rendition of the song received positive reviews from music critics. While reviewing the revue, Kyle Anderson of Entertainment Weekly wrote that "the most attention-grabbing moments of the night... came when she dipped into other artists' catalogs". Maura Johnston of The Village Voice praised the performance noting that the song was "given an explosive coda" which showed how "the most basically structured song by one of pop's most template-hewing songwriters... could be turned into something glorious with the right singer." She further added that when Knowles started singing the opening lines of the song, the crowd "sighed in unison". USA Today's Elysa Gardner described the performance as an "artful transition" while mentioned the song in the "almost continuous high point" of the concert. Tris McCall of The Star-Ledger wrote that Knowles performed a powerful version of the song driven by crescendos and sudden hushes, adding that the Ovation Hall "captured all of the singer's nuances". He concluded his review by writing that "Houston would have loved it." A writer of Complex magazine noted that Knowles' voice was stellar throughout the performance of the ballad while Rebecca Thomas of MTV News described the live rendition as "the more memorable" among the other songs. Jim Farber from the Daily News noted that the cover showed a sentimental side of Knowles who sang a "sweet bit" of it. Dan DeLuca of Philadelphia Inquirer wrote that Knowles performed a "flawless" a cappella verse of the song while another writer of the same publication noted that she "showed off a nice sense of historical debt by paying loving tribute to" the singer.

Later, in 2013, during her The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour Knowles also sang the opening lines of "I Will Always Live You" prior to the performance of "Halo" as the final song of the tour. A writer of Vibe magazine described Knowles' rendition of the song as "heart-stopping". Gordon Smart of The Sun noted that the performance of the song was the perfect encore reducing fans to tears. Tim de Lisle of Daily Mail praised Knowles' vocals during the song describing them as "big" adding that she sings the song "straight at first, then adding some heavy drums to stop it getting too sugary". Warren Manger of Birmingham Mail noted that the performance of "I Will Love You" showed off "the full majesty of her velvet voice". Simon Price of The Independent wrote, "As the encores approach, backstreet bookies in the corridors are taking bets as to the exact duration of the first 'I' in 'I Will Always Love You'." However, in contrast, Philip Matusavage from musicOMH gave a mixed review for the song writing, "Many of the other performances vary little from how she has performed them many times before. The low-point of this comes when a brief cover of I Will Always Love You flows into Halo, re-tooled as a tribute to Whitney Houston. Given that it’s already been used to honour both Michael Jackson and the victims of the Haiti earthquake, it can’t help but feel rather schmaltzy and hollow."

Controversy
After Whitney Houston's cover of the song became a hit, the tabloid press began reporting on a 'feud' between the two performers, stemming from Parton's allegedly reneging on an agreement that she would not perform the song for a number of months while Houston's version was on the charts, so as not to compete with the more recent cover. However, both Houston and Parton have dispelled any rumors, speaking glowingly of one another in interviews, Houston praising Parton for writing a beautiful song, and Parton thanking Houston for bringing her song to a wider audience, and in the process making her a great deal of money in royalties. Dolly Parton also gave a live interview, confirming this.

On the day of Houston's passing in February 2012, Parton said in a statement to Billboard "Mine is only one of the millions of hearts broken over the death of Whitney Houston, I will always be grateful and in awe of the wonderful performance she did on my song and I can truly say from the bottom of my heart, 'Whitney, I will always love you. You will be missed.'"