Love Is Strange - Wikipedia

1956 single by Mickey & Sylvia This article is about the Mickey & Sylvia song. For other uses, see Love Is Strange (disambiguation).

"Love Is Strange"
Single by Mickey & Sylvia
B-side	"I'm Going Home"
Released	November 1956 (1956-11)[1]
Recorded	October 17, 1956[2]
Genre	Rock and roll rhythm and blues
Length	2:52
Label	Groove
Songwriter	Bo Diddley (as Ethel Smith)[2]
Producer	Bob Rolontz[2]
Mickey & Sylvia singles chronology
"No Good Lover" (1956) "Love Is Strange" (1956) "There Oughta Be a Law" (1957)
Audio
"Love Is Strange" on YouTube

"Love Is Strange" is a crossover hit by American rhythm and blues duet Mickey & Sylvia, which was released in late November 1956 by the Groove record label.[1]

The song was based on a guitar riff by Jody Williams and was written by Bo Diddley under the name of his wife at the time, Ethel Smith; it was recorded by Bo and Buddy Holly, among others.

Background and recordings

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At a concert at Howard Theatre in Washington, D.C. Mickey and Sylvia heard Jody Williams play a guitar riff that Williams had played on Billy Stewart's debut single "Billy's Blues".[3] "Billy's Blues" was released as a single in June 1956.[4] Sylvia Robinson claims that she and Mickey Baker wrote the lyrics, while Bo Diddley claims that he wrote them.

The first recorded version of "Love Is Strange" was performed by Bo Diddley, who recorded his version on May 24, 1956, with Jody Williams on lead guitar. This version was not released until its appearance on I'm a Man: The Chess Masters, 1955–1958 in 2007.[5] Mickey & Sylvia's version was recorded several months later on October 17, 1956.[2] A second Mickey & Sylvia studio recording, recorded some years after, featured now-legendary drummer Bernard "Pretty" Purdie on his first paid session gig.[6][7][8]

Charts and accolades

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"Love Is Strange" peaked at number 1 on Billboard magazine's most played by jockeys R&B Singles chart on March 6, 1957, and number 11 on the Hot 100.[9] In 2004, "Love Is Strange" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame for its influence as a rock and roll single.[10]

Cover versions

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Full covers and adaptations

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Year	Artist	Chart(s) and peak	Notes
1957	Maddox Brothers and Rose	Billboard C&W (number 82) April 20, 1957	Columbia 4-40895-c 45 Single[11]
1956	Lonnie Donegan	UK album (number 3)	Featured on The Golden Age of Donegan album. (Flipside of Cumberland Gap)[12]
1962	Dale & Grace	Featured on Presenting Dale and Grace
1964	Betty Everett and Jerry Butler	US R'n'B (number 42)	Single A-side for Vee-Jay Records (backed with "Smile").
1964	Sonny & Cher	Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (number 31)[13] and ARIA Charts (number 70)[14]	Credited to "Salvatore Bono & Cher La Piere (aka Caesar & Cleo)"[15]
1965	The Everly Brothers	UK chart (number 11)	This rendition was released on their Beat & Soul album
1967	Peaches & Herb	Billboard Hot 100 (number 13) and R&B Singles (number 16)	This version features the spoken dialogue and the repeated phrases, similar to the Mickey and Sylvia version.[16]
1968	Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood	This version was recorded for the Nancy & Lee album, but subsequently left off the record. It was included on the Light In The Attic Records expanded reissue in 2022.	This version also includes two spoken word sections. Nancy is first, followed by Lee. When Nancy asks: "And if she still doesn't answer?" Lee replies: "You better get on in here or I'm gonna start without you!"
1969	Buddy Holly	Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (number 105) and RPM 100 (number 76)	Recorded in 1959, this version of "Love Is Strange", featuring multiple instrumental overdubs, was released on the posthumous album Giant in 1969, a decade after Holly's death.[17]
1971	Wings	Featured on their debut album, Wild Life, and was planned to be released as a single.[18]
1973	Exuma	on the Life album.
1975	Buck Owens and Susan Raye	Broke the Top 20 country chart.
1990	Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton	U.S. country singles chart (number 21) Australia ARIA Chart (number 145)[19]	The cover was the title cut of Rogers' Love Is Strange album, and was also released as a single
1992	Everything But The Girl	UK chart (number 13)	Lead track on the Covers EP
1996	Lady Saw featuring Shaggy	Passion LP
2024	Joe Vitullo and Tammy Jo	Doo Rock album	Track 7 on this 15-track album featuring Michael Cohen on guitar.

Samplings

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Part of the song was sampled for the 2012 Pitbull hit "Back in Time" from Men In Black 3.

In popular culture

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The song was featured in the 1987 film Dirty Dancing and included on the soundtrack, which is one of the best-selling albums of all time.

The spoken part is parodied by Eric Bloom and Buck Dharma of Blue Öyster Cult in a live recording of "7 Screaming Diz-Busters" on their 1975 album On Your Feet or on Your Knees:

Bloom: I know Lucifer so well I call him by his first name! Dharma: What do you call him? Bloom: I call him, hey Lu! Dharma: And if he don't answer? Bloom: I say, hey Lu... lover boy...

The song is parodied in the 1973 New York Dolls song "Trash", where singer David Johansen quotes "Oh how do you call your loverboy? ... Trash!" then later uses the same melody for several bars.

The song is "covered" by the fictional Scottish band "the Majestics" in the BBC Television series Tutti Frutti (1987), starring Emma Thompson, Robbie Coltrane, Maurice Roeves, Jake D'Arcy and Stuart McGugan.

The spoken part is referenced by Lou Reed at the end of his song "Beginning of A Great Adventure" on his 1989 album New York. He had married Sylvia Morales in 1980.

The song appears also in the 1993 TV miniseries Lipstick on Your Collar, where Mickey and Sylvia become the two main characters.[citation needed]

It also gained a following after appearing in Deep Throat (1972). The song was also played in the Terrence Malick film Badlands (1973) and in Martin Scorsese's 1995 film Casino when Robert De Niro sees Sharon Stone for the first time.[citation needed] The song also is played in the 2000 HBO series The Sopranos, season two, episode 6 ("The Happy Wanderer"). It can also be heard playing in the second episode of The Wire.[citation needed]

References

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1. ^ a b Ackerman, Paul, ed. (November 24, 1956). "Reviews of New R&B Records". Billboard. Vol. 68, no. 47. p. 48. Retrieved March 4, 2011.
2. ^ a b c d "Love is Strange" b/w "Love is a Treasure" by Mickey & Sylvia. RCA Victor 45 RPM (447-0599).
3. ^ Dahl, Bill. Jody William's Biography at AllMusic. Retrieved March 4, 2011.
4. ^ Ackerman, Paul, ed. (June 16, 1956). "Reviews of New R&B Records". Billboard. Vol. 68, no. 24. p. 44. Retrieved March 4, 2011.
5. ^ I'm a Man: The Chess Masters, 1955–1958 (CD liner). Bo Diddley. United States: Hip-O Select. 2007. B0009231-02.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
6. ^ "Jazz Articles: Mickey Baker: A Tough Customer Who Never Lost His Edge - By Tom Reney — Jazz Articles". Jazztimes.com. Retrieved August 22, 2016.
7. ^ Bernard "Pretty" Purdie, Let The Drums Speak!,2014, page 55.
8. ^ Gershuny, Diane (January 16, 2013). "Bernard Purdie: The Session Legend - DRUM! Magazine - Play Better Faster". DRUM! Magazine. Retrieved August 22, 2016.
9. ^ "Charts & Awards: Mickey & Sylvia – Billboard Singles". AllMusic. United States: Rovi Corporation. Retrieved March 4, 2011.
10. ^ "Grammy Hall of Fame (Letter L)". Grammys. United States: National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Retrieved March 4, 2011.
11. ^ "The Maddox Brothers And Rose - Love Is Strange". 45cat.com. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
12. ^ Dave Thompson. "The Golden Age of Donegan - Lonnie Donegan | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved August 22, 2016.
13. ^ "Billboard" (PDF). December 4, 1965. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 27, 2021.
14. ^ "Top 100 Singles: Every AMR Top 100 Single in 1965". www.top100singles.net. Retrieved November 25, 2025.
15. ^ https://www.45cat.com/record/0419au
16. ^ "Charts & Awards: Peaches & Herb – Billboard Singles". AllMusic. United States: Rovi Corporation. Retrieved March 4, 2011.
17. ^ "Top Singles – Volume 11, No. 13, May 26, 1969". Library and Archives Canada. March 31, 2004. Archived from the original (PHP) on October 21, 2012.
18. ^ Madinger, Chip; Easter, Mark (2000). Eight Arms to Hold You: The Solo Beatles Compendium (1st ed.). Chesterfield, Mo.: 44.1 Productions. ISBN 978-0615117249.
19. ^ "Bubbling Down Under 5 November 1990". www.bubblingdownunder.com. November 5, 2021. Retrieved November 5, 2021.

v t e Buddy Holly
The Crickets
Singles	"Love Me" "That'll Be the Day" "Words of Love" (b/w "Mailman, Bring Me No More Blues") "Peggy Sue" (b/w "Everyday") "Oh, Boy!" "Not Fade Away" "I'm Gonna Love You Too" "Maybe Baby" "Love's Made a Fool of You" "Rave On" "Think It Over" "Early in the Morning" "It's So Easy" "Heartbeat" "It Doesn't Matter Anymore" (b/w "Raining in My Heart") "Peggy Sue Got Married" (b/w "Crying, Waiting, Hoping") "True Love Ways" "Valley of Tears" "Bo Diddley" "Brown Eyed Handsome Man" "Love Is Strange"
Studio albums	The "Chirping" Crickets Buddy Holly That'll Be The Day
Compilation albums	The Buddy Holly Story The Buddy Holly Story, Vol. 2 Reminiscing Showcase Holly in the Hills Giant 20 Golden Greats For the First Time Anywhere Words of Love Greatest Hits Not Fade Away: The Complete Studio Recordings and More Down the Line: Rarities Memorial Collection
Tribute albums	Not Fade Away (Remembering Buddy Holly) Rave On Buddy Holly Listen to Me: Buddy Holly
Related articles	Buddy Holly discography List of songs Waylon Jennings Bob "Bobby" Montgomery María Elena Holly (wife) Norman Petty The Picks Surf Ballroom (site of final performance) The Day the Music Died (1959 plane crash) The Buddy Holly Story Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story "Buddy Holly" (song) Buddy Holly Center
Category

v t e The Everly Brothers
Don Everly Phil Everly
Studio albums	The Everly Brothers Songs Our Daddy Taught Us It's Everly Time A Date with the Everly Brothers Both Sides of an Evening Instant Party! Christmas with the Everly Brothers and the Boys Town Choir The Everly Brothers Sing Great Country Hits Gone Gone Gone Rock'n Soul Beat & Soul In Our Image Two Yanks in England The Hit Sound of the Everly Brothers The Everly Brothers Sing Roots Stories We Could Tell Pass the Chicken & Listen EB 84 Born Yesterday Some Hearts
Live albums	The Everly Brothers Show
Compilations	The Everly Brothers' Best Greatest Hits Vol. III The New Album All They Had to Do Was Dream Heartaches and Harmonies Stories We Could Tell: The RCA Years Too Good to Be True Give Me a Future
Singles	"Bye Bye Love" "Wake Up Little Susie" "This Little Girl of Mine" "Should We Tell Him" "All I Have to Do Is Dream" "Claudette "Bird Dog" "Devoted to You" "Problems" "Take a Message to Mary" "Poor Jenny" "(Till) I Kissed You" "Let It Be Me" "Cathy's Clown" "When Will I Be Loved" "So Sad (To Watch Good Love Go Bad)" "Like Strangers" "Be-Bop-a-Lula" "Lucille" "Walk Right Back" "Ebony Eyes" "Temptation" "Don't Blame Me"/"Muskrat" "Crying in the Rain" "That's Old Fashioned (That's the Way Love Should Be)"/"How Can I Meet Her?" "Don't Ask Me to Be Friends"/"No One Can Make My Sunshine Smile" "Love Her" "Ain't That Lovin' You, Baby" "That'll Be the Day" "The Price of Love" "Love Is Strange" "It's All Over" "(You Got) The Power of Love" "Somebody Help Me" "Bowling Green" "Love of the Common People" "Carolina in My Mind" "Not Fade Away" "The Air That I Breathe" (Phil Everly solo) "Brother Jukebox" (Don Everly solo) "Dare to Dream Again" (Phil Everly solo) "On the Wings of a Nightingale" "Born Yesterday" "Don't Worry Baby" "Ballad of a Teenage Queen"
Related	Discography List of songs Gibson Everly Brothers Flattop Venetia Stevenson Edan Everly James Best
Category

v t e Buck Owens
Studio albums	Buck Owens Buck Owens Buck Owens Sings Harlan Howard You're for Me On the Bandstand Buck Owens Sings Tommy Collins Together Again I Don't Care I've Got a Tiger by the Tail Before You Go Roll Out the Red Carpet Dust on Mother's Bible Open Up Your Heart Your Tender Loving Care It Takes People Like You Sweet Rosie Jones Hot Dog!
Holiday albums	Christmas with Buck Owens and his Buckaroos Christmas Shopping
Live albums	Carnegie Hall Concert In Japan!
Compilation albums	The Fabulous Country Music Sound of Buck Owens The Best of Buck Owens Best of Buck Owens, Vol. 2 21 #1 Hits: The Ultimate Collection
Notable singles	"Hot Dog" "Under Your Spell Again" "Above and Beyond" "Excuse Me (I Think I've Got a Heartache)" "Foolin' Around" "Save the Last Dance for Me" "Act Naturally" "Love's Gonna Live Here" "My Heart Skips a Beat" "Together Again" "I Don't Care (Just as Long as You Love Me)" "I've Got a Tiger By the Tail" "Before You Go" "Only You (Can Break My Heart)" "Buckaroo" "Santa Looked a Lot Like Daddy" "Waitin' in Your Welfare Line" "Think of Me" "Open Up Your Heart" "Where Does the Good Times Go" "Sam's Place" "Your Tender Loving Care" "How Long Will My Baby Be Gone" "Who's Gonna Mow Your Grass" "Johnny B. Goode" "Tall Dark Stranger" "Big in Vegas" "Bridge over Troubled Water" "Rollin' in My Sweet Baby's Arms" "Made in Japan"
Collaboration singles	"Love Is Strange"
Guest singles	"Streets of Bakersfield"
B-side singles	"Loose Talk" "Together Again" "Crying Time"
Related articles	Discography The Buckaroos Dwight Sings Buck "Lookin' out My Back Door" KUVI-DT

v t e Kenny Rogers
Studio albums	Love Lifted Me Kenny Rogers Daytime Friends Love or Something Like It The Gambler Kenny Gideon Share Your Love Love Will Turn You Around We've Got Tonight Eyes That See in the Dark What About Me? The Heart of the Matter They Don't Make Them Like They Used To I Prefer the Moonlight Something Inside So Strong Love Is Strange Back Home Again If Only My Heart Had a Voice Vote for Love Across My Heart She Rides Wild Horses There You Go Again Back to the Well Water & Bridges You Can't Make Old Friends Life Is Like a Song
Collaboration albums	Every Time Two Fools Collide (with Dottie West) Classics (with Dottie West) Timepiece (with David Foster)
Christmas albums	Christmas Once Upon a Christmas (with Dolly Parton) Christmas in America The Gift Christmas from the Heart Once Again It's Christmas
Compilations	Ten Years of Gold The Kenny Rogers Singles Album Greatest Hits (1980) 20 Greatest Hits Duets The Kenny Rogers Story Love Is What We Make It Short Stories Greatest Hits (1988) Daytime Friends – The Very Best of Kenny Rogers Live by Request 42 Ultimate Hits 21 Number Ones The Best of Kenny Rogers: Through the Years
Notable singles	"That Crazy Feeling" "Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In)" "But You Know I Love You" "Ruby, Don't Take Your Love to Town" "Something's Burning" "Love Lifted Me" "Laura (What's He Got That I Ain't Got)" "Lucille" "Daytime Friends" "Sweet Music Man" "Every Time Two Fools Collide" (with Dottie West) "Love or Something Like It" "Anyone Who Isn't Me Tonight" (with Dottie West) "The Gambler" "All I Ever Need Is You" (with Dottie West) "She Believes in Me" "'Til I Can Make It on My Own" (with Dottie West) "You Decorated My Life" "Coward of the County" "Don't Fall in Love with a Dreamer" (with Kim Carnes) "Love the World Away" "Lady" "I Don't Need You" "Share Your Love with Me" "Blaze of Glory" "Through the Years" "Love Will Turn You Around" "A Love Song" "We've Got Tonight" (with Sheena Easton) "All My Life" "Scarlet Fever" "Islands in the Stream" (with Dolly Parton) "Eyes That See in the Dark" "This Woman" "Buried Treasure" "Together Again" (with Dottie West) "What About Me?" (with Kim Carnes and James Ingram) "Evening Star" "Crazy" "Morning Desire" "Goodbye Marie" "Tomb of the Unknown Love" "Twenty Years Ago" "Make No Mistake, She's Mine" (with Ronnie Milsap) "I Prefer the Moonlight" "The Factory" "I Don't Call Him Daddy" "When You Put Your Heart in It" "Planet Texas" "The Vows Go Unbroken (Always True to You)" "Maybe" (with Holly Dunn) "Love Is Strange" (with Dolly Parton) "Crazy in Love" "If You Want to Find Love" "Ol' Red" "Mary, Did You Know?" (with Wynonna Judd) "The Greatest" "Buy Me a Rose" (with Alison Krauss and Billy Dean) "He Will, She Knows" "There You Go Again" "Homeland" "I Can't Unlove You"
Guest singles	"What Are We Doin' in Love" (with Dottie West) "Real Love" (with Dolly Parton) "If I Ever Fall in Love Again" (with Anne Murray)
Other songs	"Elvira" "You and I" (with the Bee Gees)
Related articles	Discography The First Edition Kenny Rogers Roasters The Real West

v t e Dolly Parton songs
Singles Songs
1960s	"Happy, Happy Birthday Baby" "Dumb Blonde" "Something Fishy" "The Last Thing on My Mind" "In the Ghetto"
1970s	"Mule Skinner Blues" "Joshua" "Comin' for to Carry Me Home" "Coat of Many Colors" "Touch Your Woman" "My Tennessee Mountain Home" "Jolene" "I Will Always Love You" "Please Don't Stop Loving Me" "Love is Like a Butterfly" "The Bargain Store" "The Seeker" "Say Forever You'll Be Mine" "We Used To" "All I Can Do" "Light of a Clear Blue Morning" "(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher" Here You Come Again "Here You Come Again" "Two Doors Down" "It's All Wrong, But It's All Right" Heartbreaker "Heartbreaker" "It's Too Late to Love Me Now" "Baby I'm Burnin'" "I Really Got the Feeling" Great Balls of Fire "You're the Only One" "Great Balls of Fire" "Sweet Summer Lovin'"
1980s	"Starting Over Again" "Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to You" "Hard Candy Christmas" "Potential New Boyfriend" "Tennessee Homesick Blues" "Medley: Winter Wonderland/Sleigh Ride" "We Had It All" "The River Unbroken" 9 to 5 and Odd Jobs "9 to 5" "But You Know I Love You" "The House of the Rising Sun" Heartbreak Express "Single Women" "Heartbreak Express" "Do I Ever Cross Your Mind" The Great Pretender "Save the Last Dance for Me" "Downtown" "She Don't Love You (Like I Love You)" Real Love "Don't Call It Love" "Real Love" "Think About Love" "Tie Our Love (In a Double Knot)" Trio "To Know Him Is to Love Him" "Telling Me Lies" "Those Memories of You" "Wildflowers" White Limozeen "Why'd You Come in Here Lookin' Like That" "Yellow Roses" "Time for Me to Fly" "White Limozeen"
1990s	"Light of a Clear Blue Morning" "Romeo" "Silver Threads and Golden Needles" "To Daddy" Eagle When She Flies "Rockin' Years" "Silver and Gold" "Eagle When She Flies" Treasures "Just When I Needed You Most" "Peace Train" "Walking on Sunshine" Trio II "After the Gold Rush" "Feels Like Home" "Do I Ever Cross Your Mind"
2000s	"Travelin' Thru" "Better Get to Livin'" "Drives Me Crazy" Little Sparrow "A Tender Lie" "Seven Bridges Road" "Shine" Those Were the Days "Imagine" "Both Sides, Now" "Twelfth of Never" "Where Do the Children Play"
2010s	"Together You and I" "Calling My Children Home" "The Story" "The Last Word in Lonesome Is Me" "Here I Am" "Girl in the Movies" "God Only Knows" "There Was Jesus" "Faith"
2020s	"When Life Is Good Again" "In the Sweet By and By" "Southern Accents" "If You Hadn't Been There" "Tyrant" A Holly Dolly Christmas "Mary, Did You Know?" "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" "Cuddle Up, Cozy Down Christmas" Rockstar "Magic Man" "We Are the Champions/We Will Rock You" "Step by Step" "Let It Be" "What's Up?" "Wrecking Ball"
Features	"Islands in the Stream" "Love Is Strange" "When You Tell Me That You Love Me" "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" "Sleepless Nights" "Viva Las Vegas" "Baby, It's Cold Outside" "If I Said You Have a Beautiful Body Would You Hold It Against Me" "When I Get Where I'm Going" "I Still Miss Someone" "You Can't Make Old Friends" "Forever Country" "Smoky Mountain Rain" "Words" "Eagle When She Flies" "Does He Love You (Revisited)" "Forever Young" "Please Please Please" "Home Sweet Home"

Authority control databases	MusicBrainz work