WHITNEY HOUSTON - I WILL ALWAYS LOVE YOU
If I Should Stay
I Would Only Be In Your Way
So I'll Go But I Know
I'll Think Of You Every Step Of The Way
And I... Will Always Love You, Ooh
Will Always Love You
You
My Darling, You...
Mmm-Mm
Bittersweet Memories �
That Is All I'm Taking With Me
So Good-Bye
Please Don't Cry
We Both Know I'm Not What You, You Need
And I... Will Always Love You
I... Will Always Love You
You, Ooh
I Hope Life Treats You Kind
And I Hope You Have All You've Dreamed Of
And I Wish You Joy And Happiness
But Above All This I Wish You Love
And I... Will Always Love You
I Will Always Love You
I Will Always Love You
I Will Always Love You
I Will Always Love You
I, I Will Always Love You
You
Darling, I Love You
I'll Always...
I'll Always Love You
Ooh
Ooh
SONG FACTS
Writer(s): Dolly Parton
Producer(s): David Foster
Dolly Parton Wrote This Song And Did The Original Version In 1974, Which Went To #1 On The Country Chart That Year. She Recorded Another Version For The 1982 Movie The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas, Which Also Hit #1 On The Country Chart. She Wrote The Song After The Breakup Of The Musical Partnership She Had With Country Singer Porter Wagoner. They Were Never Romantically Involved.
This Was Featured In The Movie The Bodyguard, Which Houston Starred In With Kevin Costner. Houston Played A Famous Singer And Costner Her Bodyguard. Of Course, They Fall In Love. Costner Picked It For The Movie.
Parton's Original Version Was A Country Ballad. Houston's Recording Had More Lavish Production And Became A Pop, Soul, And Adult Contemporary Hit. The Tremendous Crossover Appeal Meant That Radio Stations Of Many Different Formats Played The Song, Giving It A Huge Audience. It Ended Up Being A Groundbreaker, But It Was A Big Risk, As There Wasn't Much Crossover Between The Country And R&B Audiences. "Truth Be Told, The Musical Side Of Her Camp Was Very Unsure About This Little Country Song," Recalled Kevin Costner.
This Stayed At #1 Us For 14 Weeks, A Record At The Time. In 1995, This Record Was Broken By "One Sweet Day" By Mariah Carey And Boyz Ii Men, Which Held The Top Spot For 16 Weeks. "I Will Always Love You" Does Hold The Record For The Most Weeks At #1 For A Song That First Appeared On A Soundtrack.
For A Time, This Was Second Only To "We Are The World" As The Biggest-Selling Single Ever. It Was Bumped To #3 N 1997, When Elton John's New Version Of "Candle In The Wind" Became The Biggest.
Houston Performed This At The Grammys In 1993. It Won For Record Of The Year And Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. The Song Also Won The 1992 Soul Train Music Award For R&B Song Of The Year.
It Did Not, However, Win An Oscar, Since It Was Not Eligible For The Best Original Song Award. That Award Can Only Go To Songs That Are Written Specifically For A Film.
According To Kevin Costner, He Really Wanted Whitney Houston To Star In The Bodyguard With Him, So Much So That He Postponed Shooting For A Year Until She Was Available. Costner Was One Of The Few People In Hollywood Who Could Convince A Movie Studio To Do This; He Had Lots Of Sway After His Movie Dances With Wolves Won The Oscar For Best Picture In 1991.
The Bodyguard Is The Best-Selling Soundtrack Of All Time.
In 2002, While The Us Was Preparing To Go To War With Iraq, Saddam Hussein Ran Tv And Radio Ads Using This Song As He Prepared To Be Re-Elected. Houston's Record Label Filed A Complaint With The Iraqi Mission To The United Nations.
Elvis Presley Wanted To Record This Song But Demanded Half The Publishing Rights. Dolly Parton Refused And Was Vindicated When Years Later Whitney Houston's Version Earned Her $6 Million. Parton Commented To Observer Music Monthly April 2008: "'I Think Stories Like That Are The Reason Why Younger Female Artists Say I've Influenced Them."
The Song Returned To The Top 10 Of The Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart Following Houston's Death. Its Comeback Was Fueled By An Enormous Resurgence In Digital Sales In The Week After Her Passing Of 195,000, An Increase Of 6723%, According To Nielsen Soundscan.
The Song Was Performed By Amber Riley On The "Heart" Episode Of Glee. The Tape Of The Show Was Delivered To The Fox Network The Day Before The Untimely Death Of Whitney And Broadcast Four Days After Her Passing. Riley's Character Mercedes Sings The Ballad As Part Of A Plot Line Revolving Around Her Indecision Over Two Romantic Interests.
After Houston Died On February 11, 2012, "I Will Always Love You" Was Used In Many Tributes To The Singer, As It Was Her Best-Known Song. The Night After Houston's Death, Jennifer Hudson Sang A Moving Rendition In Honor Of Houston At The Grammy Awards Ceremony.
This Was One Of The Inductees In 2020 Into The Library Of Congress' National Recording Registry. Each Year, The National Recording Registry Selects 25 Titles Deemed "Worthy Of Preservation Because Of Their Cultural, Historical, And Aesthetic Importance" To The American Soundscape.