{{Short description|1956 popular song written by Ric Cartey and Carole Joyner}} {{More citations needed|date=October 2008}} {{Infobox song | name = Young Love | cover = | alt = | type = single | artist = Ric Cartey with the Jiva-Tones | album = | B-side = Oooh-Eeee | released = {{Start date|1956}} | recorded = 1956 in Atlanta, Georgia | studio = | venue = | genre = Country | length = {{Duration|m=2|s=28}} | label = Stars, Inc. (Atlanta, Georgia)<br>RCA Victor (rest of the United States) | writer = *Carole Joyner *Ric Cartey | producer = | prev_title = | prev_year = | next_title = | next_year = }}
"'''Young Love'''" is a song by the American rock band Ric Cartey with the Jiva-Tones. Cartey wrote the song with Carole Joyner, his girlfriend at the time.<ref name="500 Number One Hits">{{cite book |first= Jo |last= Rice |year= 1982 |title= The Guinness Book of 500 Number One Hits |edition= 1st |publisher= Guinness Superlatives Ltd |location= Enfield, Middlesex |page= 29 |isbn= 0-85112-250-7}}</ref> It was recorded on November 24, 1956, and released through Stars Inc. shortly after.<ref>{{cite web|website=The Baltimore Sun|url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/1997/12/16/carole-joyner-gourley-59-who-wrote-the/|title=Carole Joyner Gourley, 59, who wrote the…|date=December 16, 1997|accessdate=January 8, 2023}}</ref> It was released in 1956 by Stars Records as catalog number 539 and one month later by RCA Records as catalog number 47-6751.
The song became a hit several times over the years with three near-simultaneous versions released by Sonny James, Tab Hunter, and the Crew-Cuts in 1957,<ref name="500 Number One Hits"/> and was later covered with hit versions by Lesley Gore in 1965 and Donny Osmond in 1973. The recordings by James, Hunter and Osmond were all number-one hits: James's on the country and radio airplay charts, Hunter's on the Billboard Hot 100 Hunters version spent 7 weeks at number 1 in the U.K , and Osmond's on the UK Singles Chart.
==Sonny James version== The recording by American country singer Sonny James was released by Capitol Records as catalog number 3602. It first reached the ''Billboard'' chart on January 5, 1957. On the Disk Jockey chart, it peaked at No. 1; on the Country & Western Best Seller chart, also at No. 1; on the Juke Box chart, at No. 4; on the composite chart of the top 100 songs, it reached No. 2. On ''Billboard'''s country music charts, it was a No. 1 hit for nine weeks, and remained the longest-reigning of James's 23 chart-topping songs on the chart. ''Billboard'' ranked it as the No. 8 song of the year for 1957.
The recording was produced by Ken Nelson and was recorded October 30, 1956, at the Bradley Studios in Nashville, Tennessee.<ref name="CMWW">{{cite magazine|last=Snoddy|first=Glen|title=Nashville, The Recording Center|url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Record-World/70s/72/Record-World-Country-Music-Who%27s-Who-1972_428.pdf|magazine=Country Music Who's Who|publisher=Record World|date=1972|access-date=10 May 2024}}</ref> The vocal backing was provided by Harlan Powell, one of James's band members at the time, Gordon Stoker and one other individual. The Jordanaires backed Sonny James on several songs in the late 1950s and on a few of his songs when he returned to Capitol in 1963, but it was the vocal sounds of The Southern Gentlemen, who joined him in August 1964, that provided his vocal background thru 1971.
The flip side of James's version of "Young Love" was a song called "You're the Reason I'm in Love." That song was a Top 10 hit on the Billboard country charts in early 1957. In 1971, 14 years after the original, James re-recorded that song in a faster-tempoed, horn-heavy rendition as "That's Why I Love You Like I Do" (the original slower-tempoed song featured an electric guitar solo); the newly recorded, re-titled version was released as a single and reached No. 1 in June 1972.
In the book ''Helter Skelter'' by Vincent Bugliosi and Curt Gentry, James' version of this song is mentioned to have been frequently played on the radio at the Spahn Ranch. It was also a term of endearment used by Charles Manson in reference to his female followers.
In 2020, this version was featured in the Netflix psychological thriller film, The Devil All the Time.
==Tab Hunter version== {{Infobox song | name = Young Love | cover = | alt = | border = yes | type = single | artist = Tab Hunter | album = | B-side = Red Sails in the Sunset | released = {{start date|1956|12|25}} | recorded = December 15, 1956 | studio = Ryder Sound (Hollywood) | genre = Pop | length = 2:24 | label = Dot | writer = *Carole Joyner *Ric Cartey | producer = Billy Vaughn | chronology = Tab Hunter | prev_title = | prev_year = | next_title = Ninety-Nine Ways | next_year = 1957 }}
===Background=== In December 1956, American actor Tab Hunter recorded a cover version of "Young Love" as his debut single.<ref name="Cashbox">{{cite magazine |date=December 29, 1956 |title=Dot Signs Tab Hunter and Charlton Heston |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/50s/1956/CB-1956-12-29.pdf |magazine=Cashbox |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251201034613/https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/50s/1956/CB-1956-12-29.pdf |archive-date=December 1, 2025 |access-date=March 21, 2026}}</ref> It was released through Dot Records on December 25, 1956. Randy Wood, president of Dot Records, believed that Sonny James's cover would do well on the country charts and that a pop version could further broaden the song's appeal.<ref name="billboard">{{cite book |last=Bronson |first=Fred |author-link=Fred Bronson |date=October 1, 2003 |title=The Billboard Book of Number 1 Hits |url=https://archive.org/details/billboardbookofn0000bron_f8a3 |publisher=Billboard Books |page=18 |isbn=978-0-82-307677-2 |access-date=March 21, 2026}}</ref> Wood approached Hunter who, despite limited vocal experience, liked the song and agreed to record it.<ref name="billboard"/>
===Chart performance=== It first reached the ''Billboard'' charts on January 19, 1957. It peaked at No. 1 on the following charts: the Disk Jockey chart, the Best Seller chart, the Juke Box chart, and the composite chart of the top 100 songs. This version stayed No. 1 for a full six weeks and became a gold record. ''Billboard'' ranked this version as the No. 4 song for 1957. The success of this record led Warner Bros., where Hunter was a contract player, to form Warner Bros. Records.
===Critical reception=== A staff writer for ''Cashbox'' described Hunter's cover as "impressive", specifically praising his baritone voice.<ref>{{cite magazine |date=December 29, 1956 |title=Record Reviews |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/50s/1956/CB-1956-12-29.pdf |magazine=Cashbox |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251201034613/https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/50s/1956/CB-1956-12-29.pdf |archive-date=December 1, 2025 |access-date=March 21, 2026}}</ref>
===Live performances=== On February 2, 1957, Hunter performed the song on ''The Perry Como Show''.
===Legacy=== The song's success prompted the creation of Warner Records.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Feinberg |first=Scott |date=March 13, 2015 |title=Tab Hunter Opens up About Life as a Closeted Gay Star During Hollywood’s Golden Age |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/tab-hunter-opens-up-life-781046/ |magazine=The Hollywood Reporter |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240808230015/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/tab-hunter-opens-up-life-781046/ |archive-date=August 8, 2024 |access-date=March 21, 2026}}</ref>
===Charts=== {{col-begin}} {{col-2}}
====Weekly charts==== {| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |+ Weekly chart performance for "Young Love" ! scope="col"| Chart (1957) ! scope="col"| Peak<br />position |- {{single chart|UK|1|date=19570222|rowheader=true|access-date=March 21, 2026|refname="UK"}} |- !scope="row"|US Best Sellers in Stores (''Billboard'')<ref>{{cite magazine |date=February 16, 1957 |title=Honor Roll of Hits |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/50s/1957/Billboard%201957-02-16.pdf |magazine=Billboard |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230315234810/https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/50s/1957/Billboard%201957-02-16.pdf |archive-date=March 15, 2023 |access-date=March 21, 2026}}</ref> |1 |- !scope="row"|US Top 50 Best Selling Tunes on Records (''Cash Box'')<ref>{{cite magazine |date=February 2, 1957 |title=The Cash Box Top 50 Best Selling Tunes on Records |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/50s/1957/CB-1957-02-02.pdf |magazine=Cashbox |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220326235612/https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/50s/1957/CB-1957-02-02.pdf |archive-date=March 26, 2022 |access-date=March 21, 2026}}</ref> |1 |} {{col-2}}
====Year-end charts==== {| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |+ 1957 year-end chart performance for "Young Love" ! scope="col"| Chart (1957) ! scope="col"| Position |- ! scope="row"|US Best Sellers in Stores (''Billboard'')<ref>{{cite magazine |date=December 23, 1957 |title=1957's Best Selling Records |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/50s/1957/Billboard%201957-12-23.pdf |magazine=Billboard |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230628085357/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/50s/1957/Billboard%201957-12-23.pdf |archive-date=June 28, 2023 |access-date=March 21, 2026}}</ref> |4 |- ! scope="row"|US Most Played by Jockeys (Pop) (''Billboard'')<ref name="jockeys">{{cite magazine |date=December 23, 1957 |title=1957's Most Played Records by Jockeys |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/50s/1957/Billboard%201957-12-23.pdf |magazine=Billboard |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230628085357/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/50s/1957/Billboard%201957-12-23.pdf |archive-date=June 28, 2023 |access-date=March 21, 2026}}</ref> |4 |- ! scope="row"|US Most Played by Jockeys (R&B) (''Billboard'')<ref name="jockeys"/> |49 |- ! scope="row"|US Best Selling Records (''Cash Box'')<ref>{{cite magazine |date=December 28, 1957 |title=The Best Selling |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/50s/1957/CB-1957-12-28.pdf |magazine=Cashbox |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625201550/https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/50s/1957/CB-1957-12-28.pdf |archive-date=June 25, 2024 |access-date=March 24, 2026}}</ref> |4 |} {{col-end}}
==The Crew-Cuts version== The recording by the Canadian vocal group The Crew-Cuts was released by Mercury Records as catalog number 71022. It first reached the ''Billboard'' chart on January 26, 1957. On the Disk Jockey chart, it peaked at No. 17; on the Juke Box chart, at No. 17; on the composite chart of the top 100 songs, it reached No. 24.
==Lesley Gore version== {{Infobox song | name = Young Love | cover = | alt = | border = yes | type = single | artist = Lesley Gore | album = Lesley Gore Sings All About Love | B-side = I Just Don't Know If I Can | released = {{start date|1966|3}} | recorded = November 10, 1965 | studio = A & R Recording (New York City) | genre = Pop | length = 2:18 | label = Mercury | writer = *Carole Joyner *Ric Cartey | producer = Shelby Singleton | chronology = Lesley Gore | prev_title = We Know We're in Love | prev_year = 1966 | next_title = Off and Running | next_year = 1966 }}
American pop star Lesley Gore recorded a version of "Young Love" for Mercury Records in late 1965. Her rendition was released on her sixth studio album, ''Lesley Gore Sings All About Love,'' on January 11, 1966. In March of that year, after the album's first two singles failed to make the top 50, Gore's recording was released as the third and final outing from the album as catalog number 72553. The single first entered the ''Billboard'' chart on March 26, 1966, and eventually peaked at #50. Gore's version also reached a peak of #24 in Australia, and #43 in Canada. The song was Lesley Gore's biggest commercial success for 1966, and she would not have another chart hit until February 1967 with "California Nights". {| class="wikitable" |+ !Chart (1966) !Peak position |- |Australia (Kent Music Report) |align="center" |24 |- |Canada ''RPM'' Top Singles |align="center" |43 |- |US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 | align="center" |50 |- |US ''Cash Box'' Top 100 |align="center" |57 |}
==Donny Osmond version== {{Infobox song | name = Young Love | cover = youngloveosmond.jpg | alt = | type = single | artist = Donny Osmond | album = Alone Together | B-side = "A Million to One" | released = July 7, 1973 | recorded = November 27, 1972 | studio = | venue = | genre = Pop | length = 2:18 | label = MGM | writer = Ric Cartey, Carole Joyner | producer = Mike Curb, Don Costa | prev_title = The Twelfth of Never | prev_year = 1973 | next_title = "When I Fall in Love" / "Are You Lonesome Tonight | next_year = 1973 }} In 1973, the song was revived by American teen idol Donny Osmond on MGM Records. His version featured Donny's spoken recitation on the first half of the second verse. The Mike Curb and Don Costa produced version became a hit on both sides of the Atlantic, reaching No. 23 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart, spending four weeks at the top in August 1973,<ref name="British Hit Singles & Albums">{{cite book | first= David | last= Roberts | year= 2006 | title= British Hit Singles & Albums | edition= 19th | publisher= Guinness World Records Limited | location= London | isbn= 1-904994-10-5 | page= 290}}</ref> and #4 on the Canadian RPM Magazine Top 100.<ref name="bac-lac.gc.ca">{{cite web|url=https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/films-videos-sound-recordings/rpm/Pages/image.aspx?Image=nlc008388.4887&URLjpg=http%3a%2f%2fwww.collectionscanada.gc.ca%2fobj%2f028020%2ff4%2fnlc008388.4887.gif&Ecopy=nlc008388.4887|title=Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada |website=Collectionscanada.gc.ca |date=1973-08-25 |access-date=2019-03-10}}</ref>
===Chart history=== {{col-begin|width=67%}} {{col-2}}
====Weekly charts==== {| class="wikitable sortable" |- !Chart (1973) !Peak<br />position |- |Australia (Kent Music Report)<ref>{{cite book|first= David |last= Kent |author-link= David Kent (historian) |title= Australian Chart Book 1970-1992 |publisher= Australian Chart Book |location= St Ives, N.S.W. |year= 1993 |isbn= 0-646-11917-6}}</ref> | style="text-align:center;"|10 |- |Canada ''RPM'' Top Singles<ref name="bac-lac.gc.ca"/> | style="text-align:center;"|4 |- |{{singlechart|Ireland2|1|song=Young Love|access-date=March 10, 2019}} |- |Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.top40.nl/donny-osmond/donny-osmond-young-love-10324|title=Donny Osmond - Young Love|first=Stichting Nederlandse|last=Top 40|website=Top40.nl|access-date=29 April 2021}}</ref> | style="text-align:center;"|6 |- |UK<ref name="British Hit Singles & Albums"/> | style="text-align:center;"|1 |- |U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100<ref>''Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990'' - {{ISBN|0-89820-089-X}}</ref> | style="text-align:center;"|23 |- |U.S. ''Billboard'' Adult Contemporary | style="text-align:center;"|26 |- |U.S. ''Cash Box'' Top 100 |align="center"|41 |- |} {{col-2}}
====Year-end charts==== {| class="wikitable sortable" |- !Chart (1973) ! style="text-align:center;"|Rank |- |Australia <ref name="australian-charts.com">{{Cite web|url=https://australian-charts.com/forum.asp?todo=viewthread&id=40275|title=australian-charts.com - Forum - Top 100 End of Year AMR Charts - 1980s (ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts)|website=Australian-charts.com|access-date=29 April 2021}}</ref> | style="text-align:center;"|91 |- |Canada <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/films-videos-sound-recordings/rpm/Pages/image.aspx?Image=nlc008388.100214&URLjpg=http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/obj/028020/f4/nlc008388.100214.gif&Ecopy=nlc008388.100214|title=Image : RPM Weekly|first=Library and Archives|last=Canada|website=Library and Archives Canada |date=December 26, 2017}}</ref> | style="text-align:center;"|61 |- |Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.top40.nl/bijzondere-lijsten/top-100-jaaroverzichten/1973|title=Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1973|first=Stichting Nederlandse|last=Top 40|website=Top40.nl|access-date=29 April 2021}}</ref> | style="text-align:center;"|59 |- |UK <ref>{{cite journal |title=Top Selling Singles for 1973 |periodical=Sounds |publisher=Spotlight Publications |location=London, England |page=4 |date=5 January 1974}}</ref> | style="text-align:center;"|19 |- |U.S. (Joel Whitburn's ''Pop Annual'')<ref>{{cite book |last=Whitburn |first=Joel |date=1999 |title=Pop Annual |location=Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin |publisher=Record Research Inc. |isbn=0-89820-142-X}}</ref> | style="text-align:center;"|167 |- |} {{col-end}}
==Other versions== *In 1969 a duet version of the song was made by country music singers Connie Smith and Nat Stuckey. Their version reached No. 20 on the Country Music charts. *In 1976, Ray Stevens charted with the song, reaching No. 48 on ''Billboard''{{'}}s country chart and No. 93 on the pop chart. *In 1993, Twister Alley covered the song on their self-titled album, and released it as a single. It peaked at No. 70 on the US Country singles chart.The song was also recorded by Frankie Avalon, Tommy Steele and Frank Ifield.
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * [http://www.songlyrics.com/donny-osmond/young-love-lyrics/ Lyrics of this song] * {{YouTube|7UoJtZei3_k|Donny Osmond - Young Love}}
{{The Crew-Cuts}} {{Sonny James}} {{Connie Smith singles}} {{Donny Osmond}} {{Authority control}}
Category:1956 songs Category:1956 singles Category:1957 singles Category:1964 singles Category:1969 singles Category:1973 singles Category:1976 singles Category:The Crew-Cuts songs Category:Sonny James songs Category:Connie Smith songs Category:Nat Stuckey songs Category:Donny Osmond songs Category:Stella Parton songs Category:Ray Stevens songs Category:Twister Alley songs Category:UK singles chart number-one singles Category:Number-one singles in the United States Category:Number-one singles in Australia Category:Irish Singles Chart number-one singles Category:Billboard Top 100 number-one singles Category:Rockabilly songs Category:RCA Victor singles Category:MGM Records singles Category:Dot Records singles Category:Mercury Records singles Category:1966 singles Category:Lesley Gore songs