Wise men say, only fools rush in,
But I can’t help falling in love with you.
The song was made famous by Elvis Presly in 1961. It was an innocent love song.
Shall I stay? Would it be a sin?
if I can’t help falling in love with you.
Okay. Not completely innocent, but still about true love. But the Elvis version is not the one I heard first. I first heard the song as sung by UB40. They had a very different take on the words. Their music video is full of surveillance cameras, and footage of a woman filmed while unaware. These are scenes from the movie Sliver, which is a thriller based in some very unhealthy relationships.
Take my hand take my whole life too
for I can’t help falling in love with you.
The song takes on an ominous tone when placed in such a setting. At the time I felt that the song was a bit obsessive and that the relationship described was unhealthy. Yet the song appealed to me anyway. A couple of years later I figured out why because I had my first child. She entered my life and I was helpless.
Like a river flows to the sea
so it goes, some things are meant to be
As naturally as breathing I handed over my love and life to the tiny little person who needed me. I would bundle her close and dance around my living room singing.
Take my hand take my whole life too
for I can’t help falling in love with you.
Years passed. The baby grew up, but I still loved her with my whole heart. One by one, three more babies entered my life. And I gave each of them my whole heart as well. It is one of the amazing gifts of parenthood that you can give your whole heart four times over and still have some to spare. In 2002 a new version of the song emerged as my favorite. It was sung by the A Teens for the Disney movie Lilo and Stitch. I love it because it is so cheerful and energetic. The movie is all about family, which is perfect because to me this song is all about family and loving forever no matter what. I still sing it to my kids, only now they dance with me and sing right back.
For I can’t help falling in love with you.
I liked it when I got the sheet music to play for alto saxophone. It’s nice.
I don’t know who sang it but I found it in a movie called ” Some Kind of Wonderful”. I’m very fond of it too!
Yes, that’s the version I first remember hearing, so it’s my favorite version. It’s by a group called Lick the Tins.
You are also an amazing parent, I reckon. I wish there was more noise made about the huge majority of parents like you who love their family and their children and who would no doubt sacrifice themselves if it ever came to that, and a bit less made of the statistically almost insignificant few who are hateful and cruel. I’m sure that the kind, loving people (even ones such as myself, with no children of my own) out-number the nasty ones by probably at least thousands-to-one, but it “20 million children today weren’t hurt or murdered” doesn’t make the same kind of headline in our skewed and sometimes flawed media that “1 child killed” does.
That was lovely, Sandra. I didn’t know what direction you were heading, so Sting’s “I’ll Be Watching You” came to mind, which has a stalking feeling about it. I much prefer the direction your thoughts went! There is another version of your song that came out in the 90’s I think, in a movie I never saw so don’t remember, that is also fun and upbeat. What a fun tradition to sing that to your children.
~Wendy
UB40’s version was far too creepy
Elvis performed that song in Blue Hawaii, as I recall. It has always been a favorite of mine. When my wife and I were selecting music for our wedding, that was the only song I absolutely insisted on (and I remember writing “Elvis, not UB40!” on the sheet from the DJ service.). Made my mother cry, which was unexpected (tears of joy, not tears of sadness).