AURA LEA
“Aura Lea” (sometimes spelled “Aura Lee”) is an American Civil War song about a maiden. It was written by W. W. Fosdick (lyrics) and George R. Poulton (music). The tune is familiar to modern audiences from the 1956 Elvis Presley #1 hit “Love Me Tender” with new lyrics by Ken Darby, a derivative adaptation of the original. A later Presley recording for the film The Trouble with Girls entitled “Violet (Flower of N.Y.U.)” also used the melody of “Aura Lea”. (More from Wikipedia)
As a further wrinkle, the tune for “Love Me Tender” is an adaptation of a popular Civil War-era song “Aura Lea” (published in 1861), which had music by George R. Poulton and words by W. W. Fosdick. As with most old songs, “Aura Lea” is now in the “Public Domain”, meaning that the intellectual property rights for the writing of this song have expired; thus, Poulton and Fosdick did not have to be credited at all, nor did their heirs receive any compensation when “Love Me Tender” became a big hit.
(April 2015/1)
