Mountain of Love explained

Mountain of Love
Type:	single
Artist:	Harold Dorman
B-Side:	To Be with You
Recorded:	1959
Genre:	Rock and roll
Length:	2:30
Label:	Rita
Producer:	Roland Janes^[1]

"Mountain of Love" is a song written by Harold Dorman. Dorman released his version as a single in 1960. It was originally recorded in late 1959 at the Royal Recording Studios in Memphis before the backing vocals (and strings, much later) were overdubbed. It performed well, spending 19 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart,^[2] peaking at No. 21 in May 1960,^[3] while reaching No. 7 on the Billboard Hot R&B Sides chart,^[4] and No. 25 on Canada's "CHUM Hit Parade".^[5] The song was his only top forty hit on the Billboard Hot 100 and was the highest-charting single of his career.^[2]

Charley Pride version

Mountain of Love
Type:	single
Artist:	Charley Pride
Album:	Charley Sings Everybody's Choice
B-Side:	Love Is a Shadow
Released:	1981
Genre:	Country-soul,^[6] gospel
Label:	RCA
Producer:	Norro Wilson
Prev Title:	Never Been So Loved (In All My Life)
Prev Year:	1981
Next Title:	I Don't Think She's in Love Anymore
Next Year:	1982

In December 1981, Charley Pride released a cover version, which topped the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart in March 1982.^[7] Charley Pride's version of "Mountain of Love" was his twenty-sixth No. 1 on the country chart.

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1981–1982)	Peak position
Australia (Kent Music Report)^[8]	76
Canadian RPM Country Tracks	1
New Zealand Singles Chart	41

Year-end charts

Other cover versions

• In 1960, Kenny Lynch released a cover of the song, which reached No. 33 on Record Retailer chart in the U.K..
• In 1964, Johnny Rivers released his remake using members of the Wrecking Crew^[10] as a single. It reached No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100.^[11]
• The Beach Boys recorded an acoustic rendition of the song for their 1965 album Beach Boys' Party!. It was later featured as the B-side to Then I Kissed Her released in the United Kingdom in April 1967 ^[12] Music critic Richie Unterberger describes it as "a rousing run through" and one of the highlights of the album.^[12]
• In 1968, singer Ronnie Dove had a minor hit when he released his version as the B-side of "Never Gonna Cry (The Way I'll Cry Tonight)" on Diamond Records. Ronnie Dove's version spent six weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, and reached No. 67. This recording featured A-list session musicians, such as Boots Randolph on saxophone and Glen Campbell on guitar.^[13] It was originally issued as an album track on Ronnie Dove Sings the Hits for You two years earlier, and was the original B-side of this single.
• Jerry Lawson and Talk of the Town (on their 2007 album, Jerry Lawson & Talk of the Town). Bobby G. Rice took a rendition to No. 20 on the country music charts in 1971.^[14]
• A cover by Molly & the Heymakers peaked at No. 79 on the RPM Country Tracks chart in Canada in 1992.^[15]

Notes and References

1. Brewer . Roy . String Musicians in the Recording Studios of Memphis, Tennessee . Popular Music . 2000 . 19 . 2 . 202 . 7 March 2021 . Cambridge Press . 3rd paragraph, line 7 . 10.1017/S0261143000000118 . 853668 . 163095947 . 0261-1430.
2. http://www.billboard.com/artist/303304/harold-dorman/chart Harold Dorman - Chart History - The Hot 100
3. "The Billboard HOT 100", Billboard, May 23, 1960. p. 34. Accessed November 29, 2015
4. "The Billboard Hot R&B Sides", Billboard, May 16, 1960. p. 44. Accessed November 29, 2015
5. Web site: CHUM Hit Parade – Week of May 16, 1960 . 2015-11-30 . bot: unknown . https://web.archive.org/web/20061107221904/http://www.1050chum.com/charts/chartview.aspx?img=19600516 . November 7, 2006 . . Chart No. 159.
6. Web site: Top 10 Charley Pride Songs. Zaleski, Annie. The Bull — Amarillo. March 18, 2021. May 14, 2024.
7. Book: Whitburn, Joel . The Billboard Book O\of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Joel Whitburn . 2004 . Record Research . 277.
8. Book: Kent, David. David Kent (historian). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. illustrated. Australian Chart Book. St Ives, N.S.W.. 1993. 0-646-11917-6. 239.
9. Hot Country Songs – Year-End 1982. Billboard. June 21, 2021.
10. Book: Hartman, Kent . 261–263 . 2012 . The Wrecking Crew . registration . . 978-1-250-03046-7.
11. Book: Whitburn, Joel . The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits: Eighth Edition . Joel Whitburn . 2004 . Record Research . 531.
12. Web site: Beach Boys' Party!Review. AllMusic. August 11, 2022.
13. http://www.billboard.com/artist/368454/ronnie-dove/chart Ronnie Dove - Chart History - The Hot 100
14. Book: Whitburn, Joel. Hot Country Songs 1944 to 2008. Record Research. 2008. 349. 978-0-89820-177-2.
15. Web site: RPM Country Tracks. RPM. April 18, 1992. September 8, 2013.