I Want To Be Wanted (Per Tutta La Vita)

Album

This Is... Brenda

Label

Decca Records

Genre

Orchestral pop

Duration

5:00

Composer(s)

Kim Gannon, Giuseppe "Pino" Spotti

Entered Chart

Sep 12, 1960

Peak Date

Oct 24, 1960

Released

July 1960

Recorded

March 27, 1960

Catalog #

Decca 9-31149

B-Side

Just A Little

Brenda Lee topped the charts for the second time in 1960, following "I'm Sorry," with "I Wanted To Be Wanted," a heart-wrenching ballad that portrays the teenage songstress desperate for love and uncertain she'll ever find it. The song is an English remake of the Italian tune "Per tutta la vita (For All Lifetime)," written by Pino Spotti and Alberto Testa in 1959 for the annual Festival di Sanremo song contest. While it didn't come close to winning the competition, the melody caught Lee's attention while she was in Italy during her international tour that year. She immediately knew she wanted to record the song and tracked down the songwriters for the lyrics. American lyricist Kim Gannon, who co-wrote the holiday staple "I'll Be Home for Christmas," was tasked to write the English version. It was his final hit. In her 2002 autobiography, Little Miss Dynamite: The Life And Times Of Brenda Lee, the singer recalled cutting the tune in the studio with producer Owen Bradley, who helped develop the polished Nashville Sound that shaped country music of the '50s and '60s. "The song had the most gorgeous melody with a great big range from my lowest alto almost to the top of my voice," she noted. "Owen had Bill McElhiney do this exquisite string arrangement with the violins soaring way up high. It was like they were sighing, answering the vocal. I still think it's one of the most hauntingly beautiful songs I've ever sung." The original Italian version was included in the 1960 Greek romantic comedy Never On Sunday, which is notable for its title theme, sung by the film's star Melina Mercouri. "Never On Sunday" won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1960, making it the first foreign-language song to win the prize. This is the lead single from Lee's third studio album, This Is…Brenda. She didn't land another #1 hit until 2023, when "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree" topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart 65 years after its release. This also peaked at #7 on the R&B chart. Lee notched five nonconsecutive Top 20 singles on the tally, starting with "Sweet Nothin's" in 1959. Report this ad Lee was only unlucky in love when it came to her songs. In real life, she married Ronnie Shacklett, the son of a Nashville councilman, in 1963 - ironically as her single "Losing You" was climbing the charts. But prior to her marriage she was inexperienced in the romance department, which made it quite impressive that she was able muster the passion and heartache that drove her popular torch songs. "I had my first single date when I was 18, and I married my date, so I don't have a clue where that emotion came from," she told Rolling Stone in 2018. "I never kissed a boy. My mom didn't allow me to date." Olivia Newton-John covered this for her 1992 album, Back to Basics: The Essential Collection 1971–1992. It was one of four new tracks recorded for the compilation. Andy Williams released a version as the B-side to his 1962 single "Strangers On The Shore." This was used in the 1981 movie The Loveless. It was also featured on the pilot episode of the TV series Feud in 2017. The first season tells the story of the famous rivalry between Hollywood actresses Bette Davis and Joan Crawford.

(Wanted, wanted)
Alone, so alone that I could cry
I want to be wanted (wanted).
Alone, watching lovers passing by
I want to be wanted.

When I am kissed, I want his lips to really kiss me.
When we're apart, I want his heart to really miss me.
I want to know he loves me so his eyes are misting.
That's the way, I want to be loved.

Alone, just my lonely heart knows how
I want to be wanted (wanted) right now
Not tomorrow, but right now.
I want to be wanted.

I want someone to share my love with and my dreams with
Someone I know I'd love to spend a million years with.
Where is this someone somewhere meant for me?

(Alone) Just my lonely heart knows how
I want to be wanted (Right now)
Not tomorrow, but right now.
I want to be wanted.

I want someone to share my laughter and my tears with
Someone I know I'd love to spend a million years with.
Where is this someone somewhere meant for me?
(Someone somewhere) Meant for me.