‘Showtune Sunday: Let’s enjoy several versions of “Stand by Me” in tribute to the late Ben E. King

Singer Ben E. King died on Thursday at the age of 76 but his signature hit, Stand By Me, will live on forever.

King co-wrote the classic tune which was originally supposed to be a song for his group The Drifters. But he left the group in a management dispute and used it on his first solo album.

Good move.

The song was a US Top 10 hit both in 1961 then again in 1986 when it was used as the theme to the Rob Reiner-directed film of the same name). It was also a number one hit in the UK in 1987 and #25 on the RIAA’s list of Songs of the Century.

I’ve got two performances by King here as well as Tracy Chapman, John Lennon and Seal also doing wonderful versions of their own.

Enjoy!