Oh_Promise_Me
Oh Promise Me is a song with music by Reginald De Koven and lyrics by Clement Scott. The song was written in 1887 and first published in 1889 by G. Schirmer, Inc. as an art song. It is believed that De Koven based the melody of "O Promise Me" partly on "Music Proibita", a popular song by Italian composer Stanislao Gastaldon. In 1890, De Koven wrote his most successful comic opera, Robin Hood. After opening night, the contralto playing Alan-a-Dale, Jessie Bartlett Davis, demanded a song to better show off her voice, threatening to walk out of the production. De Koven inserted "Oh Promise Me" into the score for her.[1][2]
The sheet music sold over a million copies in 1890 and continued to gain popularity for several decades, being performed by many artists. The song remains popular as a wedding song both in America and in the UK. In 1957, American vocal group The Platters recorded a cover of the song, with authorship credited solely to the group's manager Buck Ram, with no mention of the original composers.