About the song
Few voices in popular music have ever conveyed tenderness and truth quite like **Elvis Presley**. Known as the “King of Rock and Roll,” **Elvis** spent the later part of his career leaning into more reflective, emotionally rich material—songs that spoke not only to youthful passion but also to the deeper, more enduring emotions of adult life. One of the most compelling examples of this is his 1975 rendition of **“And I Love You So,”** a song that originated with **Don McLean** but found a new depth and resonance in Elvis’s hands.
Released on his *Today* album, **“And I Love You So”** is a graceful, understated ballad, remarkable in its simplicity. The lyrics are clear and unadorned—“And I love you so / The people ask me how”—but in **Elvis’s** delivery, they become something more: a quiet meditation on love, vulnerability, and the redemptive power of companionship. His voice, weathered yet unwavering, carries a kind of solemn gratitude that only someone who has lived through both triumph and tragedy can truly express. The arrangement is gentle, featuring soft acoustic guitar and subtle orchestration, allowing **Elvis’s** vocal phrasing to take center stage.
What makes this performance so moving is its intimacy. By the mid-1970s, **Elvis** was no longer the swiveling provocateur of the 1950s; he was a man in his forties, with a lifetime of fame behind him and personal struggles never far from view. In **“And I Love You So,”** we hear not a superstar, but a man reaching out to express something sincere and uncomplicated. This song is not about the dizzying highs of new love, but rather the peace that comes from being truly known and accepted.
For listeners of a certain age, the song resonates not just as a love ballad but as a reminder that tenderness can deepen over time. **Elvis’s** interpretation speaks to enduring commitment, to the way love can become a quiet constant even as the world changes. In many ways, **“And I Love You So”** is one of **Elvis Presley’s** most affecting performances—a song that trades spectacle for soul, and in doing so, reveals the heart of a legend.
Video
Lyrics
And I love you so
People ask me how
How I’ve lived ’til now
I tell them I don’t know
I guess they understand
How lonely life has been
But life began again
The day you took my hand
And yes, I know how lonely life can be
When Shadows follow me and the night won’t set me free
But I don’t let the evening get me down
Now that you’re around me
And you love me too
Your thoughts are just for me
You set my spirit free
I’m happy that you do
The book of life is brief
And once the page is read
All but love is dead
This is my belief
Oh, and yes, I know how lonely life can be
When shadows follow me and the night won’t set me free
But I don’t let the evening get me down
Now that you’re around me, now you know
Thank you
Thank you very much
