By 1983, The Statler Brothers already had plenty of hits to their credit. Since releasing their debut album, Flowers On The Wall, in 1966, The Statler Brothers spent nearly two decades releasing hit after hit, including songs like “Bed Of Rose’s”, “I’ll Go To My Grave Loving You”, “Do You Know You Are My Sunshine”, and more.
Still, it’s “Elizabeth”, out in 1983, which remains one of the group’s biggest hits. Written by band member Jimmy Fortune, “Elizabeth” is part of their Today album, which also came out in 1983.
Videos by American Songwriter
“Elizabeth” starts with, “Oh Elizabeth, I long to see your pretty face / I long to touch your lips, I long to feel your warm embrace / Don’t know if I can ever live my life without you / Oh Elizabeth, I’m still missing you.”
Perhaps surprisingly, “Elizabeth” was inspired by the real-life movie star, Elizabeth Taylor. Even more surprisingly, it’s the first song Fortune wrote, penning it entirely by himself. Fortune remembers traveling to Tulsa, Oklahoma, with band members Harold Reid and Don Reid, when they pulled out the 1956 movie Giant, starring Taylor. Fortune had never seen the film before.
“It starred Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, and James Dean. And some of it was filmed in Virginia, so they thought I should see it,” Fortune, who is from Virginia, tells The Boot. “We started watching it, and I fell in love with her. Of course, I knew who she was, but I wasn’t all that familiar with that movie. It became one of my favorites.”
At a show that evening, Fortune met a woman named Elizabeth. He took it as a sign, writing “Elizabeth” that night.
Elizabeth Taylor’s Reaction to “Elizabeth” by The Statler Brothers
Years later, The Statler Brothers got to meet Taylor, performing the song for her on their own bus.
“We were in Tucson, Arizona. Elizabeth Taylor was shooting a movie out there and got wind that we were there,” Fortune recalls to Taste of Country. “She had heard the song, learned we were nearby, and called our management to see if we could meet.”
“We went to the site where they were filming her movie, she came on our bus, and I sat there and sang ‘Elizabeth’ as she sat across the table, and looked into those beautiful blue eyes,” he continues. “I tell you she has the most beautiful blue eyes I have ever seen! Harold was looking at her too, and this is how that story got started: he looked at her and said, ‘We wrote that song for you!’”
Photo by ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images
More The List
-
Postcard '900. The Beatles. (Photo by Fireshot/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) -
Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images -
ARLINGTON, TX – APRIL 18: Recording artist David Lee Murphy rehearses onstage during ACM Presents: Superstar Duets at Globe Life Park in Arlington on April 18, 2015 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ethan Miller/ACM2015/Getty Images for dcp) -
Jonathan Cain, Steve Perry, Neal Schon, Ross Valory, and Steve Smith (l to r) of the rock band Journey pose for a picture. (Photo by © Roger Ressmeyer/CORBIS/VCG via Getty Images) -
Photo by Steve Morley/Redferns/Hulton Archive/Getty Images -
2nd February 1964: The Beatles, left to right: George Harrison (1943 – 2001), John Lennon (1940 – 1980) Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney at London Airport on their way to appear in New York. (Photo by J. Wilds/Keystone/Getty Images) -
Singer and songwriter Roy Orbison performs circa 1960. (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images) -
Musician, singer and songwriter Sammy Kershaw is shown performing on stage during a live concert appearance on January 22, 1995 in Springfield, Massachusetts. (Photo by John Atashian/Getty Images)