Released July 1953 Genre Country | Format 7" Length 2:30 | |
B-side I'm Tired Of Bummin' Around Recorded May 4–5, 1953
Castle Studio, Tulane Hotel
Nashville, Tennessee | ||
"Let Me Be the One" is a 1953 song written by Paul Blevins, Joe Hobson and W.S. Stevenson, and made famous by up-and-coming country singer Hank Locklin. In December of that year, the song became Locklin's first No. 1 hit, spending three weeks atop the Billboard country chart.
Locklin, a fledgling country star who had formed a backing band called the Rocky Mountain Boys, had recorded for a variety of small regional labels, including Gold Star and Royalty. Success didn't come his way until he joined with Four Star Records, when 1949's "The Same Sweet Girl" reached No. 8 on the Billboard country chart. However, it wasn't until 1953 when he finally broke through to the top of the chart with "Let Me Be the One." While sustained success didn't come until the mid-1950s, "Let Me Be the One" paved the way for Locklin's future successes at the Decca and RCA recording labels, where he became associated with such songs as "Why Baby Why," "Geisha Girl," "Send Me the Pillow That You Dream On" and "Please Help Me, I'm Falling."