This Iconic 1965 Righteous Brothers Performance of ‘Unchained Melody’ Is Proof That Perfection Exists

Michael Stevens

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If you think the perfect television performance doesn’t exist, then you probably haven’t seen this one. Back in 1965, on “The Andy Williams Show,” the Righteous Brothers—Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield—gave an epic performance that remains legendary to this day.

The show begins with a lighthearted banter, they chat and joke with Andy, making everyone smile, but then Bobby decides to sing “Unchained Melody”. Now this was back when “Unchained Melody” was top of the charts, so it wasn’t an easy song to take on, but when Bobby starts singing its absolute raw vocal talent that no words can describe. He sings with so much feeling, starting with a soft low voice and then building up to a powerful high note. It’s a really amazing watch. Check out the video below.

Righteous Brothers – Unchained Melody (Live 1965) (Picture & Soundrestored)

Although the song was originally written by Alex North and Hy Zaret for the 1955 prison film “Unchained”, The Righteous Brothers really stole the show, and their version of the song became an even bigger hit than the original. When the video was first remastered for YouTube, their performance got 45 million views on YouTube and is still their most-watched live video. Thanks to Rbvo, the video was fixed up to look and sound great again. Rbvo said, “I think this just might be one of the two or three greatest live vocal performances ever captured on TV — and I am glad I could restore it.”

During a singing class, someone said that Bobby “operates in the lower section during the opening before rising to what can only be described as an insatiable thunderous peak that ends with a beautiful falsetto high.” He’s truly a master singer.

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TV version of You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’ by Righteous Brothers,1965

Fans loved it, too. People left comments like, “This audio needs to be blasted out into space so one day our closest alien civilization can listen to the best voice our planet ever had,” and “Imagine being in that audience having no clue you were seeing the greatest male performance of a song ever!” The Righteous Brothers also had other great hits that year, like “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’.”

Now this song was a massive hit in the US, UK, and Canada in 1964. Another big song, “Unchained Melody,” reached number four in the US and became their biggest online hit. On Spotify, “Unchained Melody” has over 525 million streams, which is three times more than “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’.”

If you want to see more great performances, check out The Righteous Brothers’ YouTube Channel. Keep up with the latest news on their Facebook Page.

Greatest Hits:

🔥 The Righteous Brothers ✨ Unchained Melody ✨ Greatest Hits ♪