"Always on My Mind" is a ballad written by Wayne Carson, Johnny Christopher, and Mark James, first recorded by Brenda Lee and first released by Gwen McCrae (as "You Were Always on My Mind") in March 1972. Lee's version was released three months later in June 1972. The song has been a crossover hit, charting in both the country and western and pop categories. Elvis Presley's recording was the first commercially successful version of the song.
AllMusic lists more than 300 recorded releases of the song in versions by dozens of performers. While Lee's version reached no. 45 on the US country chart in 1972, other performers reached the Top 20 on the country and/or pop charts in the United States and elsewhere with their own versions: Elvis Presley (1972, US country; UK pop Top Ten); John Wesley Ryles (1979, US country) and Willie Nelson's Grammy Award-winning version (1982, US/Canada country number one; US/Canada pop Top Ten); and the Pet Shop Boys' 1987 hi-NRG/synth-pop interpretation (UK number one; US Top Ten).
Background and composition
"Always on My Mind" was not completed until late 1971. Songwriter-guitarist Wayne Carson had about two verses done with the working title "You Were Always on My Mind". He had been occupied in Memphis on a project that required him to stay ten days longer, and he phoned his wife in Springfield, Missouri, to apologize for the delay. She was angry, and he replied: "Well, I know I’ve been gone a lot, but I’ve been thinking about you all the time." This idea struck him as potential song material, and he quickly ended the call so he could capture it on paper. He brought the song back to the recording studio of Chips Moman and worked on it for a few days, but it did not gel. Carson asked for help from his colleague Johnny Christopher (the two had already written the hit song "No Love at All" in 1970) and they composed more of it in Moman's office. Feeling stuck, they appealed for assistance from songwriter Mark James who was walking through the studio. James was exhausted from non-stop music projects, but he ran through the song with Carson and Christopher. By the fourth run-through, the song was finished.
Music critic Robert Hilburn said that it was commonly thought in Nashville and Memphis that Elvis Presley's marital troubles were the inspiration of the song, and that it was tailored to fit his musical style. Fueling this conjecture was that James had already written a hit song "Suspicious Minds" for Presley. Carson responded that the song was not written for Presley but for every man. He said that it "was one long apology. It’s sort of like all guys who screw up and would love nothing better than to pick up the phone and call their wives and say, 'Listen, honey, I could have done better, but I want you to know that you were always on my mind.
| prev_title = Burning Love
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| next_title2 = Steamroller Blues
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Elvis Presley recorded "Always on My Mind" on March 29, 1972, a few weeks after his February separation from his wife, Priscilla. The song was popular and critically appreciated and is considered one of Presley's standout songs of the 1970s. The song was released as the B-side of the "Separate Ways" single, which was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales in excess of one million units. It was listed as a double A-side, reaching number 16 on Billboards Hot Country Singles chart in November 1972. In the United Kingdom, "Always on My Mind" (as the A-side) reached the Top Ten in January 1973. In 2013 the recording ranked number one in a poll conducted by ITV, "The Nation's Favourite Elvis Songs", just ahead of "Suspicious Minds" and "Can't Help Falling in Love".
Charts
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|+ 1972–1973 chart performance for "Always on My Mind"
! scope="col"| Chart (1972–1973)
! scope="col"| Peak<br/>position
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|-
|-
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! scope="row"| US Country Singles (Cash Box)
| 30
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|+ 1997 chart performance for "Always on My Mind"
! scope="col"| Chart (1997)
! scope="col"| Peak<br/>position
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|-
|}
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
|+ 1999 chart performance for "Always on My Mind"
! scope="col"| Chart (1999)
! scope="col"| Peak<br/>position
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{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
|+ 2007 chart performance for "Always on My Mind"
! scope="col"| Chart (2007)
! scope="col"| Peak<br/>position
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Certifications
John Wesley Ryles version
In 1979, John Wesley Ryles reached number 20 on the US Hot Country Songs chart with his rendition, retitled "You Are Always on My Mind", from the album Let the Night Begin. The rendition was produced by Bob Montgomery.
A review in Billboard praised the "brightly mixed vocals" and "powerful production".
| 17
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Willie Nelson version
Willie Nelson recorded and released the song in early 1982. It raced to number one on Billboards Hot Country Singles chart that May, spending two weeks on top and a total of 21 weeks on the chart. The song also fared well on Top 40 radio, reaching number five on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks and staying on that chart for 23 weeks. It was the best-performing single on the Hot Country Singles year-end chart of 1982. This version also charted in a number of other countries. The single was certified platinum by the RIAA on October 7, 1991.
| 4
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! scope="row"| US Country Singles (Cash Box)
| 1
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Year-end charts
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
! scope="col"| Chart (1982)
! scope="col"| Position
|-
! scope="row"| Canada Top Singles (RPM)
| 70
|-
! scope="row"| US Billboard Hot 100
| 22
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! scope="row"| US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)
| 8
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! scope="row"| US Hot Country Singles (Billboard)
| 1
|-
! scope="row"| US Cash Box Top 100 Singles
| 31
|}
Certifications
Pet Shop Boys version
In 1987, the Pet Shop Boys performed a synth-pop version of "Always on My Mind" in Love Me Tender, a television special produced by Central Independent Television for ITV in the United Kingdom. Commemorating the tenth anniversary of Presley's death, the programme featured various popular acts of the time performing cover versions of his songs. The Pet Shop Boys' performance was so well-received that the duo decided to record the song and release it as a single.
This hi-NRG, dance-pop, and disco version became the UK's Christmas number-one single that year – edging out "Fairytale of New York" by the Pogues and Kirsty MacColl – spending four weeks atop the chart.
Composition
The Pet Shop Boys version introduces a harmonic variation not present in the original version. In the original, the ending phrase "always on my mind" is sung to a IV-V<sup>7</sup>-I cadence (C-D<sup>7</sup>-G). The Pet Shop Boys extend this cadence by adding two further chords: C-D<sup>7</sup>-Gm<sup>7</sup>/B-C-G (i.e., a progression of IV-V<sup>7</sup>-III<sub>b</sub>-IV-I).
Critical reception
In November 2004, The Daily Telegraph placed the version at number two in a list of the 50 best cover versions of all time. In October 2014, a public poll compiled by the BBC saw the song voted the all-time best cover version.
Music video
In the video for Pet Shop Boys' version of "Always on My Mind" (an excerpt from their surreal music film It Couldn't Happen Here) (1988), Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe are seated in the front of a taxi cab, when an eccentric passenger gets in, played by British actor Joss Ackland. At the end of the song, he gets out of the car and the car drives away. Standing alone, he mutters: "You went away. It should make me feel better. But I don't know how I'm going to get through", which is part of the lyric for another Pet Shop Boys song, "What Have I Done to Deserve This?", released earlier in the year.
Remixes
In 1988, the duo remixed the song for their third studio album, Introspective, combining it with the acid house track "In My House". Two further remixes by longtime Pet Shop Boys remixer Shep Pettibone were released on the US promotional triple vinyl version of the album—Shep's Holiday mix and Shep's House mix. Neither have appeared in any other format since.
Charts
Weekly charts
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
! scope="col"| Chart (1987–1988)
! scope="col"| Peak<br/>position
|-
! scope="row"| Australia (Australian Music Report)
| 10
|-
|-
|-
! scope="row"| Canada Retail Singles (The Record)
| 1
|-
|-
! scope="row"| Denmark (Tracklisten)
| 2
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! scope="row"| Europe (European Hot 100 Singles)
| 1
|-
! scope="row"| Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)
| 1
|-
|-
! scope="row"| Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 10)
| 2
|-
|-
! scope="row"| Italy (Musica e dischi)
| 8
|-
|-
|-
|-
|-
! scope="row"| Panama (UPI)
| 3
|-
! scope="row"| Peru (UPI)
| 3
|-
! scope="row"| Spain (AFYVE)
| 1
|-
|-
|-
|-
! scope="row"| US Cash Box Top 100 Singles
| 7
|-
|}
Year-end charts
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
! scope="col"| Chart (1987)
! scope="col"| Position
|-
! scope="row"| UK Singles (Gallup)
| 14
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
! scope="col"| Chart (1988)
! scope="col"| Position
|-
! scope="row"| Australia (ARIA)
| 35
|-
! scope="row"| Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)
| 13
|-
! scope="row"| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)
| 29
|-
! scope="row"| Canada Top Singles (RPM)
| 15
|-
! scope="row"| Europe (European Hot 100 Singles)
| 12
|-
! scope="row"| Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)
| 62
|-
! scope="row"| Netherlands (Single Top 100)
| 88
|-
! scope="row"| South Africa (Springbok Radio)
| 11
|-
! scope="row"| Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)
| 15
|-
! scope="row"| US Billboard Hot 100
| 80
|-
! scope="row"| West Germany (Media Control)
| 4
|}
Certifications
Release history
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
|+ Release dates and formats for "Always on My Mind"
! scope="col"| Region
! scope="col"| Date
! scope="col"| Format(s)
! scope="col"| Label(s)
! scope="col"|
|-
! scope="row" rowspan="3"| United Kingdom
| November 30, 1987
|
| rowspan="3"| Parlophone
| align="center"|
|-
| December 7, 1987
|
| align="center"|
|-
| December 21, 1987
| 12-inch remix vinyl
| align="center"|
|-
! scope="row"| Japan
| April 24, 1988
| Mini-CD
| EMI
| align="center"|
|}
In popular culture
In 2017, Burberry released its holiday campaign, as directed by Alasdair McLellan, which features Cara Delevingne and actor Matt Smith. It opens with Delevingne singing "Always on My Mind" before segueing into the Pet Shop Boys cover of the song.
The song is also included in the films I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry, Matthias & Maxime, All of Us Strangers, The Apprentice, and the Season 3 premiere of Cold Case, "Family".