They began writing and recording their own music in 1956, and their first hit song came in 1957, with "Bye Bye Love", written by Felice and Boudleaux Bryant. The song hit No. 1 in the spring of 1957, and additional hits would follow through 1958, many of them written by the Bryants, including "Wake Up Little Susie", "All I Have to Do Is Dream", and "Problems". In 1960, they signed with the major label Warner Bros. Records and recorded "Cathy's Clown", written by the brothers themselves, which was their biggest selling single. The brothers enlisted in the United States Marine Corps Reserve in 1961, and their output dropped off, though additional hit singles continued through 1962, with "That's Old Fashioned (That's the Way Love Should Be)" being their last top-10 hit.
Long-simmering disputes with Wesley Rose, the CEO of Acuff-Rose Music, which managed the group, a growing drug usage in the 1960s, as well as changing tastes in popular music, led to the group's decline in popularity in its native U.S., though the brothers continued to release hit singles in the U.K. and Canada, and had many highly successful tours throughout the 1960s. In the early 1970s, the brothers began releasing solo recordings, and in 1973 they officially broke up. Starting in 1983, the brothers got back together, and would continue to perform periodically until Phil's death in 2014. Don died seven years later.
The group was highly influential on the music of the generation that followed it. Many of the top acts of the 1960s were heavily influenced by the close-harmony singing and acoustic guitar playing of the Everly Brothers, including the Beatles, the Beach Boys, the Bee Gees, and Simon & Garfunkel. In 2015, Rolling Stone ranked the Everly Brothers No. 1 on its list of the 20 Greatest Duos of All Time. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as part of the inaugural class of 1986, and into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2001. Don was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2019, earning the organization's first Iconic Riff Award for his distinctive rhythm guitar intro to the Everlys' massive 1957 hit "Wake Up Little Susie".
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Everly_Brothers
Like Strangers
The Everly Brothers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That's what we are
Darling, how can lovers pull apart so far
Like strangers?
How can it be?
Only days ago, we loved so tenderly
I love you, truly I do
And I hope deep in your heart you love me too
Let's be lovers like before
And try not to be like strangers, anymore
Let's forget that we've been angry
Let's be lovers like before
And swear not to be like strangers, anymore
The Everly Brothers' "Like Strangers" explores the painful yet familiar experience of a couple who have grown distant from each other, to the point of feeling like strangers. The opening lines question how lovers could have grown apart so drastically: "Darling, how can lovers pull apart so far?" It's a sentiment many people can relate to after a fight or when communication has broken down in a relationship. The song then goes on to acknowledge the recent history of the relationship, emphasizing how only days ago the two lovers were still deeply in love and shared tender moments: "Only days ago, we loved so tenderly."
The chorus then takes a more hopeful tone, with the singer expressing their earnest desire to reconcile with their distant partner. They profess their love and express hope for their partner's reciprocation: "I love you, truly I do / And I hope deep in your heart you love me too." The concluding couplet urges the couple to move forward with forgiveness and understanding, avoiding the fate of becoming strangers to each other: "Let's forget that we've been angry / Let's be lovers like before / And try not to be like strangers, anymore."
Overall, "Like Strangers" expresses the familiar tension of love and disappointment, emphasizing the pain of separation and the hope of reconciliation.
Line by Line Meaning
Like strangers
We are acting as if we don't know each other
That's what we are
Our relationship has deteriorated to the point where we are strangers to each other
Darling, how can lovers pull apart so far
As lovers, we were once so close; how did we end up so far apart?
Like strangers?
Is this really how we want to be with each other?
How can it be?
It's hard to believe how much our relationship has changed
Only days ago, we loved so tenderly
It seems like only days ago we were in love and close to each other
I love you, truly I do
My feelings for you are genuine
And I hope deep in your heart you love me too
I hope that you feel the same way about me
Let's forget that we've been angry
We should put aside our anger and move on
Let's be lovers like before
Let's go back to the way we used to be when we were happy with each other
And try not to be like strangers, anymore
Let's work on our relationship and not act like strangers to each other anymore
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BOUDLEAUX BRYANT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Margaret Warren
No other harmonies are as sweet and beautiful as those of Don and Phil. Thanks for posting.
felixbautista
My pleasure Margaret and thank you so very much for coming by... have a great week ahead.
Millie Banks
What wonderful voices. How much I love them and will miss these two!
Gail Cromie
Beautiful souls.
Rest in Peace.
Thank you both for your music.
Heartbroken 💔💔 Goodbye Phil and Don xx
Litsa 'flower heart' channel
God, How I love this sweet song! It's perfect! Thank you so much for posting it Felix! EVERLY BROTHERS FOR EVER!!
felixbautista
Pleasure is mine... am glad and thankful for your appreciation and support.
Les Reed
Two sublimely handsome guys - and what performers. Loved them for over 50, and I guess I always will. Really sad about Phil's passing - but what a legacy they left us! Les (London).
Philip Croft
AND NOW--2022, RIP. DON.
Suzanne Mycyk
"Like Strangers" is one of the Everly brothers' best. Love it!
John Brodowski
One of the many beautiful songs from this unforgetable group.