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Born as a theme for the obscure prison film “Unchained” in 1955, “Unchained Melody” should have faded with the end credits. Instead, its aching plea—crafted by composer Alex North and lyricist Hy Zaret—escaped the film and slipped into the bloodstream of popular music. When The Righteous Brothers recorded their version in 1965, Bill Medley’s stark production and Bobby Hatfield’s soaring, vulnerable vocal transformed it from a standard into an emotional earthquake.
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