Aura Lee

AURA LEE 1861

This beautiful, sentimental love song, rich in pastoral imagery was written by W. W. Fosdick (words) and George R. Poulton (music). It was first published in Cincinnati in 1861 as a minstrel song, and the powerfully touching melody has since been put to at least two other sets of words. West Point’s Class of 1865 adopted it as Soldier Blue, and it was the melody for one of the best selling songs of all time, Elvis Presley’s Love Me Tender (1956).