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"Sea of Love" is a song written by John Phillip Baptiste (aka Phil Phillips) and George Khoury. Phillips' 1959 recording of the song peaked at No. 1 on the U.S. BillboardR&B chart and No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100.[1] In the UKMarty Wilde covered the song, and Phillips' version failed to chart there. It was the only top 40 chart song for Phillips, who never recorded another hit.[2]

The song has been covered by a number of artists since then, most notably by The Honeydrippers, whose version (from the album The Honeydrippers: Volume One) reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in early 1985[3] and No. 1 on the adult contemporary chart in 1984.[4] "Sea of Love" made the Top 40 one other time, whenDel Shannon took it to No. 33 in 1981. Tom Waits gave the song a darker twist for the soundtrack to the 1989 Harold Becker film Sea of Love starring Al Pacino and Ellen Barkin, and Waits included it on his 2006 collection Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards.

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 [hide*1 Background

Background[edit][]

Baptiste, who was working as a bellboy in Lake Charles, Louisiana, wrote "Sea of Love" for a love interest. He was introduced to local record producer George Khoury, who brought Baptiste into his studio to record the song. At Khoury's request, Baptiste took the stage name of Phil Phillips. The song, originally credited to Phil Phillips with The Twilights, was released on a small record label owned by Khoury, but due to its success was eventually leased to Mercury Records. Despite the song's success, Phillips claims that he has only ever received US$6,800 for recording it.[2]

In popular culture[edit][]

The song was the subject of the 1989 Harold Becker film Sea of Love starring Al Pacino and Ellen Barkin.[5] The 2007 film Juno features a cover version of the song by Cat Power in its soundtrack.[6] The Cat Power version was also featured in an episode of the television show Pretty Little Liars. It was also used in the 1989 TV movie Sweet Bird Of Youth, which starred Elizabeth Taylor.

The song was featured at the end of an episode of The Simpsons entitled "Future-Drama" in 2005.[7] It also can be heard in the 2008 episode "The Burns and the Bees",[8] put on by Moe while the queen bee is making out with all the little drones. It is also played in an episode of Futurama, episode 13 of season 9. In "Rumba" (2008), Dominique Abel and Fiona Gordon sing this song. In American Dad!, Stan plays the song at the bottom of the ocean for Francine in Stan Time (2009).

The song featured at the opening of Episode 13 of The Detectives (Season 03, EP 01) entitled D.C. of Love.

A skipping record of the song is played during a scene in the 2000 film Frequency. It's also heard in Look Who's Talking Too (1990), Striking Distance (1993), Mr. Wrong (1996), De Zeemeerman (1996), Brooklyn's Finest (2009), and Private Practice (2010).

The song was played in the closing credits of Filipino actor Cesar Montano's film Markadong Hudas (1993).

In 2011, the song was used in a contestant's audition on the show The Next Star. In 2013, McDonald's used the Marty Wilde version in their advert for the 1955 burger.

Cover versions[edit][]

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