Tennessee Waltz is a country song written by Pee Wee King and Redd Stewart in 1946, first released as a single in January 1948 by Pee Wee King and His Golden West Cowboys. The lyrics tell of a narrator who introduces his beloved to a friend, only to have the friend waltz away with her. The King version and a Cowboy Copas cover both reached the Top Ten on the country charts in 1948. The tune’s fame soared with Patti Page’s 1950 recording The Tennessee Waltz, a multimillion-seller that topped the pop charts and helped popularize the song beyond country audiences. Page’s version was later included on her 1957 album This Is My Song, and in 2024 the song was added to the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress. In 1965 Tennessee named the tune its fourth official state song.
