"I Love You Truly" is a parlor song written by Carrie Jacobs-Bond. Since its publication in 1901 it has been sung at weddings, recorded by numerous artists over many decades, and heard on film and television.
1906 sheet music cover
Parlour music is a type of popular music which, as the name suggests, is intended to be performed in the parlours of houses, usually by amateur singers and pianists. Disseminated as sheet music, its heyday came in the 19th century, as a result of a steady increase in the number of households with enough resources to purchase musical instruments and instruction in music, and with the leisure time and cultural motivation to engage in recreational music-making. Its popularity faded in the 20th century as the phonograph record and radio replaced sheet music as the most common means for the spread of popular music.
Front cover of "Just Awearyin' for You" (1901), a widely selling parlor song. The lyrics were by Frank Lebby Stanton. Composer Carrie Jacobs-Bond thought they were anonymous but later provided royalties to Stanton. The song typifies the sentimentality of the Victorian and post-Victorian era.
Ah May the Red Rose Live Alway