Meredith Wilson wrote the song for his 1957 musical, The Music Man. In the musical, the librarian,
Marion Paroo, sings the song to Professor Harold Hill near the end of Act II.
The first release of the song appeared before the first cast album was release in November 1957. The Broadway production of The Music Man premiered on December 19, 1957.
There was an earlier version of the song, titled Till I Met You, which was released in 1950-1951.
The song became a hit for Anita Bryant in 1959.
In 1962, Shirley Jones and Robert Preston stared in the movie version of The Music Man.
Till There Was You was the only Broadway tune ever recorded by the English rock group, The Beatles. They recorded their version in 1963 and released it the following year in the US. Paul McCartney recalled being introduced to the song by a mutual acquaintance they had with Peggy Lee, who released the song in 1961. McCartney stated “I had no idea until much later that it was from The Music Man.” The rock group played Till There Was You, along with Twist and Shout and She Loves You at a 1963 Royal Command Performance.
The group sang the song as part of their set on their first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show in February 1964.
In 2003, a TV version of The Music Man was made featuring Matthew Broderick and Kristen Chenoweth.
This is a love song that speaks to many people on numerous levels. One comment I found on the song said “It is a love song obviously but it says much more than the common oh I love you songs. It gives a meaning to what love really is and means. “ and another commentator stated, “I take it as being a song that describes the essence of what love really is, something that makes everything seem brighter all over.”