"Memory" is a show tune composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with lyrics by Trevor Nunn based on poems by T. S. Eliot.
It was written for the 1981 musical Cats, where it is sung primarily by the character Grizabella as a melancholic remembrance of her glamorous past and as a plea for acceptance.
"[1] Elaine Paige originated the role of Grizabella in the West End production of Cats and was thus the first to perform the song publicly on stage.
[5][6] Melodic fragments of "Memory" are then sung twice in a higher D major key by Jemima (also known as Sillabub), a young cat who is sympathetic to Grizabella's plight.
As Grizabella returns near the end of the musical, she sings the full version of the song as she pleads for acceptance, with Jemima joining in briefly to urge her on.
[10] Lloyd Webber's former writing partners Don Black[11] and Tim Rice had also each submitted a lyric to the show's producers for consideration, although Nunn's version was favoured.
In the stage version, a section of the song is sung an octave higher by the kitten Jemima; the reasoning was that the low pitch (as sung by Grizabella in the single) would be difficult to hear in the live theatre setting and moreover, this duet would allow for a visual contrast between the innocent young kitten and the fallen Grizabella in the stage show.
Before she was able to do so, the following morning he rang her to ask whether she would, at short notice, replace the injured Judi Dench as Grizabella in the London production of Cats.
[14] Elaine Paige, who originated the role of Grizabella in the West End production of Cats, released a version of the song that was a Top 10 hit in the UK, peaking at No.
Paige sang it for the recording of This is Your Life (1994) focused on the composer, and the BBC's concert for his 60th birthday in Hyde Park, London, which was filmed but, as of 2024, has never been broadcast.