Doris Day six of her movie musicals charted in the Top 10, three of them at No. 1. After filming "Lucky Me" with Bob Cummings and "Young at Heart" (both 1954) with Frank Sinatra, Day chose not to renew her contract with Warner Brothers. During this period, Day also had her own radio program, "The Doris Day Show". It was broadcast on CBS in 1952–1953. Having become primarily recognized as a musical-comedy actress, Day gradually took on more dramatic roles to broaden her range. Her dramatic star-turn as singer Ruth Etting in "Love Me or Leave Me" (1955), co-starring James Cagney, received
Love Me or Leave Me (Donaldson and Kahn song) was released 1955 by HMV Records as catalog number B-309 (78rpm) and 7M-309 (45rpm). Both releases were with the flip side "I Love To Love". Singer/pianist/songwriter Nina Simone also recorded the song on her debut album "Little Girl Blue" (1958) and "Let It All Out" (1966). The version was released as a single in 1959 by Bethlehem Records as catalog number 11021 and by Australian Parlophone Records as catalog number A-8008, with the flip side "I Loves You Porgy". It also shows Simone's seldom-heard side as a Classical pianist when she played a solo in the style of J.S. Bach's