"At Last" is a song written by Mack Gordon and Harry Warren for the musical film Sun Valley Serenade (1941). Glenn Miller and his orchestra recorded the tune several times, with a 1942 version reaching number two on the US Billboard pop music chart.[1]

In 1960, rhythm and blues singer Etta James recorded an arrangement by Riley Hampton that improvised on Warren's melody. James' version was the title track on her debut album At Last! (1960) and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999.[2] Celine Dion and Beyoncé also had chart successes with the song.

In 2012, Christina Aguilera was invited by Etta James' family to sing "At Last" at James' funeral.[12] At the funeral, Aguilera stated that James was her idol and inspiration, and that in honor of James, she performs "At Last" at every concert.
After one of James' other singles, "Something's Got a Hold on Me", was sampled in two hit singles in 2011 (Avicii's "Levels" and Flo Rida's "Good Feeling"),[17] "At Last" charted in the United Kingdom for the first time at number 69. Following James' death in 2012, it rose into the top 40"At Last" was covered by Celine Dion and included on her sixth English-language album A New Day Has Come (2002). Her version was produced by Humberto Gatica and Guy Roche, and released as a promotional single in the US on December 9, 2002. However, there was no music video made for the song. It was also the last single released from the album.

While commenting about the song, Dion revealed, "I can see beginning my show and looking into everyone's eyes and singing this song. This is my hello."[27] The song is a soul soliloquy where Dion, accompanied by the delicate chords of a violin, sings about the joy of love found "at last".[28]

"At Last" peaked at number 16 on the Adult Contemporary chart. A live version of this song was included on the A New Day... Live in Las Vegas album in 2004, as Dion performed it for four years during her A New Day... show in Las Vegas. She has performed the song on several television programs."At Last" was also covered by Beyoncé and included on the soundtrack album of the film Cadillac Records (2008).[34] It was released on the soundtrack album on December 2, 2008 through Columbia Records.[34] In the film, Beyoncé portrays Etta James. Beyoncé won critical acclaim for portraying James in Cadillac Records and has performed "At Last" several times since the movie was released, including in front of James.[35] She told MTV News: "[Etta James is] one of my heroes, and I always loved her voice, but now knowing what she's been through, she's one of my heroes. I'm not sure if she thought [I would be good] as her. I'm very, very nervous ... I actually spoke with her and she told me, 'I loved you from the first time you sung.'"[36] Beyoncé later told Billboard: "I realized that Etta James was so unapologetic, bold and strong that playing her was a big risk for me. It gave me the confidence and the push to challenge myself a little more with my m