Some country songs enjoy a brief time as a country music hit before making way for a new song. And some country songs are so good, we want to listen to them again and again.
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These three country songs came out in 1976. But they are so good, they deserve to be remade again today.
“Somebody Somewhere (Don’t Know What He’s Missin’
Tonight)” by Loretta Lynn
“Somebody Somewhere (Don’t Know What He’s Missin’ Tonight)” became a two-week No. 1 hit for Lynn. Written by Lola Jean Dillon, the song is on Lynn’s Somebody Somewhere record.
The song says, “Somebody, somewhere don’t know what he’s missin’ tonight / Lord, here sits a woman, just lonesome enough to be right / For love ’em and leave ’em, how I need someone to hold tight / Somebody, somewhere don’t know what he’s missin’ tonight.”
According to Classic Country Music Stories, Dillon was answering phones at songwriter Harlan Howard’s publishing company. Already having moderate success as a songwriter, but not enough to pay her bills, she called her friend, who was a secretary for producer Owen Bradley. Lynn happened to be there and spoke to Dillon, agreeing to listen to her music. The first Dillon song Lynn recorded is “When A Tingle Becomes A Chill”, out in 1975. Dillon is also a writer on “Playing With Fire” from Somebody Somewhere.
“Thinkin’ Of A Rendezvous” by Johnny Duncan
“Thinkin’ Of A Rendezvous” is Johnny Duncan’s 25th single, and his first No. 1 hit. Sung with Janie Fricke, the song is on Duncan’s self-titled sixth studio album.
A song about rekindling a relationhip, albeit for a brief period of time, “Thinkin’ Of A Rendezvous” says, “But I was thinking how I’d love to get you alone for one hour / Down at the Family Inn like we used to do / We kept talking like nothing ever happened / But I was making small talk, thinking of a rendezvous.”
“Thinkin’ Of A Rendezvous” was the beginning of a winning streak for Duncan. He followed the song with hits like “It Couldn’t Have Been Any Better” and “She Can Put Her Shoes Under My Bed (Anytime)”, which both also became chart-topping singles for Duncan.
“You And Me” by Tammy Wynette
“You And Me” is Tammy Wynette’s second No. 1 single to come out in 1976. The title track of Wynette’s 16th studio album, the song follows “‘Til I Can Make It On My Own”, which also hit No. 1.
Written by Billy Sherrill and George Richey, “You And Me” is about being with someone, but wishing they were somebody else. “You And Me” says, “When he touches me, I feel your fingers / And each time we kiss, I see your face / When he locks the door behind us / Then he thinks the world can’t find us / But he can’t see, no he can’t see / That it should be you and me.”
Interestingly, Wynette was newly divorced from George Jones when she recorded “You And Me”. Richey later revealed he was thinking about Wynette when he wrote “You And Me”. In 1978, Wynette married Richey. They were still married when she died in 1998.
Photo by American Broadcasting Companies via Getty Images
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