On This Day in 1958, Marty Robbins Topped the Country Charts With a Song That Proved His Storyteller Bona Fides

In one of the final interviews before his death in 2003, Johnny Cash declared, “There’s no greater country singer than Marty Robbins.” Quite a bold statement from the Man in Black, but Robbins lived up to it, landing 17 No. 1 singles throughout his nearly four-decade career. But the Glendale, Arizona-born artist also had a knack for storytelling, which he displayed in his 1957 song “The Story of My Life.” On this day (Jan. 25) in 1958, “The Story of My Life” reached No. 1 on the country music charts.

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Marty Robbins Enjoyed Crossover Success With This Song

Penned by two songwriting greats—Burt Bacharach and Hal David—our narrator of “The Story of My Life” speaks of a love lost and rekindled: I’ve got to take you for my wife / So the story of my life can start and end with you / The sorrow when our love was breaking up / The memory of a broken heart / Then later on the joy of making up / Never, never more to part.

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Remembering Martin David Robinson (September 26, 1925 – December 8, 1982), known professionally as Marty Robbins, was an American singer, songwriter, actor, multi-instrumentalist, and NASCAR racing driver. Robbins was one of the most popular and successful country and western singers for most of his nearly four-decade career, which spanned from the late 1940s to the early 1980s. Born in Glendale, Arizona, Robbins taught himself guitar while serving in the United States Navy during World War II, and subsequently drew fame performing in clubs in and around his hometown. In 1956, he released his first No. 1 country song, “Singing the Blues” and one year later, released two more No. 1 hits, “A White Sport Coat” and “The Story of My Life”. In 1959, Robbins released his signature song, “El Paso”, for which he won the Grammy Award for Best Country & Western Recording. Later releases that drew critical acclaim include “Don’t Worry”, “Big Iron” and “Honkytonk Man”, the last for which the 1982 Clint Eastwood film is named, and in which Robbins made his final appearance before death. Over the course of his career, Robbins recorded more than 500 songs and 60 albums, and won two Grammy Awards, was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, and was named the 1960s Artist of the Decade by the Academy of Country Music. Robbins was a commercial success in both the country and pop genres, and his songs were covered by many other famous artists, including Johnny Cash, the Grateful Dead and Elvis Presley. His music continues to have an influence in pop culture today, having recently appeared in several contemporary pop culture features, including the video game Fallout: New Vegas, and the series finale of AMC’s Breaking Bad. (Wiki) #MartyRobbins #countrymusic #dimestoreradio

♬ original sound – Dime Store Radio

Marty Robbins cut the song in 1957 for his compilation album Marty’s Greatest Hits. It ascended to the top of Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, where it remained for four weeks.

Notably, “The Story of My Life” wasn’t only a hit among country listeners. It also reached No. 15 on the pop charts and found substantial success Down Under, reaching No. 2 on the Australian singles chart.

[RELATED: On This Day in 1982, We Lost the Legendary Singer, Multi-Instrumentalist, and NASCAR Driver Behind Some of Country’s Most Enduring Ballads]

Other Versions of “The Story of My Life”

Just a few months after Marty Robbins’ recording, English singer Michael Holliday put his own spin on “The Story of My Life.” While Holliday apparently wasn’t happy with the end result, UK listeners disagreed, giving the pop singer his first No. 1 hit. Interestingly, the song replaced Perry Como’s “Magic Moments,” also written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. This made the duo the first songwriters ever to score back-to-back chart-toppers in the United Kingdom.

In particular, Bacharach would go on an impressive run in the ’50s and ’60s, penning hits including “This Guy’s in Love with You” (1968), “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head” (1969), “(They Long to Be) Close to You” (1970), “Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do)” (1981), and “That’s What Friends Are For” (1986).

Connie Francis, Gary Miller, and Alma Cogan are among other artists to cover “The Story of My Life.”

Featured image by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images