Released October 18, 2005
Produced by Martina McBride
Album photography by Andrew Eccles
1. You Win Again
2. I’ll Be There (If You Ever Want Me)
3. I Can’t Stop Loving You
4. Rose Garden
5. Today I Started Loving You Again
6. You Ain’t Woman Enough
7. Once A Day
8. Pick Me Up On Your Way Down
9. I Don’t Hurt Anymore
10. True Love Ways
11. Til I Can Make It On My Own
12. I Still Miss Someone
13. Heartaches By The Number
14. Satin Sheets
15. Thanks A Lot
16. Love’s Gonna Live Here
17. Make The World Go Away
18. Help Me Make It Through the Night
19.Let It Be Me (Studio Version)**
19. Dreaming My Dreams*
20. Cryin' Time*
21. Walk On By*
22. Take These Chains From My Heart*
**Bonus track, available with preorder at America Online only
* Bonus tracks, available with purchase at Target stores only
Limited Edition, The Making Of Timeless, DVD available with purchase at Wal-Mart stores only
Album recorded at Blackbird Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
The Album
"Every time I hear this music, it feels like coming home. What I love about these songs is that they are like conversations. These lyrics are so simple yet so eloquent. It’s just honest. I have a comfort level with this music and a respect for it that is deep.
It was just a joyful process. I wanted only musicians who had the same kind
of desire to do this record as I had. I wanted people who were excited about
recreating this music and who would understand how to give it the
authenticity I wanted. I wasn't interested in doing a 2005 version. I wanted
to get the feel of the original recording. I have to say, the musicianship
on this record is some of the finest I have ever heard.
I’ve always wanted to make a traditional country album and I’d say that every time I’d start a record. Then I’d gather songs that always kind of led me in another direction. But it has always been in my heart to do a record like this.
I went to Joe Galente, the head of my record company, I said, ‘I kind of have a crazy idea. I want to do a whole album of classic country music.’ He said, ‘I think that’s a great idea, I think you should do it,’ and from then on we where off and running.
I wasn’t thinking of the ‘business’ of country music when I made this album. I made Timeless for the love of the music and for the experience of singing these songs. Obviously, I hope people like it. But for me the bottom line was just trying to pay tribute to these songs and give them the respect they deserve. We all have projects that we want to do someday, and I thought ‘Why wait until someday?' If it's commercially successful, great. If it isn't, well.
Choosing the songs for this album was an interesting process. I had several songs that I have just always wanted to sing for it, that had special meaning for me because I had always heard them when I was a kid or I had grownup singing them or I grew up hearing my dad singing them. Then the rest of it, we just kind of sat around and said ‘what about this song, what about that song.’ Everybody kind of chipped in and shared. It was just a joyful process.
With this music, I felt that the only way to do it was to sing it live with a real ensemble. l wanted it to sound authentic. The studio has an amazing collection of vintage microphones, guitars, amps and gear we were able to use. All the microphones were the same kind of mics they would have used on the original recordings with most of them being from the 1930s and 40s.
This is music that I grew up loving and have been listening to my whole life. Still, when you actually get behind a microphone and sing them, you do find it striking just how amazing they are. There's this wonderful simplicity. They're only 2½ minutes long, and yet they say everything that needs to be said.
Paul Worley taught me everything I know about making records. He's a mentor
to me in the truest sense of the word. I felt like it was time to make a
record on my own. It was time to graduate.
This record really is not about me. It’s about this music. I want everybody
who hears it to go, ‘Wow, what great songs.’ I think there will be a lot of
people who have fond memories of these songs and also many people who will
be hearing them for the first time. It’s exciting to think that it may
inspire someone to go back and listen to the originals and discover how
wonderful traditional country music is." Martina McBride
"Martina really loves a lot of songs from the 50’s and 60’s. These are songs her dad sung to her when she was a little girl and those are the ones that seem to be the most important to her.
It’s music she grew up with, it’s music that’s you know apart of her, that’s very much in her heart. She’s having more fun making this record than she’s ever had making an album in her life.
Martina told me months ago – ‘I don't care if this record sells 25 copies, it truly is the album I have always wanted to make’. Truer words were never spoken, and as things turn out, the record is receiving wonderful reviews and people seem to love it. I can tell you what makes me the happiest about this record - when I turn it over and read ‘Produced by Martina McBride’! She really poured her heart and soul into this album, and I think it came out beautifully. Her love and respect for the classics is so obvious when you hear her sing these songs…l. She has been working hard to get the word out and is much tougher than I will ever be - the early morning interviews, the travel, the incredible performances she has given over the last month and the one's yet to come. She never ceases to amaze me! …
Another thing that I love about "Timeless" is that so many young fans will
be exposed to music that they have never before heard. A friend of
Delaney's, who is 11, told her: ‘I hate country music, but my mom and dad
bought this record and I love every song’! Now THAT is what I'm talking
about. When Martina sings a great song, it is a special experience. And
these songs are great. I feel she has truly captured the ART of country
music - by staying close to the original versions, by phrasing her vocals
like the originals, by making sure the musicians stayed true to the original
songs. I only wish people could have seen the work she put into this record.
One example - when she listened to the original of "I Don't Hurt Anymore"
she realized the fiddle solo was different than the original, even though it
was a fine solo. But she called Stuart Duncan and asked him to come back in
and re-record the solo and showed him what she wanted him to play, which
sounded much more like the original. I could name twenty other examples of
this, but I don't want to bore you. All I can say is she is a class act all
the way, she has her priorities straight, and she is a shining example of
how great things can be when you work hard and have talent coming out of
your ears!" John McBride
"Martina's love and understanding of country music is part of every word she sings on this album. There is no doubt in my mind that the writers of these timeless songs would agree that they have been given an equally timeless voice." Joe Galante
"The silence of the falling star, the sound of a lonesome whippoorwill, a purple sky, the cry of a train … the beat of your heart against a gentle Southern breeze are all but signs of assurance that you are at one with the heart of country music; and at the heart of country music, I feel God." Marty Stuart
"This is the record that we set out to make 13 or 14 years ago. When we made Martina’s first album she was going around town saying I’m gonna be a traditional artist. ….. There’s no way she could have sung these songs the way she’s singing them now 15 years ago she hadn’t had the life experience to really understand what these songs mean.
Martina’s in a wonderful place in her career, she’s reached the top. And wisely this time around, her thought process was, 'It’s time for me to make some music that just comes from my soul.'
… This music is, both sonically and artistically, the antidote to the
hectic, over-produced life that so many of us live. … These great, timeless
songs have not been so pristinely produced, and so exquisitely sung, in
decades." Paul Worley
Engineer: John McBride
Guitar: Marty Schiff
Guitar: Paul Worley
Guitar: Steve Gibson
Steel Guitar: Pail Franklin
Drums: Eddie Bayers
Acoustic Bass: Larry Paxton
Bass: Glenn Worf
Piano: Gordon Mote
Fiddle: Stuart Duncan
Written by Hank Williams and Fred Rose
The news is out all over town
That you've been seen out runnin' around
I know that I should leave
But then I just can't go you win again
This heart of mine could never
See what everybody knew but me
Just trusting you was my great sin
What can I do you win again
I'm sorry for your victim now
Cause soon his head like mine will bow
He'll give his heart but all in vain
And someday say you win again
You have no heart you got no shame
You take true love and give the blame
I guess that I should not complain
I love you still you win again
I love you still you win again
"When you think about the short period of time he was with us and the amount of music that he wrote in that time, it’s astonishing. And he wrote with such honesty and passion. The thing is, when you’re singing a classic Hank Williams song, you’re just telling a story. There’s so much beauty in his simplicity." Martina McBride
Hank Williams originally wrote it as “I Lose Again.” But when Fred Rose did his usual polishing job on the lyrics, he suggested the turn-about, “You Win Again.” Considered to be one of Hank’s most masterfully terse lyrics, it contains lines like, “You have no heart, you have no shame/You take true love and give the blame.” Like so much of what he wrote, the song seems autobiographical. He recorded it the day after his divorce from his muse, Audrey.
Previous Chart Rank:
#10 in 1952
for Hank Williams
#4 in 1958 for Jerry Lee Lewis
#1 in 1980 for Charley Pride
Previous Awards:
Country Music Hall of Fame 1961
for Hank Williams
Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame 1987 for Hank Williams
Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame 1986 for Jerry Lee Lewis
I’ll Be There (If You Ever
Want Me)
Written by Ray Price and Rusty Gabbard
There ain't no chains strong enough to hold
me
Ain't no breeze big enough to slow me
I never have seen a river that's too wide
There ain't no jail tight enough to lock me
Ain't no man big enough to stop me
I'll be there
if you ever
want me by your side.
So love me, if you're ever gonna love me
I never have seen a road too rough to ride
There ain't no chains strong enough to hold
me
Ain't no breeze big enough to slow me
I'll be there
if you ever
want me by your side.
There ain't no rope stout enough to bind me
Look for me, honey, you will find me
Any old time you're ready with your charms
I'll be there
ready and a-waitin'
There won't be
any hesitatin'
I'll be here if you
ever want me
in your arms.
So love me, if you're ever gonna love me
I never have seen a road too rough to ride
There ain't no chains strong enough to hold
me
Ain't no breeze big enough to slow me
I'll be there
if you ever
want me by your side.
I'll be there
if you ever
want me by your side.
"To be honest, I didn’t even know this was a Ray Price song. I have a 78rpm of my dad singing it when he was probably 15 years old. He won a contest and the prize was making a record at a recording studio somewhere in Kansas. When we were kids, my grandma would pull out this record if we begged enough (she didn’t want to scratch it!) and she would play it for us. It was always a treat. This is one of the first things we cut. It turned out to be such a fun cut." Martina McBride
Ray Price co-wrote this with Rusty Gabbard, and had a major hit with it in 1954 (with “Release Me” as its B-side). He recorded it with his ex-roommate Hank Williams’ Drifting Cowboys band, now renamed The Cherokee Cowboys. Johnny Bush revived “I’ll Be There (If You Ever Want Me)” in 1972. Then Gail Davies brought it back into the top-10 in 1981, which is how it entered the female country repertoire. Gail’s family had Ray’s original recording in their collection of 78 rpm. hillbilly discs, so she’d known it since childhood.
Previous Chart Rank:
#2 in 1954 for
Ray Price
#4 in 1981 for Gail Davies
Previous Awards:
Country Music Hall of Fame 1996 for Ray Price
Written by Don Gibson
I can’t stop loving you
So I’ve made up my mind
To live in memory
Of such an old lonesome time
I can’t stop wanting you
It’s useless to say
So I’ll just live my life
In dreams of yesterday.
Those happy hours
That we once knew
Though long ago,
They still make me blue
They say that time
Heals a broken heart
But time has stood still
Since we’ve been apart
"So many people have sung ‘I Can’t Stop Loving You.’ I listened to a lot of different versions, just for a point of reference. The funny thing is, you think that if you ever get the chance to sing ‘I Can’t Stop Loving You’ that you’ll just innately know how you’re going to do it. Having the opportunity to finally walk in and be able to sing that song was such a release for me. I just opened my mouth and let it fall out naturally. I did have the Ray Charles version in the back of my head. That’s why we went for that sound with the backup vocalists." Martina McBride
The story goes that Don Gibson wrote both this and his classic “Oh Lonesome Me” on the same day in his trailer in East Tennessee. “I Can’t Stop Loving You” is one of country’s most recorded ballads. In addition to Hall of Famer Don, it has been put on disc by Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, The Ventures, Count Basie, Paul Anka, Peggy Lee, Duke Ellington, Connie Francis, Millie Jackson, Tina Turner, Engelbert Humperdinck, Tom Jones, The Mills Brothers, Rick Nelson, Jim Nabors, the 101 Strings, Roy Orbison, Dinah Shore, Gene Pitney, Diane Schuur, Nancy Wilson, Jerry Vale, Andy Williams and, unforgettably, Ray Charles, not to mention just about every country singer there is. “I Can’t Stop Loving You” has been a country hit for Kitty Wells (1958), Conway Twitty (1972), Sammi Smith (1977) and Mary K. Miller (1978), as well as its composer.
Previous Chart Rank:
#7 in 1958 for
Don Gibson
#3 in 1958 for Kitty Wells
#1 in 1962 for Ray Charles
#1 in 1972 for Conway Twitty
Previous Awards:
Country Music Hall of Fame 2001
for Don Gibson
Country Music Hall of Fame 1976 for Kitty Wells
Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame 1986 for Ray Charles
Country Music Hall of Fame 1999 for Conway Twitty
Written by Joe South
Background Vocals: The Jordanaires
I beg your pardon,
I never promised you a rose garden.
Along with the sunshine,
There's gotta be a little rain sometimes.
When you take, you gotta give, so live and let live,
Or let go.
I beg your pardon,
I never promised you a rose garden.
I could promise you things like big diamond rings,
But you don't find roses growin' on stalks of clover.
So you better think it over.
Well, if sweet-talkin' you could make it come true,
I would give you the world right now on a silver platter,
But what would it matter?
So smile for a while and let's be jolly:
Love shouldn't be so melancholy.
Come along and share the good times while we can.
I beg your pardon,
I never promised you a rose garden.
Along with the sunshine,
There's gotta be a little rain sometimes.
I beg your pardon,
I never promised you a rose garden.
I could sing you a tune or promise you the moon,
But if that's what it takes to hold you,
I'd just as soon let you go, but there's one thing I want you to know.
You better look before you leap, still waters run deep,
And there won't always be someone there to pull you out,
And you know what I'm talkin' about.
So smile for a while and let's be jolly:
Love shouldn't be so melancholy.
Come along and share the good times while we can.
I beg your pardon,
I never promised you a rose garden.
Along with the sunshine,
There's gotta be a little rain sometimes.
"‘Rose Garden’ is one of those songs that is a part of so many people’s memories. It is such a fun song and has such a catchy melody. I was surprised that it hadn’t been remade before this. It’s one of those songs that just makes you feel good and brings a smile to your face." Martina McBride
There was a very popular book in the 1960s about mental illness called I Never Promised You a Rose Garden. Songwriter Joe South used the phrase as the basis for this song, which he included on his Introspect LP. That album contained his pop hits “Games People Play” and “Walk a Mile in My Shoes.” Lynn Anderson bought it and thought its “Rose Garden” would be perfect for her. But her producer nixed the idea because he thought it inappropriate for a woman to be singing, “I could promise you things like big diamond rings.” But one night in 1970 she had 15 minutes of studio time left, so he let her record it. She and the session musicians liked the result so much that they played it in the control room over and over again. It became a Gold-selling pop-crossover smash, propelled her onto The Tonight Show and earned her 1971 CMA Female Vocalist of the Year honors.
Previous Chart Rank:
#1 in 1970 in Lynn Anderson
Previous Awards:
Grammy Award 1970 for Lynn Anderson
Today I Started Loving You Again
Written by Merle Haggard and Bonnie Owens
Today I started loving you again
I'm right back where I've really always been
Got over you just long enough to let my heartache mend
Then today I started loving you again
What a fool I was to think I could get by
With only these few million tears I've cried
I should have known the worst was yet to come
And that crying time for me had just begun
Cause today I started loving you again
I'm right back where I've really always been
I got over you just long enough to let my heartache mend
Then today I started loving you again
"I’ve known this song all my life. I know there are hundreds of versions of it but the only one that I’m really familiar with is the Merle Haggard version. And what a song! It doesn’t get any better than this…a simple, to-the-point lyric and a beautiful melody. It’s an amazing piece of work and there was no question as to whether or not I would include it on this album.
I remember when I met Merle for the first time, he said he was familiar with my music and he said, ‘I think you and I are coming from the same place,’ which I thought was a little odd considering the pop-country I had out at the time. I guess he heard something in my music that let him know what I really come from. It made me feel really good that he said that." Martina McBride
Merle Haggard and his then-wife Bonnie Owens cowrote this and recorded it. But it was not initially a hit. Kenny Rogers issued it as a 1973 single, but it failed to catch fire again. Two years later, Sammi Smith became the first to have a top-10 hit with “Today I Started Loving You Again.” It subsequently became a country standard with versions by dozens of stars, including Dolly, Willie, Emmylou, Waylon and Conway, and most recently, Dwight Yoakam and Buddy Jewell. The song also entered the r&b repertoire via renditions by Bobby “Blue” Bland, Ivory Joe Hunter, Arthur Prysock, Percy Sledge, Rufus Thomas and Junior Wells.
Previous Chart Rank:
#9 in 1975 for Sammi Smith
Previous Awards:
Country Music Hall of Fame 1994 for Merle Haggard
Written by Loretta Lynn
You've come to tell me something
You think I ought to know
He don't love me anymore and it's time for me to go
You say you're gonna take him
But I don't believe you can
Cause you ain't woman enough to take my man
Women like you are a dime a dozen
You can buy 'em anywhere
For you to get to him, I'd have to move over
And I'm gonna stand right here.
It'll be over my dead body, so get out while you can.
Cause you ain't woman enough to take my man.
Sometimes a man's caught lookin'
At things that he don't need
He took a second look at you
But he's in love with me
I don't know where that leaves you
But I know where I stand
And you aint woman enough to take my man
Women like you are a dime a dozen
You can buy 'em anywhere
For you to get to him, I'd have to move over
And I'm gonna stand right here.
It'll be over my dead body, so get out while you can.
Cause you ain't woman enough to take my man
Cause you ain't woman enough to take my man.
"I love Loretta Lynn! I’ve sung this a few times, twice when Loretta was in the audience. I just love the confidence and sassiness of this lyric. We stayed very close to the original version."
Loretta Lynn wrote and recorded “You Ain’t Woman Enough” in response to her husband’s philandering ways. Its sass and chin-out attitude made it a major hit in 1966. When Martina McBride was starting out, Loretta made a point of taking her under her wing, and they have remained Grand Ole Opry “sisters.” In 1972, Lynn became the first woman named country’s Entertainer of the Year. She entered the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1988.
Previous Chart Rank:
#2 in 1966 for Loretta Lynn
Previous Awards:
Country Music Hall of Fame 1988 for Loretta Lynn
Written by Bill Anderson
When you found somebody new I
thought I never would
Forget you for I thought then I never could
But time has taken all the pains away until now I'm down to hurtin' once a
day
Once a day all day long and once a night from dusk till dawn
The only time I wish you weren't gone is once a day every day all day long
I'm so glad that I'm not like a girl I knew one time
She lost the one she loved then slowly lost her mind
She sat around and cried her life away oh lucky me I'm only cryin' once a
day
Once a day all day long...
Once a day every day all day long
"Connie Smith is such a great singer. ‘Once A Day’ was the song I chose to pay homage to her since it was her biggest hit. I tried to pay my respects with the way I sang it. I wanted people who heard it to think, ‘That sounds a little like Connie Smith.’ I’ve always loved her voice. She has such a pure tone and I love the way she pronounces her words. I wasn’t aware that Bill Anderson wrote this song! So I got to tip my hat to Bill and Connie!"
Connie Smith became the first woman in country-music history to have a No. 1 hit with her debut single, which was “Once a Day.” She was discovered singing at an Ohio talent contest by its songwriter, Bill Anderson. He urged her to come to Nashville and helped her land a recording contract. Both Connie and Hall of Famer Bill are among Martina’s fellow Grand Ole Opry cast members.
Previous Chart Rank:
#1 in 1964 for Connie Smith
Previous Awards:
Grand Ole Opry
1971 for Connie Smith
Country Music Hall of Fame 2001 for Bill Anderson
Written by Harlan Howard
You were mine for just a while
Now you're puttin' on the style
An you've never once looked back
At your home across the track
You're the gossip of the town
But my heart can still be found
Where you tossed it on the ground
Pick me up on your way down
Pick me up on your way down
When you're blue and all alone
When their glamour starts to bore you
Come on back where you belong
You may be their pride and joy
But they'll find another toy
And they'll take away your crown
Pick me up on your way down
They have changed your attitude
Made you haughty and so rude
Your new friends can take the blame
Underneath you're still the same
When you've learned these things are true
I'll be waiting here for you
As you tumble to the ground
Pick me up on your way down
Pick me up on your way down
When you're blue and all alone
When their glamour starts to bore you
Come on back where you belong
You may be their pride and joy
But they'll find another toy
And they'll take away your crown
Pick me up on your way down
"I’ve always loved ‘Pick Me Up on Your Way Down.’ I love the words, ‘They have changed your attitude/Made you haughty and so rude.’ I love that. It’s just so great. I’ve wanted to put that on every album I’ve ever done. It never fit, of course. But it fits on this one perfectly. I got the chance to spend a little time with Harlan Howard when I first moved to Nashville. What a character. He was a living, breathing country song." Martina McBride
This was Harlan Howard’s first hit as a songwriter. Singer Charlie Walker was a former Texas radio disc jockey. Charlie is one of Martina’s fellow Opry cast members.
Previous Chart Rank:
#2 in 1958 for Charlie Walker
Previous Awards:
Grand Ole Opry 1967 for Charlie Walker
Country Music Hall of Fame 1997 for Harlan Howard
Written by Don Robertson and Jack Rollins
It don't hurt anymore
All my teardrops are dried
No more walkin' the floor
With that burnin' inside
Just to think it could be
Time has opened the door
And at last I am free
I Don't Hurt Anymore.
No use to deny I wanted to die
The day you said we were through
But now that I find you're out of my mind
I can't believe that it's true
I've forgotten somehow
That I cared so before
And it's wonderful now
I Don't Hurt Anymore.
No use to deny I wanted to die
The day you said we were through
But now that I find you're out of my mind
I can't believe that it's true
I've forgotten somehow
That I cared so before
And it's wonderful now
I Don't Hurt Anymore.
"I loved Hank Snow. He was such a stylist. I love his vocal inflections. When I went back and listened to him sing this song I decided I wanted to try and ‘borrow’ certain things like his pronunciation of certain words and some of his tones. This is one of my favorites on the album." Martina McBride
This was cowritten by Don Robertson and Jack Rollins. Robertson was a West Coast piano player who invented the “slip-note” keyboard style that was emulated with much success by Nashville’s Floyd Cramer. “I Don’t Hurt Anymore” became a No. 1 hit for Hank Snow in 1954. Snow was managed by Col. Tom Parker, who brought him Elvis Presley as an opening act shortly afterward, which is probably how the song became one of Elvis’s favorites. Many country stars have recorded this chestnut, including Eddy Arnold, Willie Nelson, Hank Locklin, Hank Thompson, Dottie West, Faron Young and Narvel Felts.
Previous Chart Rank:
#1 in 1954 for Hank Snow
Previous Awards:
Country Music Hall of Fame 1979 for Hank Snow
Written by Buddy Holly
Just you know why
why you and I
will by and by
know true love ways
Sometimes we'll sigh
sometimes we'll cry
but you'll know why
just you and I
know true love ways
Throughout the days
those true love ways
will bring us joys to share
with those who really care
Sometimes we'll sigh
sometimes we'll cry
but you'll know why
just you and I
know true love ways
"My dad was a big Buddy Holly fan so I grew up listening to ‘That’ll Be The Day’ and ‘Peggy Sue.’ ‘True Love Ways’ was not one that I heard a lot as a kid but my husband loves this song and it has such a beautiful melody." Martina McBride
Many consider this to be the best of Buddy Holly’s ballads. It was recorded in October 1958 with a string section in New York, marking a break from his prior sessions in Clovis, NM. It probably reflects the direction his future music would have taken had he not died in the plane crash the following February. “True Love Ways” was never released during Holly’s lifetime, and it wasn’t a hit when it was issued. In 1965, Peter & Gordon became the first to take it up the pop charts. Mickey Gilley turned it into a No. 1 country hit in 1980. Other notable versions are by The Mavericks, Rick Nelson, Bobby Vee and Skeeter Davis, who was the first to record a Buddy Holly tribute LP. The song (and Holly, himself) has always been more popular overseas, with versions by British stars Cliff Richards, The Shadows, Hank Marvin and Elvis Costello.
Previous Chart Rank:
#14 in 1965 for Peter & Gordon
#1 in 1980 for Mickey Gilley
1958 for Buddy Holly
Previous Awards:
Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame 1986 for Buddy Holly
Written by Tammy Wynette, Billy Sherrill and George Richey
I'll need time,
To get you off my mind.
And I may sometimes bother you;
Try to be in touch with you.
Even ask too much of you from time to time.
Now and then,
Lord you know I'll need a friend.
'Til I get used to losing you,
Let me keep on using you.
'Til I can make it on my own.
I'll get by,
But no matter how I try,
There'll be times you know I'll call.
Chances are my tears will fall,
And I'll have no pride at all, from time to time.
But they say,
Oh, there'll be a brighter day.
But 'til then I'll lean on you,
That's all I mean to do.
'Til I can make it on my own.
Surely someday I'll look up and see the morning sun,
Without another lonely night behind me.
Then I'll know I'm over you and all my crying's done.
No more hurtin' memories can find me.
But 'til then,
Lord, you know I'm gonna need a friend.
'Til I get used to losing you,
Let me keep on using you.
'Til I can make it on my own.
'Til I can make it on my own.
"When I was singing ‘Til I Can Make It On My Own’ in the vocal booth, I could feel Tammy with me. I just felt like I had her blessing. She was always so nice to me and so sweet, and that’s what I felt when I sang this song. It gave me peace about doing it. I just wanted to pay tribute to her." Martina McBride
Tammy Wynette wrote this (with Billy Sherrill and George Richey) in the wake of her divorce from George Jones. It came during a period when she was becoming increasingly confident as a songwriter and learning to stand on her own as an entertainer. She always said it was her favorite among the songs she’d written. Although a No. 1 hit, it was initially overshadowed by “Stand By Your Man,” “D-I-V-O-R-C-E” and other songs in her repertoire. That began to change when Kenny Rogers & Dottie West turned it into a hit duet in 1979. Faith Hill, Billy Gilman and Kate Campbell have since recorded it. Martina first sang it for a 1998 CD titled Tribute to Tradition and that earlier version also appeared on BMG’s Girls Night Out compilation CD in 1999.
Previous Chart Rank:
#1 in 1976 for Tammy Wynette
#3 in 1979 for Kenny Rogers & Dottie West
Previous Awards:
Country Music Hall of Fame 1998 for Tammy Wynette
Written by Johnny Cash
Background Vocals: Dolly Parton
At my door the leaves are falling
A cold wild wind has come
Sweethearts walk by together
And I still miss someone
I go out on a party
And look for a little fun
But I find a darkened corner
because I still miss someone
Oh, no I never got over those blues eyes
I see them every where
I miss those arms that held me
When all the love was there
I wonder if she's sorry
For leavin' what we'd begun
There's someone for me somewhere
And I still miss someone
"This came up as a result of the musicians and me sitting around
throwing out ideas for songs. I wasn’t really attached to any one version of
the song, so we kind of gave it our own twist. This is one of the few on
which we strayed from the original. As I was singing the song I thought how
great Dolly would sound on it. I was thrilled when she agreed to do it.
Watching her sing in the vocal booth was something I’ll never forget. She
sings everything with her heart and soul." Martina McBride
This is considered one of the great, classic Johnny Cash compositions. The melody came from Johnny’s nephew Roy Cash Jr. Johnny penned the striking, spare, heart-touching lyrics. “I Still Miss Someone” made its debut in 1959 on the star’s first Columbia Records LP, The Fabulous Johnny Cash. He also sang it on the landmark Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison LP of 1968. Although loved by millions and recorded by more than 60 artists, “I Still Miss Someone” has never been a hit country single. Dolly Parton sings harmony on Martina’s version of the song.
Previous Chart Rank:
1959 Johnny Cash
Previous Awards:
Country Music Hall of Fame 1980
for Johnny Cash
Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame 1992 for Johnny Cash
Country Music Hall of Fame 1999 for Dolly Parton
Written by Harlan Howard
Background Vocals: Dwight Yoakam
Heartache number 1 was when
you...left me,
I never knew that I could hurt this way,
And heartache number 2,
Was when you...come back again,
You came back and never meant to stay.
Now I've got heartaches by the number,
Troubles by the score,
Every day you love me less,
Each day I love you more,
Yes, I've got heartaches by the number,
A love that I can't win,
But the day that I stop counting,
That's the day my world will end.
Heartache number 3 was when you...called me,
And said that you was coming back to stay,
With hopeful heart I waited,
For your...knock on the door,
I waited but you must have lost your way.
"My dad has sung ‘Heartaches by the Number’ ever since I can remember. That was always part of the set list and he would sing it every Saturday night. So it was exciting for me to be able to put it on this album. Dwight seemed a natural choice for the harmony vocal. He did a great job and added cool character to it." Martina McBride
Ray Price was so impressed with Charlie Walker’s hit “Pick Me Up on Your Way Down” that he tracked down its then-unknown songwriter. Ray telephoned Harlan Howard at the factory that employed him to ask if he had any other songs that good. The thrilled Harlan sent Ray “Heartaches By the Number.” It became Howard’s biggest hit as a songwriter. It topped the country charts for Ray Price and was also a big pop hit for Guy Mitchell. After it was a success in 1959 the future “Mr. Songwriter” quit his California job and moved to Nashville in the summer of 1960.
Previous Chart Rank:
#2 in 1959 for
Ray Price
#1 in 1959 for Guy Mitchell
Previous Awards:
Country Music Hall of Fame 1996 for Ray Price
Country Music Hall of Fame 1997 for Harlan Howard
Written by John Volinkaty
Satin sheets to lie on
Satin pillows to cry on
Still I'm not happy don't you see
Big long Cadillacs, tailor maids upon my back
Still I want you to set me free
I've found another man
Who can give more than you can
Though you've given me everything that money can buy
But your money can't hold me tight
Like he does on a long long night
No, you didn't keep me satisfied
Satin sheets to lie on
Satin pillows to cry on
Still I'm not happy don't you see
Big long Cadillacs, tailor maids upon my back
Still I want you to set me free
Satin sheets to lie on
Satin pillows to cry on
Still I'm not happy don't you see
Big long Cadillacs, tailor maids upon my back
Still I want you to set me free
Satin sheets to lie on
"I tended to shy away from songs that I had sung growing up. I think it’s because I felt like, ‘I’ve already done that.’ This was an exception. I did sing ‘Satin Sheets’ all the time in my dad’s band as a kid, so it is part of my personal history. For this version we tried to stay very close to the original, right down to the background vocal parts." Martina McBride
Minneapolis factory worker John Volinkaty had never written a song before he got the idea for “Satin Sheets” while grocery shopping. He mailed a tape of it to Jeanne Pruett, and she actually listened to the unsolicited song. She polished it, but took no songwriting credit. After she recorded it, the record company told her it was “too country.” So she cut up little squares of satin and promoted it herself by sending them with notes to disc jockeys. The result was a No. 1 hit in 1973. Jeanne is one of Martina’s fellow Opry cast members. Martina sang “Satin Sheets” as one of her numbers as a girl in her family’s country band in Kansas.
Previous Chart Rank:
#1 in 1973 for Jeanne Pruett
Previous Awards:
Grand Ole Opry 1973 for Jeanne Pruett
Written by Ernest Tubb
Thanks, thanks a lot
I got a broken heart that's all I got
You made me cry and I cried a lot
I lost your love, honey, thanks a lot.
You told our friends I was passing by
That you're not sorry that you made me cry
You said I deserved just what I got
Well, if that's how you feel, honey, thanks a lot.
You wanted a fool, and I played the part
Now all I've got is a broken heart
We loved a little and you laughed a lot
Then you were gone, honey, thanks a lot.
"When you listen to Ernest Tubb sing this, it sounds like it hardly has any range at all. He sings it so easily but it actually has quite a wide range. This is one of the songs where you can hear how much fun the band was having in the studio. I like the tongue-in-cheek quality of the lyric. You can tell the break-up hurts, but maybe not that much! It has a sauciness about it that I really like." Martina McBride
Ernest Tubb was one of the founders of the hard-hitting country style that became known as honky-tonk music. The tall Texan ranked among country’s top-10 hit makers in the 1940s and 1950s. In 1963, “Thanks a Lot” became the last of his incredible 58 top-10 hits. Two years later, Tubb was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. A peppy version of “Thanks a Lot” became a pop hit for Brenda Lee in 1965. The song has also been recorded by Johnny Cash, Billy Parker, Ricky Van Shelton and Hank Williams Jr.
Previous Chart Rank:
#3 in 1963 for Ernest Tubb
Previous Awards:
Country Music
Hall of Fame 1965 for Ernest Tubb
Country Music Hall of Fame 1997 for Brenda Lee
Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame 2002 for Brenda Lee
Written by Buck Owens
Oh the sun's gonna shine in my
life once more
Love's gonna live here again
Thing's are gonna be the way they were before
Love's gonna live here again
Love's gonna live here
Love's gonna live here
Love's gonna live here again
No more loneliness
Only happiness
Love's gonna live here again
I hear bells a ringing
I hear birds a singing
Love's gonna live here again
I hear bees a humming
And I know the days a coming
Love's gonna live here again
"When you’re thinking of classic country songs, you can’t help thinking of Buck Owens. This was fun to record. Getting the right feel with the drums, Don Rich’s guitar style - the band did a spectacular job on this. It was fun for me to try and capture Buck’s phrasing and delivery." Martina McBride
This became the biggest hit of Buck Owens’ career, spending 16 weeks at No. 1 in 1963. After he wrote it, he was on the road with singer Bonnie Owens (his ex-wife and the future Mrs. Merle Haggard). He played it for her backstage in Indianapolis, saying that he wasn’t sure if he’d record it or not. She told him that if he didn’t, she would. That convinced him that it was worthy. But when he was driving to Los Angeles to record it as the follow-up to “Act Naturally,” Buck’s manager Jack McFadden told him he didn’t think the song was so hot. The moment the Buckaroos kicked it off in the Capitol studio, Jack knew he’d made a big mistake.
Previous Chart Rank:
#1 in 1963 for Buck Owens
Previous Awards:
Country Music Hall of Fame 1996 for Buck Owens
Written by Hank Cochran
Make the world go away
And take it off my shoulder
Say the things you used to say
And make the world go away
Do you remember when you loved me
And the world took me astray
Well if you do, please forgive me
And make the world go away
Yeah make the world go away
And get it off my shoulder
Say the things you used to say
And make the world go away
I am sorry if I hurt you
I will make it up day by day
Just say you love me like you used to
And make the world go away
Make the world go away
Just take it off my shoulder
Say the things you used to say
And make the world go away
Make the world go away
And take it off my shoulder
Say the things you used to say
And make the world go away
"This was my Grandma’s favorite song and I remember my mom singing this when I was a child. She would be in her bedroom combing her hair and singing this song. She’s actually a great singer but would never sing in front of a crowd. This song brings back good memories for me." Martina McBride
When songwriter Hank Cochran wrote “Make the World Go Away,” his publisher pronounced it “the worst thing you’ve ever written.” But Eddy Arnold’s mellifluous crooning of the ballad in 1965 made it one of the biggest hits of the entire “Nashville Sound” era. Its uptown strings and cushiony backup vocals typified record making on Music Row during the 1960s. Arnold took “Make the World Go Away” to No. 1 on the country charts in 1965, and the song “crossed over” to become a top-10 pop hit as well. As a result of his career resurgence, Eddy Arnold was named country’s Entertainer of the Year for 1967, a year after he’d been inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
Previous Chart Rank:
#2 in 1963 for
Ray Price
#1 in 1965 for Eddy Arnold
Previous Awards:
Country Music Hall of Fame 1966 for Eddy Arnold
Help Me Make It Through the
Night
Written by Kris Kristofferson
Take the ribbon from your hair,
Shake it loose and let it fall,
Layin' soft upon my skin.
Like the shadows on the wall.
Come and lay down by my side
'till the early morning light
All I'm takin' is your time.
Help me make it through the night.
I don't care what's right or wrong,
I don't try to understand.
Let the devil take tomorrow.
Lord, tonight I need a friend.
Yesterday is dead and gone
And tomorrow's out of sight.
And it's sad to be alone.
Help me make it through the night.
I don't care what's right or wrong,
I don't try to understand.
Let the devil take tomorrow.
Lord, tonight I need a friend.
Yesterday is dead and gone
And tomorrow's out of sight.
Lord, it's bad to be alone.
Help me make it through the night.
"I wanted this song to be a conversation between two people in a dark room. Quiet, tender, vulnerable. I consciously didn’t belt this one out. I really wanted it to feel intimate. I kept sending musicians out of the cutting room until we had pared it down to just two acoustic guitars, an organ, bass, and a steel guitar. I absolutely love it when the steel guitar comes in on the solo. This is my favorite vocal of the record, I think. It is the live vocal that went down as we were tracking the song. I didn’t even try to re-sing it. I just thought it had lots of emotion." Martina McBride
Kris Kristofferson’s frank sensuality and poetic lyric style revolutionized country songwriting. The sexual yearning in Sammi Smith’s performance was considered somewhat shocking in 1971, particularly since the song was originally written from the male point of view. But it won her a Grammy Award and a CMA Single of the Year statuette. Sammi’s record was also a top-10 pop success.
Previous Chart Rank:
#1 in 1971 for Sammi Smith
#4 in 1980 for Willie
Nelson
Previous Awards:
Country Music Hall of Fame 2004
for Kris Kristofferson
Grammy Award 1971
for Sammi Smith
Country Music Hall
of Fame 1993 for
Willie Nelson
I bless the day I found you
I want to stay around you
And so I beg you, let it be me
Don't take this heaven from one
If you must cling to someone
Now and forever, let it be me
Each time we meet love
I find complete love
Without your sweet love what would life be
So never leave me lonely
Tell me you love me only
And that you'll always let it be me
Each time we meet love
I find complete love
Without your sweet love what would life be
So never leave me lonely
Tell me you love me only
And that you'll always let it be me
Originally written in French, it was discovered by Chet Atkins, who recorded it as an instrumental. Chet and The Everly Brothers were lifelong friends, so the duo always listened to the guitarist’s records. When the brothers found out that the song had English-language lyrics that were so beautiful, they were thrilled. It is one of the few songs they recorded in New York, instead of Nashville. Their publisher/manager Wesley Rose hated it, probably because it wasn’t a song he owned. “Let It Be Me” was later also a big hit for Willie Nelson (1982) and the duet teams of Glen Campbell & Bobbie Gentry (1969) and Betty Everett & Jerry Butler (1964).
"This is such a pretty song. It was nice to sing this with just a piano. I
hadn’t considered this song until Steve Gibson started playing it on the
guitar and I was reminded of just how beautiful this melody is." Martina
McBride
Previous Chart Rank:
#7 in 1960 for The Everly Brothers
#5 in 1964 for Betty Everett & Jerry Butler
#2 in 1982 for Willie Nelson
Previous Awards:
Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame 1986 for The Everly Brothers
Country Music Hall of Fame 2001 for The Everly Brothers
Country Music Hall of Fame 1993 for Willie Nelson
I hope that I won't be that wrong anymore,
And maybe I've learned this time.
I hope that I find what I'm reaching for,
The way that it is in my mind.
Someday I'll get over you.
I'll live to see it all through.
But I'll always miss,
Dreaming my dreams with you.
But I won't let it change me,
Not if I can.
I'd rather believe in love.
And give it away as much as I can,
To those that I'm fondest of.
Someday I'll get over you.
I'll live to see it all through.
But I'll always miss,
Dreaming my dreams with you.
Someday I'll get over you.
I'll live to see it all through.
But I'll always miss,
Dreaming my dreams with you.
Written by Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame members Allen Reynolds and Bob
McDill, this was the title tune for one of the greatest Waylon Jennings
albums of all time. Waylon’s magical, prayer-at-twilight performance was
captured in one take by producer Jack Clement. The album was Waylon’s
favorite of his career. It was also his first solo Gold Record. He was
elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2001.
"This lyric is great. When I hear it, I think of two people who have shared
so much, but obviously need to be apart. The one person is left still
searching. The song is so tender. This song was Paul Worley’s suggestion. I
was glad we recorded a Waylon song. He was my dad’s idol and so, so sweet to
me whenever I saw him. I got to open a few shows for him. What a voice. And
such a presence." Martina McBride
Previous Chart Rank:
#10 in 1975 for Waylon
Jennings
Previous Awards:
Country Music Hall of Fame 2001 for Waylon Jennings
Written by Buck Owens
Buck Owens wrote it, but didn’t think it was a hit so he buried it on the B-side of “I’ve Got a Tiger by the Tail” in 1965. It wasn’t until Ray Charles released it as a single later that year that it became a standard. Despite its fame, “Crying Time” has never been a country hit.
"I recorded ‘Together Again’ about a year ago. Buck Owns heard it and sent
me this amazing letter. It said, ‘My Together Again is now your Together
Again.’ The letter also said ‘Give me a call.’ I said to my husband, ‘I
can’t just call Buck Owens up on the phone! I won’t know what to say.’ But I
made the call and we had the loveliest conversation for about 30 minutes.
The entire time I was thinking, ‘I wish I had this on tape!’ I was writing
down stuff that he was saying. I told him about this project and that I was
going to record ‘Crying Time’ and ‘Love’s Gonna Live Here.’ Hearing how
happy he was with my version of his song meant so much to me. ‘Crying Time’
has always been one of my very favorite country records." Martina McBride
Previous Chart Rank:
#6 in 1966 for Ray Charles
Previous Awards:
Country Music Hall of Fame 1996 for Buck Owens
Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame 1986 for Ray Charles
If I see you tomorrow on some street in town
Pardon me if I don't say hello (hello)
I be long to an other, it wouldn't look so good
To know someone I'm not supposed to know.
Chorus
Just walk on by, wait on the corner
I love you, but we're strangers when we meet
Just walk on by, wait on the corner
I love you, but we're strangers when we meet.
In a dimly lit corner in a place outside of town
Tonight we'll try to say goodbye again (goodbye)
But I know it's not over, I'll call tomorrow night
I can't let you go, so why pretend.
Chorus
In 1994 “Walk On By” was
selected as the No. 1 country hit of all time by Billboard magazine in its
100th-anniversary issue (11/1/94). The selection was based on sales, radio
airplay and the length of time spent on the charts. Leroy Van Dyke’s 1961
recording of the song remained at No. 1 for 19 consecutive weeks, nearly
five months.
"I took my parent’s opinions into consideration when I was choosing songs
for this album. Growing up hearing my dad sing was my first example of
country music so I called and asked his opinions on certain songs. This is
one that he said he liked when I suggested it. I remember this record from
my childhood." Martina McBride
Previous Chart Rank:
#1 in 1961 for Leroy Van Dyke
Take These Chains From My Heart
Written by Hy Heath and Fred Rose
Take these chains from my heart and set me free
You`re grow cold and no longer care for me
All my faith in you is gone but the heartaches linger on
Take these chains from my heart and set me free
Take these tears from my eyes and let me see
Just a spark of the love that use to be
If you love somebody new let me me find a new love too
Take these chains from my heart and set me free
Give my heart just a word of sympathy
Be as fair to my heart as you can be
Then if you no longer care for the love being there
Take these chains from my heart and set me free
Take these chains from my heart and set me free
You're grow cold and no longer care for me
All my faith in you is gone but the heartaches linger on
Take these chains from my heart and set me free
Hank Williams was in his final downward spiral when he recorded this in September 1952. He’d been fired from the Opry. He was already arguing with his new bride, Billie Jean. He wasn’t writing much anymore. His substance abuse was escalating. Fred Rose wrote “Take These Chains From My Heart” for him (with Hy Heath). It turned out to be the last song Hank ever recorded. He died December 31, 1952 or Jan. 1, 1953. Five months later, this became his final No. 1 record. It was memorably revived by Ray Charles in 1963.
"Hank Williams was such a phenomenon. I don’t think I have the words to
describe his amazing talent. It was hard to choose which Hank Williams songs
to put on this album because there are so many great ones. I chose this one
because it brought back memories of growing up and hearing my Dad sing this
with just his flat-top guitar." Martina McBride
Previous Chart Rank:
#1 in 1953 for Hank Williams
#8 in 1963 for Ray Charles
Previous Awards:
Country Music Hall of Fame 1961 for Hank Williams
Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame 1987 for Hank Williams
Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame 1986 for Ray Charles
