Artist: Kitty Wells
Album: (1956) Kitty Wells' Country Hit Parade
Song: "Making Believe" (written by Jimmy Work)
1955 Decca Records originally released as a Single





Singer-songwriter Work released the song as a single in February 1955 on Dot Records, climbing to #5 on Billboard's country music jukebox charts. A month later, country music queen Kitty Wells released the song as well as a single which hit #2 on the country charts and remained there an astonishing 15 weeks, still a record for a song in the runner-up position on the country Billboard charts. The song was blocked to #1 by the 21-weeks long "In the Jailhouse Now" by Webb Pierce.

The song is a melancholy ballad about not getting over a former lover. The singer daydreams that they are still loved by the old flame even while fully knowing "you'll never be mine" again. The song was a perfect match for Kitty Wells' legendary wistful vocal style.

Record companies were reluctant to issue albums by country's female artists until Wells proved that women could sell. She became the first female country singer to issue an LP, starting with 1956's Kitty Wells' Country Hit Parade, which consisted of her biggest hits.

...and then there's Mike Ness' version with Social Distortion. I was fortunate enough to see this live back when it was released on their Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell tour back in tha' day (1992). Good times!

Artist: Social Distortion
Album: Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell
Track: "Making Believe"
February 11, 1992 Epic Records