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Posted on 08/07/2025 5:14:23 PM PDT by nickcarraway
The Hank Cochran and Harlan Howard composition is a country classic, but it certainly wasn’t an instant hit.
No one would argue that the Patsy Cline song “I Fall To Pieces” is anything but a country classic. But an instant hit? It certainly wasn’t one of those. On August 7, 1961, the song written by the prolific writers Hank Cochran and Harlan Howard climbed to the top of the Billboard country chart — six months after it was released, and nine after it was recorded on November 16 the year before.
In the 2020s, it’s not uncommon for a song to take a year to reach the country summit, but in those days, songs usually climbed to prominence much more quickly. But then “I Fall To Pieces” is a song with an unusual history all around. The demo had been recorded by Howard’s wife Jan, a very successful star in her own right who placed no fewer than 30 singles on the country chart.
Harlan pitched it to Decca Nashville producer Owen Bradley, who saw it turned down by Brenda Lee, Roy Drusky, and others. Cline, who happened to be at the label offices at the same time, became aware of “I Fall To Pieces” and asked to record it.
Too country for pop, or too pop for country?
Patsy went into the studio to start taping it for Decca, but she had severe reservations about it at first, especially concerning the backing vocal role of the Jordanaires. Ironically, where Brenda Lee had thought “Pieces” too country for her pop style, Patsy viewed it the other way around, thinking it too pop for her audience. But once she was recording, she got into the song and was all in favor of its release.
Country radio, however, wasn’t — or at least not until Decca put some heavyweight promotion behind it and the track found an advocate at a pop station in Columbus, Ohio. “Pieces” had already been on release for more than two months when it finally made the country chart in early April 1961, and progressed to the Hot 100 in late May.
In early August, more than six months after release, “I Fall To Piece”’ climbed to the top of the country chart, spending two weeks there before reaching No.12 on the pop survey. Perhaps just as surprisingly, for such a modern-day country icon, Cline would only top the country listing once more, in 1962 with “She’s Got You.”
‘Song thoughts for the everyday little guy’
In a fascinating interview with Billboard published on August 5, 1961, the very week that the Cline single climbed to the country summit, Decca Nashville’s Bradley said: “I always look carefully for a song idea. When I heard about ‘I Fall To Pieces’…I bought the lyrics right over the phone, without even hearing the tune. These are the kind of song thoughts for the everyday little guy, for the working people. They capture a little human experience that people can identify with.”
“I Fall To Pieces” would not only attract countless covers, but it appeared on the country chart twice more for Patsy, long after her sad passing in 1963. A new mix with an orchestra and chorus reached No.61 in 1981, before an electronically-created “duet” version with Jim Reeves went to No.54 in 1982.
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Linda Ronstadt has fallen out of favor in these latitudes but she did a great cover of the song.
“I Fall to Pieces” presaged what literally happened to her. She died on March 5, 1963 when her plane fell out of the sky.
I remember reading an article on “misheard lyrics”.
Patsy Cline:
I go for Pizzas
You won’t buy
so I
go for Pizzas
A glass of wine, a Patsy Cline song and I fall to pieces.
A long time favorite of mine ever since the first time I heard it.
Patsy Cline has the best pure voice I’ve ever heard.
Patsy Cline’s singing voice is the best I have ever heard.
For male vocalist I would have to say Nat King Cole...
Nat King Cole once had a weekly TV show. It was cancelled because advertisers boycotted the show and it made no revenue... very sad.
Here is a link to episodes of that show... good stuff.
Here is Patsy Cline singing “crazy”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnJIWrt3DOg
I agree about her being the best female vocalist. Her voice had enough power to blow people out of their seats, but see always maintained perfect control.
I’ve seen Nat King Cole.
I’d counter that Frank Sinatra’s voice is up there as well.
It would’ve hit #1 much sooner, but her record company released the song in —— pieces.
I’ll be here all week.
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