Don't Touch Me
Encyclopedia
"Don't Touch Me" is the name of a classic country music song originally recorded and made famous by Jeannie Seely
in 1966.
, the songwriter who wrote Patsy Cline
's "I Fall to Pieces
" and Eddy Arnold
's "Make the World Go Away
". Country music singer, Buck Owens
originally wanted to record the song, but before he could do so, Cochran gave the song to Seely instead. This was the first single recorded by Seely after recently signing with Monument records in early 1966. "Don't Touch Me" was recorded on March 12, 1966 in the Monument studios in Nashville. Later that same month the song was released to country radio stations and was became a major hit by late Spring. It remained for three weeks at No. 2 on the Billboard country singles charts, and even went as far as to become a minor pop hit, peaking at No. 85 on the Billboard pop singles chart. However, on the other two country charts (Cashbox and Record World), the song hit the No. 1 spot. Wilma Burgess
' version was released almost simultaneously and reached No. 12 on the Billboard charts; Burgess' version received more sales on the strength of the DECCA label.
At the time the song was released, few women recorded within the conservative confines of country music recorded material describing such explicit sexual desire as expressed in "Don't Touch Me". Following the song's success, other female Country singers to begin to release similarly "risky" songs (e.g. Loretta Lynn
's "The Pill
", Dottie West
's "When It's Just You and Me
", Dolly Parton
's "Just Because I'm a Woman"). Seely later said in interviews that it was a song that women were thinking and wanted to hear. In 1967, Seely won the Grammy award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance for "Don't Touch Me", becoming only third woman to receive the award (Dottie West was the first to receive the award, when it was first introduced in 1965). "Don't Touch Me" set the stage for a string of Top 10 and Top 20 hits for Seely in the next couple of years.
According to numerous books, "Don't Touch Me" has been classified as a "classic" or "standard" in Country music to record. The song was placed at No. 97 in the book, Heartaches By the Number: Country Music's 500 Greatest Singles, when it was released in 2003.
, Don Gibson
, George Jones
, Lynn Anderson
for the album "Songs That Made Country Girls Famous" (1970), Barbara Mandrell
, Lorrie Morgan
, Ray Price
, Eddy Arnold
, and Dottie West.
R&B/Blues singer, Etta James
has recorded a version, put to Blues/R&B tempo. Connie Francis
recorded a version. Eleni Mandell
recorded a Pop music version and Carolyn Hester
has recorded a Folk music
version. The song has even been recorded in a Reggae music version by Nicky Thomas
.
In a real switch of genres, Ella Fitzgerald
recorded this on her Capitol Records
release,
"Misty Blue
".
Jeannie Seely
Jeannie Seely is an American country music singer and Grand Ole Opry star. She is best-known for her 1966 Grammy award-winning Country hit, "Don't Touch Me", which peaked at No...
in 1966.
History
"Don't Touch Me" was written by Jeannie Seely's husband, Hank CochranHank Cochran
Garland Perry "Hank" Cochran was an American country music singer and songwriter. Starting during the 1960s, Cochran was a prolific songwriter in the genre, including major hits by Patsy Cline, Ray Price, Eddy Arnold and others...
, the songwriter who wrote Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline , born Virginia Patterson Hensley in Gore, Virginia, was an American country music singer who enjoyed pop music crossover success during the era of the Nashville sound in the early 1960s...
's "I Fall to Pieces
I Fall to Pieces
"I Fall to Pieces" is a single released by Patsy Cline in 1961, and was featured on her 1961 studio album, Patsy Cline Showcase. "I Fall to Pieces" was Cline's first #1 hit on the Country charts, and her second hit single to cross over onto the Pop charts...
" and Eddy Arnold
Eddy Arnold
Richard Edward Arnold , known professionally as Eddy Arnold, was an American country music singer who performed for six decades. He was a so-called Nashville sound innovator of the late 1950s, and scored 147 songs on the Billboard country music charts, second only to George Jones. He sold more...
's "Make the World Go Away
Make the World Go Away
"Make the World Go Away" is a country-popular music song composed by Hank Cochran. It has become a Top 40 popular success three times: for Timi Yuro , for Eddy Arnold , and for the brother-sister duo Donny and Marie Osmond . The original version of the song was recorded by Ray Price during...
". Country music singer, Buck Owens
Buck Owens
Alvis Edgar Owens, Jr. , better known as Buck Owens, was an American singer and guitarist who had 21 No. 1 hits on the Billboard country music charts with his band, the Buckaroos...
originally wanted to record the song, but before he could do so, Cochran gave the song to Seely instead. This was the first single recorded by Seely after recently signing with Monument records in early 1966. "Don't Touch Me" was recorded on March 12, 1966 in the Monument studios in Nashville. Later that same month the song was released to country radio stations and was became a major hit by late Spring. It remained for three weeks at No. 2 on the Billboard country singles charts, and even went as far as to become a minor pop hit, peaking at No. 85 on the Billboard pop singles chart. However, on the other two country charts (Cashbox and Record World), the song hit the No. 1 spot. Wilma Burgess
Wilma Burgess
Wilma Burgess was an American country music singer. She rose to fame in the mid 1960s and charted fifteen singles on the Billboard C&W charts between 1965 and 1975.-Background:...
' version was released almost simultaneously and reached No. 12 on the Billboard charts; Burgess' version received more sales on the strength of the DECCA label.
At the time the song was released, few women recorded within the conservative confines of country music recorded material describing such explicit sexual desire as expressed in "Don't Touch Me". Following the song's success, other female Country singers to begin to release similarly "risky" songs (e.g. Loretta Lynn
Loretta Lynn
Loretta Lynn is an American country music singer-songwriter, author and philanthropist. Born in Butcher Hollow, Kentucky to a coal miner father, Lynn married at 13 years old, was a mother soon after, and moved to Washington with her husband, Oliver Lynn. Their marriage was sometimes tumultuous; he...
's "The Pill
The Pill (song)
"The Pill" is a 1975 country music song recorded by Loretta Lynn. It is one of her best known songs as well as the most controversial record of her career...
", Dottie West
Dottie West
Dottie West was an American country music singer and songwriter. Along with her friends and co-recording artists Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn, she is considered one of the genre's most influential and groundbreaking female artists...
's "When It's Just You and Me
When It's Just You and Me
"When It's Just You and Me" is the name of a 1976 single by Dottie West, that became a Top 10 Country hit in 1977.This song is important because it marked the first single released by West under her new record company, United Artists. Her material was now more sexual and riskier material, and this...
", Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton
Dolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk...
's "Just Because I'm a Woman"). Seely later said in interviews that it was a song that women were thinking and wanted to hear. In 1967, Seely won the Grammy award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance for "Don't Touch Me", becoming only third woman to receive the award (Dottie West was the first to receive the award, when it was first introduced in 1965). "Don't Touch Me" set the stage for a string of Top 10 and Top 20 hits for Seely in the next couple of years.
According to numerous books, "Don't Touch Me" has been classified as a "classic" or "standard" in Country music to record. The song was placed at No. 97 in the book, Heartaches By the Number: Country Music's 500 Greatest Singles, when it was released in 2003.
Jeannie Seely
| Chart (1966) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles | 2 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 85 |
Wilma Burgess
| Chart (1966) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles | 12 |
Cover versions
Don't Touch Me" has been recorded by numerous artists. The first singers to record it were other Country artists, which included Tammy WynetteTammy Wynette
Virginia Wynette Pugh, known professionally as Tammy Wynette , was an American country music singer-songwriter and one of the genre's best-known artists and biggest-selling female vocalists....
, Don Gibson
Don Gibson
Donald Eugene "Don" Gibson was an American songwriter and country musician. A Country Music Hall of Fame inductee, Gibson penned such country standards as "Sweet Dreams" and "I Can't Stop Loving You", and enjoyed a string of country hits from 1957 into the early 1970s.-Biography:Don Gibson was...
, George Jones
George Jones
George Glenn Jones is an American country music singer known for his long list of hit records, his distinctive voice and phrasing, and his marriage to Tammy Wynette....
, Lynn Anderson
Lynn Anderson
Lynn Rene Anderson is an American country music singer and equestrian known for a string of hits throughout the 1970s and early 1980s, most notably her Grammy Award-winning, worldwide mega-hit, " Rose Garden." Helped by her regular exposure on national television, Anderson was one of the most...
for the album "Songs That Made Country Girls Famous" (1970), Barbara Mandrell
Barbara Mandrell
Barbara Ann Mandrell is an American country music singer best known for a 1970s–1980s series of Top 10 hits and TV shows that helped her become one of country's most successful female vocalists of the 1970s and 1980s...
, Lorrie Morgan
Lorrie Morgan
In 1996 Morgan married Jon Randall, a singer/songwriter now credited with writing the 2004 Brad Paisley/Alison Krauss hit "Whiskey Lullaby"; they divorced three years later in 1999....
, Ray Price
Ray Price (musician)
Ray Price is an American country music singer, songwriter and guitarist. His wide-ranging baritone has often been praised as among the best male voices of country music...
, Eddy Arnold
Eddy Arnold
Richard Edward Arnold , known professionally as Eddy Arnold, was an American country music singer who performed for six decades. He was a so-called Nashville sound innovator of the late 1950s, and scored 147 songs on the Billboard country music charts, second only to George Jones. He sold more...
, and Dottie West.
R&B/Blues singer, Etta James
Etta James
Etta James is an American blues, soul, rhythm and blues , rock and roll, gospel and jazz singer. In the 1950s and 1960s, she had her biggest success as a blues and R&B singer...
has recorded a version, put to Blues/R&B tempo. Connie Francis
Connie Francis
Connie Francis is an American pop singer of Italian heritage and the top-charting female vocalist of the 1950s and 1960s. Although her chart success waned in the second half of the 1960s, Francis remained a top concert draw...
recorded a version. Eleni Mandell
Eleni Mandell
Eleni Mandell is an American singer-songwriter. She currently publishes albums through Zedtone in Toronto, Ontario...
recorded a Pop music version and Carolyn Hester
Carolyn Hester
Carolyn Hester is an American folk singer and songwriter. She was a figure in the early 1960s folk music revival.-Biography:...
has recorded a Folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
version. The song has even been recorded in a Reggae music version by Nicky Thomas
Nicky Thomas
Nicky Thomas was a reggae singer who enjoyed considerable chart success in the 1970s.-Biography:...
.
In a real switch of genres, Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
recorded this on her Capitol Records
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
release,
"Misty Blue
Misty Blue
"Misty Blue" is a song written by Bob Montgomery in 1966 which has become a hit in the pop, C&W and soul fields through various versions, the most successful being the 1976 pop/soul hit by Dorothy Moore.-C&W hit versions:...
".