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This song was on the B side of the 1968 hit “We’ll Get Ahead Someday”. The A-Side reached #5 and this song got to #51. I was surpised that this morbid ballad got even that high, but the song has endured over the years whereas the A side is all but forgotten
I’m a big Porter & Dolly fan but I have to agree that this song is too morbid. It’s topped only in that regard by another recording they did called “The Party.”
I don’t really mind the morbidity so much as the lack of a discernible point. To me it feels like they just kill Jeannie off without really giving the listener anything substantial to take away from the story. I have similar issues with Tim McGraw’s “Don’t Take the Girl.”
Performances of this song on Porter’s syndicated TV show such as in this clip went a long way to help this song become a major favorite with diehard Porter & Dolly fans. During that era sentimental songs of this nature were widely accepted and enjoyed by country fans. Porter’s solo recitation “Little Boy’s Prayer” was also a fan favorite though never a big chart hit.
Gotta give Porter his due. He was excellent on recitations. He never sounded fake or contrived. He truly SOLD the lyrics and injected the proper amount of emotion. Didn’t sound like he was just reading a script. Johnny Cash and Merle Haggard demonstrated simliar abilities in that regard.
I do think that “We’ll Get Ahead Someday” is at least as well remembered as this song by the folks who were listening to country music during that era. Buck Trent’s unique-sounding electric banjo and Mack Magaha’s sparkling fiddle are both superb. As a radio DJ it was one of my go-to songs to back-time to news breaks owing to it’s brief length (1:55)