Songs of a Love Affair

1956 studio album by Jean Shepard

Songs of a Love Affair

Studio album by

Jean Shepard

Released| May 1956
Recorded| August 1953 – December 1955
Studio| Capitol Studios
Genre|

* Country[1]
* Bakersfield Sound[1]

Label| Capitol
Producer| Ken Nelson
Jean Shepard chronology
|  | Songs of a Love Affair
(1956)  | Lonesome Love
(1958)

|
|

Songs of a Love Affair is the debut studio album by American country artist Jean Shepard. The album was released in May 1956 on Capitol Records and was produced by Ken Nelson. The release has been said to have been one of country music's first concept albums in history and also one of the first to be released by a female country music artist. The album's concept focused on an extramarital love affair between a husband and another lover. The album is told from the point of the view of the wife. The disc was released originally on vinyl, but later released on CD and to digital markets.

## Background

[edit]

Jean Shepard first found success at the Capitol label in two duets with Ferlin Husky: "A Dear John Letter" and "Forgive Me, John". Both singles were commercial successes in 1953. It was not until 1955 that her first pair of solo singles made the US country top ten: "A Satisfied Mind" and "Beautiful Lies". In 1956, Capitol issued her debut studio album Songs of a Love Affair.[2] According to several publications, Songs of a Love Affair was among the first country music concept albums.[3][4][5] Songs were handpicked by Shepard's producer Ken Nelson. Nelson wanted the album to be told from the point of view of a woman whose spouse has betrayed her. "Oh we can't have you having a love affair in a song! You're just a sweet little country girl! We've got to keep this nice little country girl image," Nelson told her.[6]

## Recording and content

[edit]

Songs of a Love Affair consisted of 12 tracks.[1] The project was recorded in sessions held at Capitol Studios in Hollywood, California. Sessions were produced by Ken Nelson and were cut between August 1953 and December 1955. Many of the album's songs were written by the same writers, notably Jack Rhodes, Mary McDaniel and Don Welch.[7] The album's concept was based around a failing marriage due to a extramarital love affair between a man and a woman.[2][8]

The album's title track "Passing Love Affair" was claimed to be written exclusively for Shepard and the album itself.[9] The latter described a wife who avoids thinking about an affair between her husband and another woman. The second track "Girl in Disgrace" finds the same character angry about the affair. "Over and Over" shows the character ruminating over the extramarital affair. In "The Mysteries of Life", Shepard's character explains her situation from a mature standpoint. "I'll Thank You All My Life" finds the character "discovering a new love", according to the liner notes. In the tracks "Sad Singin' and Slow Ridin'" and "Did I Turn Down a Better Deal", Shepard's character second-guesses her romantic choices.[7]

## Release and critical reception

[edit]

Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
Allmusic| [1]

Songs of a Love Affair was first released by Capitol Records in May 1956. It was originally distributed as a vinyl LP with six tracks on each side of the disc. It was the debut studio album of Shepard's career.[7] In 1998, the album was reissued on a compact disc in conjunction with her 1962 studio project Heartaches and Tears. The reissue was released by both Capitol and the EMI labels.[10] In the 2010s decade, Songs of a Love Affair was issued digitally by Capitol Records Nashville to sites including Apple Music.[11] Songs of a Love Affair was given a four and a half star rating from AllMusic with no written review provided.[1]

## Track listing

[edit]

Side one[7]No.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "A Passing Love Affair"|

* Jack Rhodes
* Jack Rollings

| 2:23
2.| "Shadows on the Wall"|

* Ronnie Badger
* Tommy Reiff

| 2:25
3.| "Girls in Disgrace"|

* Mary McDaniel
* Dan Welch

| 2:45
4.| "Over and Over"|

* McDaniel
* Welch

| 2:21
5.| "Hello Old Broken Heart"|

* Audrey Allison
* Joe Allison

| 2:10
6.| "The Mysteries of Life"| Virgil F. Stewart| 2:36

Side two[7]No.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Tell Me What I Want to Hear"|

* Gertrude Cox
* Rhodes

| 2:23
2.| "I'll Thank You for All My Life"|

* Lucille Dean
* Dick Reynolds

| 2:33
3.| "Sad Singin' and Slow Ridin'"|

* Curly Fox
* Texas Ruby

| 2:35
4.| "Did I Turn Down a Better Deal"| Tommy Collins| 2:21
5.| "I Married You for Love"| Rhodes| 2:13
6.| "It's Hard to Tell the Married from the Free"|

* Don Helms
* Gene Jackson

| 2:36

## Release history

[edit]

Region  | Date  | Format  | Label  | Ref.

|
|
|
|

North America  | May 1956  | Vinyl LP (Mono)  | Capitol Records  | [7]
Europe and North America  | 1998  | Compact disc  |

* Capitol Records
* EMI

| [10]
North America  | circa 2010  |

* Music download
* streaming

| Capitol Records Nashville | [11]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d e "Songs of a Love Affair: Jean Shepard: Songs, reviews, credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
2. ^ a b Cooper, Dan. "Jean Shepard Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
3. ^ "Jean Shepard". Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
4. ^ "Jean Shepard, country singer and Opry stalwart, dies at 82". The Washington Post. September 25, 2016. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
5. ^ Bruce, Jennifer; Lee, Tena (2022). Southern Music Icons. The History Press. p. 31\. ISBN 978-1467145411.
6. ^ Shepard, Jean (2014). Down Through the Years. Don Wise Productions. p. 89-90. ISBN 978-0944391068.
7. ^ a b c d e f Shepard, Jean (May 1956). "Songs of a Love Affair (Liner Notes)". Capitol Records. T-728 (LP).
8. ^ Kienzle, Rich (2013). Southwest Shuffle. Taylor & Francis. p. 213\. ISBN 978-1136718960.
9. ^ "The Cash Box Country Roundup" (PDF). Cash Box. June 2, 1956. p. 37. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
10. ^ a b Shepard, Jean (1998). "Songs of a Love Affair/Heartaches and Tears (Liner Notes)". Capitol Records/EMI. 7243-4-96853-2-1 (CD).
11. ^ a b "Songs of a Love Affair \-- Album by Jean Shepard". Apple Music. Retrieved 5 May 2024.

* v
* t
* e

Jean Shepard

* Discography

Studio albums|

* Songs of a Love Affair
* Lonesome Love
* Got You on My Mind
* Heartaches and Tears
* Lighthearted and Blue
* It's a Man Every Time
* Many Happy Hangovers
* I'll Take the Dog (with Ray Pillow)
* Heart, We Did All That We Could
* Your Forevers Don't Last Very Long
* Heart to Heart
* A Real Good Woman
* Seven Lonely Days
* Best by Request
* A Woman's Hand
* Here & Now
* Just as Soon as I Get Over Loving You
* Just Like Walkin' in the Sunshine
* Slippin' Away
* I'll Do Anything It Takes
* Poor Sweet Baby...And Ten More Bill Anderson Songs
* I'm a Believer
* Mercy, Ain't Love Good
* Stars of the Grand Ole Opry

Compilation albums|

* The Best of Jean Shepard

Songs|

* "A Dear John Letter"
* "Forgive Me, John"
* "A Satisfied Mind"
* "Take Possession"
* "I Thought of You"
* "Beautiful Lies"
* "I Want to Go Where No One Knows Me"
* "Have Heart, Will Love"
* "Second Fiddle (To an Old Guitar)"
* "Two Little Boys"
* "A Tear Dropped By"
* "Someone's Gotta Cry"
* "Many Happy Hangovers to You"
* "I'll Take the Dog"
* "If Teardrops Were Silver"
* "Heart, We Did All That We Could"
* "Your Forevers (Don't Last Very Long)"
* "I Don't See How I Can Make It"
* "A Real Good Woman"
* "Seven Lonely Days"
* "Then He Touched Me"
* "A Woman's Hand"
* "I Want You Free"
* "Another Lonely Night"
* "With His Hand in Mine"
* "Slippin' Away"
* "Come on Phone"
* "At the Time"
* "I'll Do Anything It Takes (To Stay with You)"
* "Poor Sweet Baby"
* "The Tip of My Fingers"
* "Another Neon Night"

See also|

* Hawkshaw Hawkins

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

|

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