B-side "For the First Time" Format 45 RPM Genre Country | Released January 16, 1975 Recorded 1974 Length 3:19 | |
"I'm Not Lisa" is a country music song written and recorded by American country artist Jessi Colter. It was released as a single on January 16, 1975 by Capitol Records. "I'm Not Lisa" would become Colter's first major hit as a solo artist.
Contents
Content
"I'm Not Lisa" was written by Colter and describes the pain that comes with dating someone who has not gotten over a previous lover. Specifically, the song is about a woman named Julie who laments the fact that her boyfriend keeps mentioning his previous girlfriend, named Lisa.
While singing on the recording of the original version of the song, Colter also played the song's piano accompaniment on the keyboards. The song was produced by Ken Mansfield and Colter's husband, Waylon Jennings. Both men would also produce Colter's 1975 album, as well as her further releases for Capitol records. The song has since been covered by many artists, including Rosemary Clooney, Marianne Faithfull, Tanya Tucker, Faith Hill and Nana Mouskouri in a French version. Elizabeth Cook recorded a version for her 2002 album Hey, Y'all. In 2005, Erika Jo recorded a version for her self-titled debut album, and also released it as single to country radio, but it failed to chart. Deana Carter performed a cover of the song with Colter for her 2007 album, The Chain. The rock band Killdozer also covered "I'm Not Lisa" on their 1986 release Burl.
Chart performance
"I'm Not Lisa" was released on Capitol Records on January 16, 1975, making its debut on the country chart February 15, 1975. The song became Colter's commercial breakthrough as a solo artist, peaking at #1 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. It also was a major crossover Pop hit, peaking at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and subsequently ranking as the 40th most popular song on Billboard's Year-End chart for 1975. In addition, the song also reached #16 on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart, and was released on Colter's debut Capitol album, I'm Jessi Colter. The song earned Colter a Grammy award nomination in the category of Best Female Country Vocal Performance and a Country Music Association Awards nomination.
Colter's follow-up single "What's Happened to Blue Eyes" became a Top 10 country hit. However, none of her subsequent releases for Capitol in the 1970s came close to the success of "I'm Not Lisa", which became Colter's signature tune and her only #1 single.