Skeeter Davis discography

The discography of Skeeter Davis, an American country artist, consists of thirty-one studio albums, fifteen compilation albums, four tribute/cover albums, five collaborative albums, fifty-seven singles, two charting b-sides, and four singles with other artists.

Born Mary Frances Penick, she was first a member of the country music pair the Davis Sisters. In 1956 Davis disbanded the group following the death of her co-member Betty Jack Davis. She began a solo career the following year, releasing her first single in 1957 for RCA Victor. Her first charting single (and first major hit) came a year later with "Lost to a Geisha Girl", an answer song to a Hank Locklin hit. Her 1959 single "Set Him Free" reached the top five on the Billboard Country Songs chart, becoming her first top-ten hit. The single spawned her first studio album I'll Sing You a Song and Harmonize Too (1959) that consisted of Davis singing her own harmony parts. Between 1959 and 1962, Davis had a series of top-ten and twenty hits on the Billboard Country Songs chart including "(I Can't Help You) I'm Falling Too" (1960), "My Last Date (With You)" (1961), and "Where I Ought to Be" (1962). Some of these latter recordings were answer songs to popular country recordings of the time, prompting the release of her second studio effort Here's the Answer (1961). It was in 1963 that Davis' most successful single was released entitled "The End of the World". The song reached number two on both the Billboard country songs chart and the Hot 100. It did however top the adult contemporary chart. The single also reached the top-twenty in the United Kingdom, Davis' first entry there. An album featuring the song reached the Billboard 200 list in 1963. Becoming one of the few country pop artists, she continued releasing crossover singles over the next several years. This included "I Can't Stay Mad at You" which became her second top-ten Hot 100 hit in 1963. During this time, more studio albums by Davis were released, including an album of duets with both Porter Wagoner and Bobby Bare. A cover album of standards as well as a tribute album of Buddy Holly material was released during this period. Her 1963 studio release Cloudy, with Occasional Tears reached number eleven on the Top Country Albums chart and her 1966 release My Heart's in the Country reached number fourteen.

After a series of minor country hits, her 1967 singles "Fuel to the Flame" (co-written by Dolly Parton) and "What Does It Take (To Keep a Man Like You Satisfied)" both became major hits. The latter peaked at number five on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart and an album of the same reached number seventeen on the Top Country Albums list. In 1968, Davis released a cover album of Flatt and Scruggs music entitled I Love Flatt and Scruggs which reached the top-forty on the country albums chart. In 1969, "I'm a Lover (Not a Fighter)" was a top-ten Billboard country hit, followed by the top-thirty track "Bus Fare to Kentucky" and a minor hit with George Hamilton IV followed soon after. Her studio album It's Hard to Be a Woman (1970) addressed the feminist movement. In 1972 cover of "One Tin Soldier" was a top-ten hit on the Canadian RPM country and adult contemporary charts. The same year, she released a tribute album to Dolly Parton entitled Skeeter Sings Dolly, which peaked on the country albums list. In 1973, "I Can't Believe That It's All Over" became Davis' final major hit and an album of the same name became her final charting album. In 1976 she recorded for Mercury Records, where her single "I Love Us" became her final chart appearance. In the early 1980s, Davis released two new studio albums and also toured Europe and Asia. In 1985 the country rock band NRBQ recorded a duet album with Davis entitled, She Sings They Play, released on Red Rooster Records. The release received critical acclaim. At the end of the 1980s, Davis released her final studio album You Were Made for Me, a duets release with Norwegian country artist Teddy Nelson.