"Back Street Affair" is a song written by country singer Billy Wallace and Nashville songwriter Jimmy Rule, and released by Wallace in April 1952.

Background

The song was first offered to

Hank Williams Hank Williams (born Hiram Williams; September 17, 1923 – January 1, 1953) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. Regarded as one of the most significant and influential American singers and songwriters of the 20th century, he reco ...

, then the undisputed "King" of country music. He was singing it on his early morning radio shows and that's how Webb Pierce first heard it. Fred Rose, Hank's music publisher and unofficial manager wouldn't let Hank record it saying it was too risky, as it was a little risque for the time. Hank told Webb ..."I think anyone's got guts enough to record it has got themselves a number one hit."

Webb Pierce recording

In August 1952,

Webb Pierce Michael Webb Pierce (August 8, 1921 – February 24, 1991) was an American honky-tonk vocalist, songwriter and guitarist of the 1950s, one of the most popular of the genre, charting more number one hits than any other country artist during the ...

released his version. Pierce's song was his third straight number-one single on the C&W Best Seller charts, where it stayed at number one for two weeks.

Answer record

* In 1953,

Kitty Wells Ellen Muriel Deason (August 30, 1919 – July 16, 2012), known professionally as Kitty Wells, was an American pioneering female country music singer. She broke down a barrier to women in country music with her 1952 hit recording "It Wasn't God W ...

, had a hit song with an answer record entitled, "Paying for That Back Street Affair" which reached number six on the C&W Best Seller charts.

Cover versions

Conway Twitty Harold Lloyd Jenkins (September 1, 1933 – June 5, 1993), better known by his stage name Conway Twitty, was an American singer and songwriter. Initially a part of the 1950s rockabilly scene, Twitty was best known as a country music performer. ...

and

Loretta Lynn Loretta Lynn (; April 14, 1932 – October 4, 2022) was an American country music singer and songwriter. In a career spanning six decades, Lynn released multiple gold albums. She had numerous hits such as " You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My M ...

covered the song as a duet on their second studio album '' Lead Me On'', released on February 7, 1972 by Decca Records. *

John Prine John Edward Prine (; October 10, 1946 – April 7, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter of country-folk music. He was active as a composer, recording artist, live performer, and occasional actor from the early 1970s until his death. He ...

covered the song on his 1999 album ''

In Spite of Ourselves ''In Spite of Ourselves'' is the 13th studio album of John Prine, featuring duets with various well-known women folk and alt-country vocalists, released in 1999. The album was Prine's first release since successfully battling throat cancer. The d ...

''. *

Van Morrison Sir George Ivan Morrison (born 31 August 1945), known professionally as Van Morrison, is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose recording career spans seven decades. He has won two Grammy Awards. As a teenager in t ...

covered the song on his 2006 album ''

Pay the Devil ''Pay the Devil'' is the thirty-second studio album by Northern Irish singer/songwriter Van Morrison. It was released in 2006 by Lost Highway. The album features twelve cover versions of American country and western tunes and three original ...

''.

References

1952 songs Webb Pierce songs {{1950s-country-song-stub