"Believe What You Say" is a song written by

Dorsey Burnette Dorsey William Burnett Jr. (December 28, 1932 – August 19, 1979) was an American early rockabilly singer. With his younger brother Johnny Burnette and a friend named Paul Burlison, he was a founder member of The Rock and Roll Trio. He is als ...

and

Johnny Burnette John Joseph Burnette (March 25, 1934 – August 14, 1964) was an American singer and songwriter of rockabilly and pop music. In 1952, Johnny and his brother, Dorsey Burnette, and their mutual friend Paul Burlison formed the band that became k ...

and performed by

Ricky Nelson Eric Hilliard Nelson (May 8, 1940 – December 31, 1985) was an American musician, songwriter and actor. From age eight he starred alongside his family in the radio and television series ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet''. In 1957, he bega ...

. The song reached #4 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, #6 on the

R&B chart The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

, and #10 on the

country chart Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

in 1958. The song appeared on his 1959 album, ''

Ricky Sings Again ''Ricky Sings Again'' is the third rock and roll album by Ricky Nelson, released in 1959. The Jordanaires provide vocal accompaniment. Track listing #"It's Late" (Dorsey Burnette) - 1:59 #"One of These Mornings" (Dorsey Burnette) - 1:54 #"B ...

''.Ricky Nelson, ''Ricky Sings Again''
Retrieved April 2, 2014 The song also appeared on his 1970 album, ''

In Concert at the Troubadour, 1969 ''In Concert at the Troubadour, 1969'' is a live country rock album by Ricky Nelson recorded in Los Angeles during four dates at The Troubadour in late 1969. The album featured the debut of the Stone Canyon Band, which included Randy Meisner, ...

''. The Burnette brothers along with Joe Campbell sit on Nelson's home steps to get a meeting with him. Their persistence and their work impressed Nelson, and he agreed to record the song. This is the first recording that Nelson recorded with musicians

James Burton James Edward Burton (born August 21, 1939, in Dubberly, Louisiana) is an American guitarist. A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 2001 (his induction speech was given by longtime fan Keith Richards), Burton has also been recognized ...

, James Kirkland, Richie Frost, and Gene Garf.

Other versions

Billy Burnette Dorsey William Burnette III (born May 8, 1953 in Memphis, Tennessee, United States) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter who was part of the band Fleetwood Mac from 1987 to 1995. Burnette also had a brief career in acting. Family ba ...

released a version of the song in 1976.

References

1958 songs 1958 singles Songs written by Dorsey Burnette Songs written by Johnny Burnette Ricky Nelson songs Imperial Records singles {{1950s-single-stub