''Don’t Let the Good Times Fool You'' is a

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

by American

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

artist,

Melba Montgomery Melba Joyce Montgomery (born October 14, 1938) is an American country music singer and songwriter. She is known for a series of duet recordings made with George Jones, Gene Pitney and Charlie Louvin. She is also a solo artist, having reaching the ...

. It was released March 17, 1975 via

Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the 1 ...

and was the twentieth studio album in her recording career. The disc contained 11 tracks featuring mostly original material, some of which was penned by Montgomery herself. Four

singles Singles are people not in a committed relationship. Singles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Singles'' (miniseries), a 1984 Australian television series * ''Singles'' (1992 film), written and directed by Cameron Crowe * ''Singles'' ...

were included, which all placed on the country charts. Among them was the

title track A title track is a song that has the same name as the album or film in which it appears. In the Korean music industry, the term is used to describe a promoted song on an album, akin to a single, regardless of the song's title. Title track may al ...

, which reached the top 20 in 1975. The album itself also charted on the American country albums survey in 1975. It received a positive review from ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' magazine following its release.

Background, recording and content

Previously known for her sixties duet recordings with

George Jones George Glenn Jones (September 12, 1931 – April 26, 2013) was an American country musician, singer, and songwriter. He achieved international fame for his long list of hit records, including his best-known song "He Stopped Loving Her Today", ...

, Melba Montgomery established herself as a solo artist during the seventies. In 1974, she topped the country charts with a song about motherhood called "

No Charge "No Charge" is a country music song, written by songwriter Harlan Howard. It was first recorded by country singer Melba Montgomery, whose 1974 version was a #1 country hit in both the US and Canada, as well as making #39 on the US pop charts. I ...

". Her solo commercial success came from a new recording contract with

, which would continue releasing her music through the mid seventies. Montgomery followed the success of "No Charge" with her next studio album called ''Don't Let the Good Times Fool You''. The album was recorded in May 1974 at Pete's Place, a studio located in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

. The studio was owned by the album's producer,

Pete Drake Roddis Franklin "Pete" Drake (October 8, 1932 – July 29, 1988), was a Nashville-based American record producer and pedal steel guitar player. One of the most sought-after backup musicians of the 1960s, Drake played on such hits as Lynn Anderson' ...

. ''Don't Let the Good Times Fool You'' consisted of 11 tracks. The title track, for which the album was named for was among several recordings that were original material. Two of the original tracks on the project were penned by Montgomery herself: "Hiding in the Darkness of My Mind" and "It Sure Gets Lonely". The disc also featured writing credits from Montgomery's brother (and established Nashville songwriter) Earl Montgomery. Other tracks were covers such as "I'll Be Your Lady", which was originally recorded by (and written by)

David Allan Coe David Allan Coe (born September 6, 1939) is an American singer and songwriter. Coe took up music after spending much of his early life in reform schools and prisons, and first became notable for busking in Nashville. He initially played mostly i ...

. His version was originally called "Would You Be My Lady" and it reached number 91 on the ''Billboard'' country chart in 1975. Montgomery also covered

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 ...

's 1956 top five country single, " Searchin' (For Someone Like You)".

Release, chart performance, reception and singles

''Don't Let the Good Times Fool You'' was released in April 1975 on Elektra Records. It was Montgomery's twentieth studio album released in her recording career and her third with Elektra. The label issued it originally as both a

vinyl LP The LP (from "long playing" or "long play") is an analog sound storage medium, a phonograph record format characterized by: a speed of rpm; a 12- or 10-inch (30- or 25-cm) diameter; use of the "microgroove" groove specification; and a ...

and as a

cassette Cassette may refer to: Technology * Cassette tape (or ''musicassette'', ''audio cassette'', ''cassette tape'', or ''tape''), a worldwide standard for analog audio recording and playback ** Cassette single (or "Cassingle"), a music single in the ...

. Following its release, the disc reached number 47 on the American ''Billboard''

Top Country Albums Top Country Albums is a chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine in the United States. The 50-position chart lists the most popular country music albums in the country, calculated weekly by Broadcast Data Systems based on physical sales a ...

chart. It was Montgomery's second (and final) solo studio album to make the country albums chart. In their 1975 review, ''Billboard'' magazine called the disc "an excellent album" and the title track "a smash single". The album was preceded by the release of three singles. Its first was "Your Pretty Roses Came Too Late" in July 1974. Despite the commercial success of "No Charge", the new single only climbed to number 67 on the ''Billboard''

Hot Country Songs 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 ...

chart. It was followed in October 1974 by the release of the second single titled "If You Want the Rainbow". However, the song only reached number 59 on the Hot Country Songs chart. The title track was released as the third single in January 1975 and proved to be the only commercial success from the album. It reached number 15 on the ''Billboard'' country chart and number 14 on Canada's ''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...

'' Country Tracks survey. The fourth and final single was "Searchin' (For Someone Like You)", which only reached number 45 on the ''Billboard'' country chart in 1975.

Track listing

Personnel

All credited are adapted from the

liner notes Liner notes (also sleeve notes or album notes) are the writings found on the sleeves of LP record albums and in booklets that come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for cassettes. Origin Liner notes are desce ...

of ''Don't Let the Good Times Fool You''. Musical personnel *Bass:

Bob Moore Bob Loyce Moore (November 30, 1932 – September 22, 2021) was an American session musician, orchestra leader, and double bassist who was a member of the Nashville A-Team during the 1950s and 1960s. He performed on over 17,000 documented record ...

Henry Strzelecki Henry Pershing Strzelecki (August 8, 1939 – December 30, 2014) was a Nashville studio musician who performed with Roy Orbison, Chet Atkins, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Eddy Arnold, Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Ronnie Milsap, Merle Haggard, and man ...

*Drums:

Buddy Harman Murrey Mizell "Buddy" Harman, Jr. (December 23, 1928 – August 21, 2008) was an American country music session musician. Career Born in Nashville, Tennessee, Harman played drums on over 18,000 sessions for artists such as Elvis Presley, Jerry ...

Kenny Malone Kenny Malone (August 4, 1938 – August 26, 2021) was an American drummer and percussionist. Life and career Malone was born in Denver, Colorado. From the 1970s onwards, he was a prominent session musician in folk, country and many other acoustic ...

*Piano:

Hargus "Pig" Robbins Hargus Melvin Robbins (January 18, 1938 – January 30, 2022), known by his nickname "Pig," was an American session keyboard player. Having played on records for many artists, including John Stewart, Dolly Parton, Connie Smith, Patti Page, Lore ...

, Ron Oates *Lead Guitar: Pete Wade, Reggie Young *Acoustic Guitar: Jack Solomon, Larry Black *Steel Guitar: Larry Sasser, Pete Drake *Bass Guitar:

Harold Bradley Harold Ray Bradley (January 2, 1926 – January 31, 2019) was an American guitarist and entrepreneur, who played on many country, rock and pop recordings and produced numerous TV variety shows and movie soundtracks. Having started as a session ...

Tommy Allsup Thomas Douglas Allsup (November 24, 1931 – January 11, 2017) was an American rockabilly and swing musician. Personal life Allsup was born near Owasso, Oklahoma in 1931, and was an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation. Allsup had a son, ...

*Fiddles: Buddy Spicher, Duane Hester, Gary Van Osdale, George Binkley, Sheldon Kurland, Larry Haight *Vocals:

The Jordanaires The Jordanaires were an American vocal quartet that formed as a gospel group in 1948. Over the years, they recorded both sacred and secular music for recording companies such as Capitol Records, RCA Victor, Columbia Records, Decca Records, Vocal ...

& La Verna, Garry S. Paxton Singers Technical personnel *Producer: Pete Drake for Pete Drake Productions Inc. *Recorded at: Pete’s Place, Nashville, Tenn. *Engineer: Stan Kesler *Mixer: Pete Drake *Recorders: Warren Peterson, Linda Hargrove *Arranger: Pete Drake *Album Art Direction: Glen Christensen *Album Design: Gribitt *Album Photography: Joel Brodsky

Charts

Release history

References

{{Authority control 1975 albums Albums produced by Pete Drake Elektra Records albums Melba Montgomery albums