"I'd Like to See Jesus (On the Midnight Special)" is a song written by Robert Seay and Dorval Lynn Smith that was originally recorded 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

Tammy Wynette Tammy Wynette (born Virginia Wynette Pugh; May 5, 1942 – April 6, 1998) was an American country music artist, as well as an actress and author. She is considered among the genre's most influential and successful artists. Along with Loretta Ly ...

. It was released as a single in 1978, reaching top 40 chart positions in both the United States and Canada. It was the first single off Wynette's 1978 album, ''

Womanhood A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardle ...

''.

Background, release and chart performance

Tammy Wynette was considered among country music's most popular female artists during the 1960s and 1970s. She had 20 number one ''

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 ...

'' country singles. Until the end of 1970s, she had continuous commercial success. One of the singles Wynette recorded in the late 1970s was "I'd Like to See Jesus (On the Midnight Special)". Written by Robert Seay and Dorval Lynn Smith, the song's story line was based on the late musical series, '' The Midnight Special''. The song was recorded at Columbia Studio B in

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in a session produced by

Billy Sherrill Billy Norris Sherrill (November 5, 1936 – August 4, 2015) was an American record producer, songwriter, and arranger best known for his association with country artists, notably Tammy Wynette and George Jones. Sherrill and business partner Gle ...

. It was released as a single by Epic Records in March 1978 backed by Wynette's self-penned track, "Love Doesn't Always Come (On The Night It's Needed)". "I'd Like to See Jesus (On the Midnight Special)" peaked at number 26 on the American ''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 in 1978. It was Wynette's first solo charting single to miss the ''Billboard'' country top 20. In Canada, it reached number 27 on their ''

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 Songs chart. It was released on Wynette's 1978 studio album, ''

''.

Track listing

;7" vinyl single * "I'd Like to See Jesus (On the Midnight Special)" – 2:51 * "Love Doesn't Always Come (On The Night It's Needed)" – 2:39

Charts

References

{{authority control 1978 songs 1978 singles Tammy Wynette songs Song recordings produced by Billy Sherrill Epic Records singles