"I Just Can't Stay Married to You" is a song written by

Charlie Black Charles Frank Black (November 23, 1949 – April 23, 2021) was an American country music songwriter and record producer. Biography Black graduated from University of Maryland in 1970 and moved to Nashville, Tennessee the same year. His first c ...

, Rory Bourke and

Jerry Gillespie Jerry Wayne Gillespie (born Decatur, Alabama) is an American country songwriter. He co-wrote "Do You Love as Good as You Look", a #1 song in 1981 for The Bellamy Brothers and wrote " Heaven's Just a Sin Away", a #1 country hit in 1977 for The ...

. It was originally recorded by American country and

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

music singer Cristy Lane. The song was released as a

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

in 1978 via LS Records and became a top hit on the North American country music charts. It was also released on Lane's third studio album titled '' Love Lies''. The song received positive reviews from critics.

Background and recording

In the late 1970s, Cristy Lane achieved commercial success in the country field after her husband started his own record label. By releasing singles exclusively for the company, Lane had her first major hit in 1977 with " Let Me Down Easy". This was followed by a string of several more country hit singles, including "I Just Can't Stay Married to You". The song was written by Charlie Black, Rory Bourke and Jerry Gillespie. Lane recorded the track in October 1978 at the LSI Studio, located in Nashville, Tennessee. Charlie Black also produced the song. During the same session, Lane recorded nine additional tracks that would appear on her next album release.

Release and reception

In November 1978, "I Just Can't Stay Married to You" was issued as a single on LS Records. It was backed by the flip side, "Rainsong". The song was aided in chart success after Lane performed the tune on the televised Academy of Country Music Awards in early 1979. Her performance eventually brought the song into the top ten of the ''

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 ...

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, climbing to number five. It was Lane's fourth top ten hit in career on the ''Billboard'' chart. It reached a similar position on the '' RPM'' Country Singles chart in Canada, climbing to number four. "I Just Can't Stay Married to You" was released on Lane's third studio album titled '' Love Lies''. The project was released on LS Records in December 1978. In reviewing her 1978 studio album, Greg Adams of AllMusic gave "I Just Can't Stay Married to You" a positive response, calling it "top five divorce song".

Track listing

7" vinyl single * "I Just Can't Stay Married to You" – 2:49 * "Rainsong" – 4:08

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Cristy Lane 1978 songs Cristy Lane songs LS Records singles Songs written by Charlie Black Songs written by Rory Bourke Songs written by Jerry Gillespie