"Put It Off Until Tomorrow" is a song written by

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman, known primarily for her work in country music. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton made her album d ...

and Bill Owens, and first recorded by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

artist Bill Phillips. It was released in January 1966, and Phillips released an album of the same name later that year. The song became his biggest hit, peaking at number 6 on 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 Singles 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. Parton provided uncredited harmony vocals on the single. The song has been covered by numerous artists, and became a top ten hit for

The Kendalls ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

in 1980.

Background and recording

and her uncle Bill Owens were signed to Combine Publishing House and to

Monument Records Monument Records is an American record label in Washington, D.C. named for the Washington Monument, founded in 1958 by Fred Foster, Buddy Deane (a prominent Baltimore disc jockey at WTTG), and business manager Jack Kirby. Buddy Deane soon left ...

in 1965, before Parton had turned 20. "Put It Off Until Tomorrow" was one of the songs they wrote during their frequent trips between Nashville and their home in East Tennessee. They recorded a demo of the song with Owens singing lead and Parton singing the harmony, which they sent to Bill Phillips, a recording artist with Decca Records who had had a few charting singles at that time. Phillips agreed to record the song, and said "Whoever that girl is singing the harmony, I want her on this record." The song received a 1966 Country Music award from BMI. Although Parton's harmony was uncredited, it generated widespread interest in her singing and songwriting among country radio listeners.

owner

Fred Foster Fred Luther Foster (July 26, 1931 – February 20, 2019) was an American record producer, songwriter, and music business executive who founded Monument Records. As a record producer he was most closely associated with Roy Orbison, and was also ...

was marketing Parton as a pop act, concerned that her voice was too high for country music. After the success of "Put It Off Until Tomorrow", Foster was convinced that Parton could succeed in country music, and her first country single, "Dumb Blonde", was released the following year, peaking at number 24 on the ''Billboard'' country chart. Parton has recorded the song several times, first on her debut album, ''

Hello, I'm Dolly ''Hello, I'm Dolly'' is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter Dolly Parton. It was released on September 18, 1967, by Monument Records. The album was produced by Fred Foster. It peaked at number 11 on the ''Billboard'' Top Country A ...

'', released in 1967 on Monument Records. She also recorded a version with

Porter Wagoner Porter Wayne Wagoner (August 12, 1927 – October 28, 2007) was an American country music singer known for his flashy Nudie and Manuel suits and blond pompadour. In 1967, he introduced singer Dolly Parton on his television show, ''The Po ...

for their first album as a duo, '' Just Between You and Me'', released in 1968. A duet with

Kris Kristofferson Kristoffer Kristofferson (born June 22, 1936) is a retired American singer, songwriter and actor. Among his songwriting credits are "Me and Bobby McGee", " For the Good Times", "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down", and "Help Me Make It Through the Nig ...

was included on the 1982 compilation album '' The Winning Hand''. "Put It Off Until Tomorrow" was also included on ''

Honky Tonk Angels ''Honky Tonk Angels'' is a collaborative studio album by Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn and Tammy Wynette. It was released on November 2, 1993, by Columbia Records. The album was certified Gold by the RIAA on January 5, 1994, for sales of 500,000 c ...

'', a 1993 collaborative album with Parton,

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 ...

, and

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 ...

Charts

The Kendalls version

"Put It Off Until Tomorrow" was covered 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 ...

duo,

the Kendalls ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

, for the album ''Heart of the Matter'', released in 1979. The song reached number 9 on the ''Billboard'' country chart on August 16, 1980, and number 5 on the Canadian RPM Country Tracks chart.Item: 236 - Library and Archives Canada (bac-lac.gc.ca) The song was later included on the album ''The Best of the Kendalls'', released in 1981 on Ovation records.

Charts

Other notable covers

covered the song for her 1966 album '' You Ain't Woman Enough'', her first number-one country album. "Put It Off Until Tomorrow" was singled out as a standout track by '' Cashbox'' magazine. *

Jan Howard Jan Howard (born Lula Grace Johnson; March 13, 1929 – March 28, 2020) was an American country music singer and songwriter. As a singer, she placed 30 singles on the ''Billboard'' country songs chart, was a Grand Ole Opry member and was nomin ...

included the song on her 1966 album ''

Jan Howard Sings Evil on Your Mind ''Jan Howard Sings Evil on Your Mind'' is a studio album by American country artist, Jan Howard. It was released in July 1966 via Decca Records and contained 12 tracks. It was the second studio album of Howard's music career and her first with th ...

''. *

Jean Shepard Ollie Imogene "Jean" Shepard (November 21, 1933 – September 25, 2016) was an American honky-tonk singer-songwriter who pioneered for women in country music. Shepard released a total of 73 singles to the Hot Country Songs chart, one of which ...

and

Ray Pillow Herbert Raymond "Ray" Pillow (born July 4, 1937) is an American country music singer who has also worked as a Music publisher (popular music), music publisher and A&R, artists and repertoire (A&R) representative. In his career, he has charted 18 ...

performed the song on the 1966 album, ''I'll Take the Dog''. *

Jimmy Dean Jimmy Ray Dean (August 10, 1928 – June 13, 2010) was an American country music singer, television host, actor and businessman. He was the creator of the Jimmy Dean sausage brand as well as the spokesman for its TV commercials. He became ...

and

Dottie West Dorothy Marie Marsh West (October 11, 1932 – September 4, 1991) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Along with her friends and fellow recording artists Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn, she is considered one of the genre's most in ...

recorded the song for their 1970 album '' Country Boy & Country Girl''. * The

Osborne Brothers The Osborne Brothers, Sonny (October 29, 1937 – October 24, 2021) and Bobby (born December 7, 1931), were an influential and popular bluegrass act during the 1960s and 1970s and until Sonny retired in 2005. They are probably best known for ...

included the song on their 1970 album ''Ru-beeeee''. *

Ricky Skaggs Rickie Lee Skaggs (born July 18, 1954), known professionally as Ricky Skaggs, is an American neotraditional country and bluegrass singer, musician, producer, and composer. He primarily plays mandolin; however, he also plays fiddle, guitar, ma ...

recorded the song for his 1979 album ''Sweet Temptation''. *

Crystal Gayle Crystal Gayle (born Brenda Gail Webb; January 9, 1951) is an American country music singer widely known for her 1977 hit "Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue". Initially, Gayle's management and record label were the same as that of her oldest sist ...

recorded the song with sisters Loretta Lynn and

Peggy Sue "Peggy Sue" is a rock and roll song written by Jerry Allison and Norman Petty, and recorded and released as a single by Buddy Holly on September 20, 1957. The Crickets are not mentioned on label of the single (Coral 9-61885), but band members Jo ...

for the 2019 album '' You Don't Know Me: Classic Country''.

References

{{Reflist 1966 songs 1966 singles 1980 singles Bill Phillips (singer) songs Songs written by Dolly Parton Decca Records singles