"Wish I Didn't Have to Miss You" is a song written by

Hank Cochran Garland Perry "Hank" Cochran (August 2, 1935 – July 15, 2010) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Starting during the 1960s, Cochran was a prolific songwriter in the genre, including major hits by Patsy Cline, Ray Price, Eddy ...

and Dave Kirby. It was originally and released as a

duet A duet is a musical composition for two performers in which the performers have equal importance to the piece, often a composition involving two singers or two pianists. It differs from a harmony, as the performers take turns performing a solo ...

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, ...

artists

Jack Greene Jack Henry Greene (January 7, 1930 – March 14, 2013) was an American country musician. Nicknamed the "Jolly Greene Giant" due to his height and deep voice, Greene was a long time member of the Grand Ole Opry. A three-time Grammy Award nomine ...

and

Jeannie Seely Marilyn Jeanne Seely (born July 6, 1940) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and record producer. She also has several acting credits and published a book. Seely found success with the Grammy Award-winning hit "Don't Touch Me" (1966) ...

. Released in October 1969, the song became a major hit on the country charts in early 1970.

Background and release

"Wish I Didn't Have to Miss You" was written by Seely's husband at the time,

along with Dave Kirby. As a duet team, Greene and Seely recorded the song at Bradley's Barn, a studio owned by producer

Owen Bradley William Owen Bradley (October 21, 1915 – January 7, 1998) was an American musician and record producer who, along with Chet Atkins, Bob Ferguson, Bill Porter, and Don Law, was one of the chief architects of the 1950s and 1960s Nashville sou ...

. The track was officially recorded in July 1969 with Bradley producing the record. "Wish I Didn't Have to Miss You" was released as a single in October 1969 via

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

. The song peaked at number 2 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 in January 1970. It became Seely's second biggest hit as a recording artist and another major hit for Greene. It was later released on their studio album in 1970, ''Jack Greene, Jeannie Seely''.

Track listings

;7" vinyl single * "Wish I Didn't Have to Miss You" – 2:08 * "My Tears Don't Show" – 2:52

Chart performance

Weekly charts

References

1969 songs 1969 singles Decca Records singles Jack Greene songs Jeannie Seely songs Song recordings produced by Owen Bradley Songs written by Hank Cochran {{1960s-country-song-stub