Another Wonderful No.1 Hit by Tammy Wynette “You And Me”

 By Arden Lambert

April 25, 2018
Last Edited November 27, 2019 10:50 am


Another Wonderful No.1 Hit by Tammy Wynette “You And Me” 1

A Help from another Scribe

“You And Me” by Tammy Wynette was a song that Billy Sherrill checked out of the hospital to finish. He had been admitted for an overnight physical. Then, he called George Richey to talk about an upcoming recording session with Wynette later that week.

Richey told Billy that he had a good idea on a new song for Tammy Wynette. George had started the tune, however, he felt that he needed some help with it from Sherrill. Billy said:

“Well, if you think we can write it, I can get out of here for two hours.”

It was a Sunday afternoon and arrangements were made for Sherrill to briefly check out of the hospital so he could meet with Richey to write “You And Me.” It didn’t come easily though. Sherrill and Richey ran into a snag trying to find words for part of the melody.

The Problem in the Melody

The situation was the same as Charlie Rich called “A Very Special Love Song.” Billy and Norro Wilson wrote the hit which contained a tricky “counter-melody.” Sherrill faced the same problem with “You And Me.” Billy and George tried to place lyrics to the melody. They worked for quite a while on it then stopped to have lunch. After coming back to proceed with the project, they realized that it was just impossible.

It was at this point that Sherrill remembered the similar issue he and Wilson experienced with “A Very Special Love Song.” Thus, to fix the problem, a “counter-melody” was devised to answer the lyrics. It worked and “You And Me” was done in just fifteen minutes. Billy checked himself back into the hospital on time and the session with Tammy Wynette came off on schedule. “You And Me” was recorded and before the week was out, it was released.

The song debuted on Billboard’s Hot Country Singles chart August 21, 1976, and reached the top on October 16th, marking three number one hits in a row for Wynette following “’Til I Can Make It On My Own” and “Golden Ring,” a duet with Tammy’s former husband George Jones.


Tags

Billy Sherrill, George Richey, Tammy Wynette


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