Don Gibson and Kitty Wells Both Had a Big Hit With This Song in 1958

In 1958, Don Gibson was early in his career when he released “I Can’t Stop Loving You”, a song he wrote by himself. Gibson included “I Can’t Stop Loving You” on Oh Lonesome Me, Gibson’s sophomore album. 

Gibson’s version of “I Can’t Stop Loving You” became a Top 10 single for Gibson, but he isn’t the only artist who had a hit with it in 1958. Kitty Wells also released “I Can’t Stop Loving You” in 1958. Wells’ version also became a Top 10 single for her. Wells’ take on “I Can’t Stop Loving You” is part of her Kitty Wells’ Golden Favorites record.

Unlike Gibson, who was just starting out, Wells was already an established artist when she released this song. Six years before, in 1952, Wells had her first No. 1 single, with “It Wasn’t God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels”.

“I Can’t Stop Loving You” says, “I can’t stop loving you / So I’ve made up my mind / To live in memories / Of an old lonesome time.”

By Gibson’s own admission, the end result of “I Can’t Stop Loving You” was not what he originally intended.

“I sat down to write a lost love ballad,” Gibson concedes. “After writing several lines to the song, I looked back and saw the line ‘I can’t stop loving you.’ I said, ‘That would be a good title.’”

Other Successful Cover Versions Of “I Can’t Stop Loving You”

Wells is far from the only artist who covered “I Can’t Stop Loving You”. In fact, “I Can’t Stop Loving You” is one of the most covered songs of all time. Roy Orbison, Faron Young, Frank Sinatra, Jim Reeves, Elvis Presley, and Conway Twitty are just a few of the many, many artists who have put their own spin on this classic hit. 

Still, the most popular cover version of “I Can’t Stop Loving You” is likely by Ray Charles. It’s Charles who had a five-week No. 1 hit with “I Can’t Stop Loving You” when he released it in 1062.

Charles’s version of “I Can’t Stop Loving You” is on his iconic Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music record. Charles’s take on “I Can’t Stop Loving You” hit No.1 on Billboard’s Hot 100, R&B, and Adult Contemporary charts.

Some people may have been surprised at Charles’s version of “I Can’t Stop Loving You”. But to Charles, it just made sense.

 “You take country music, you take Black music, it’s exactly the same thing,” he says.

Photo by kpa/United Archives via Getty Images

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