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45 single, Side A. Decca (31848) (1965)
Image credit: walk2013 at 45cat.com
"Friends Tell Friends" is a single by Bill Phillips. It was released on September 13, 1965, by Decca Records. The A-side was written by Dolly with her uncle Bill Owens and featured uncredited harmony vocals from Dolly. The single did not chart, although upon release Billboard magazine did predict it would appear on the Hot Country Songs chart. The song would later be included on Phillips' 1967 album, Bill Phillips' Style. Regardless, Phillips followed up this release with another Parton-Owens composition, "Put It Off Until Tomorrow", in January 1966. The success of this single, which also featured uncredited vocals form Dolly, would prove to be Dolly's breakthrough into country music.

Track listing

Side A
  • Friends Tell Friends (with uncredited harmony by Dolly Parton) (Dolly Parton, Bill Owens) 2:42
Side B
  • It Happens Everytime (Bill Phillips) 2:08

Background

When Dolly was signed to Monument Records by Fred Foster in 1964, she was also signed to a publishing deal with Foster's Combine Music. This arrangement led to Decca country artist Bill Phillips recording two of Dolly's compositions in June 1965. Although the first single released from this session, "Friends Tell Friends", failed to impact the country charts in 1966, the follow-up single in 1967, "Put It Off Until Tomorrow", became a top 10 hit and provided Fred Foster with the evidence he needed to be convinced to market Dolly as a country artist. 

Recording

Both sides of the single were recorded on June 22, 1965, at Columbia Recording Studios in Nashville, Tennessee.

Critical reception

While Billboard did not formally review the single, they did pick it as a single likely to appear on the Hot Country Songs chart in the September 25, 1965 issue (although they mistakenly listed the B-side "It Happens Everytime" as the A-side).
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Billboard review, September 25, 1965.

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the 2009 box set, Dolly, for "Put It Off Until Tomorrow", which was recorded at the same session as this single.
  • Stu Basore – steel guitar
  • Harold Bradley – guitar
  • Owen Bradley – producer
  • Floyd Cramer – piano
  • O'dell Martin – guitar
  • Dolly Parton – harmony vocals
  • Bill Phillips – lead vocals
  • Leo Taylor – drums
  • Paul Yandell – guitar
  • Joe Zinkan – bass