“That’s the Way Love Goes,” a song written by Lefty Frizzell and Sanger D. Shafer, was first recorded by Johnny Rodriguez for the Mercury label on July 11, 1973. And it reached number # 1 of the charts of U.S Hot Country Songs, on February 16, 1974.
Merle Haggard recorded it for the Epic label, between January and March 1983, in Woodland Sound Studio and Eleven Sound Studios, Nashville, TN, with the production of Merle Haggard and Ray Baker, the song was released in August 1983, 11 February 1984, and reached # 1 on the charts of US Hot Country Songs, and remained a total of 21 weeks on the charts. In Canadian RPM Country Tracks, It reached at number # 2. Was his 30th number one single. And won him that year’s Grammy Award for Best Country Vocal Performance – Male. I have charted a second rendition of the song in 1999 as a duet with Jewel, taking this version to # 56 on the country charts.
The song was included in Merle’s thirtieth studio album, That’s the Way Love Goes (Epic 1983), the album was released in August 1983, February 11, 1984, reached number 8 on the US Top charts Country Albums, remaining in the charts a total of 50 weeks.
Some Versions:
Johnny Rodriguez 1973 (Mercury)
Lefty Frizzell 1973 (ABC Records)
Justin Tubb 1974 (Hilltop)
Willie Nelson 1977 (Columbia)
David Frizzell 1986 (Playback Records)
Shawn Colvin 1994 (Columbia)
Moe Bandy 1997 (Intersound)
Anne Murray 2002 (Straightway Records)
Allen Frizzell 2008 (F.H.M)
Larry Nix 2019 (Coastal Bend Music)
And some more ….
Miquel Batlle Garriga
mbatllegarriga@gmail.com