"Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to You" is a country song written by singer-songwriter Pebe Sebert and Hugh Moffatt. It was a number 14 U.S. country hit for Joe Sun in 1978, and a number 86 hit for Brian Collins the same year. It was later covered by Dolly Parton, who took it to the top of the U.S. country singles charts in August 1980.[1] Parton included her version on her 1980 Dolly, Dolly, Dolly album, and it was released as the album's second single after the success of "Starting Over Again". In 2013, Sebert's daughter, Kesha, released an acoustic cover of the song as part of her extended play Deconstructed. A new version featuring Parton is a track on Kesha's 2017 album Rainbow.
| "Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to You" | |
|---|---|
| Single by Joe Sun | |
| B-side | "(Home Away From Home) I'll Find It Where I Can" |
| Released | April 1978 |
| Recorded | February 1978 |
| Studio | LSI Recording Studio, Nashville, Tennessee |
| Genre | Country |
| Length | 3:12 |
| Label | Ovation |
| Songwriter(s) | Patricia Rose Sebert, Hugh Moffatt |
| Producer(s) | Brien Fisher |
| "Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to You" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Dolly Parton | ||||
| from the album Dolly, Dolly, Dolly | ||||
| B-side | "I Knew You When" | |||
| Released | June 23, 1980 | |||
| Recorded | 1980 | |||
| Studio | Sound Labs, California | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 3:26 | |||
| Label | RCA | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Patricia Rose Sebert, Hugh Moffatt | |||
| Producer(s) | Gary Klein | |||
| Dolly Parton singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Content
editIn the song, the narrator tells their lover not to feel threatened by past affairs for these "old flames" are in the past and disappear from memory because of the current love.
Chart performance
editJoe Sun
edit| Chart (1978) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada Country Tracks (RPM)[2] | 29 |
| US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[3] | 14 |
Brian Collins
edit| Chart (1978) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[4] | 86 |
Dolly Parton
edit| Chart (1980) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada Country Tracks (RPM)[5] | 2 |
| US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[6] | 1 |
References
edit- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 262.
- ^ "Top RPM Country Tracks: Issue 0010a." RPM. Library and Archives Canada.
- ^ "Joe Sun Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
- ^ "Brian Collins Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
- ^ "Top RPM Country Tracks: Issue 0246a." RPM. Library and Archives Canada.
- ^ "Dolly Parton Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
