Exactly 55 years ago today, on June 8, 1962, Skeeter Davis stepped into RCA Studios in Nashville with producer Chet Atkins to record "The End of the World."  Despite having a professional recording career dating back nearly a decade to 1953 as both a solo act and one-half of The Davis Sisters (including several Country chart hits), "The End of the World" would be Skeeter's "breakthrough" and become forever associated with her as it climbed to No. 2 on both Billboard's Hot 100 and Country charts, No. 4 on the R&B chart and topped the Easy Listening chart.  It would propel her career to a new level.  Two years later, Skeeter would release the album Let Me Be Close to You, which Australia's Playback Records has just released in a new expanded edition with 13 bonus tracks, including the aforementioned "The End of the World."  This new CD version also features liner notes by our very own Joe Marchese.

Born Mary Frances Penick in 1931, the artist would be pick up the nickname "Skeeter" from her grandfather.  She would gain the second half of her professional name when she met Betty Jack Davis in high school and the two began singing together.  Soon, The Davis Sisters were born.  They would sign with RCA Victor on May 20, 1953 after auditioning in front of Steve Sholes, Chet Atkins and Eddy Arnold.  Their first single was recorded just three days later and "I Forgot More Than You'll Even Know" would top the Billboard Country chart.  Tragically, Betty Jack did not get to enjoy this success for long as she perished in a car accident on August 2, 1953.  The Davis Sisters would continue with Betty Jack's sister Georgia joining Skeeter in the act.  However, they had no further hits and split in 1956.

RCA kept Skeeter under contract and she began recording as a solo artist in 1957 with Atkins producing.  Perhaps to replicate the sound of the The Davis Sisters, Atkins began to double and even triple-track Skeeter's vocals.  This was also just as "The Nashville Sound" Atkins helped to shepherd into country music was becoming more prevalent with its smooth vocals and increased orchestrations.  With Skeeter's multi-track vocals and Atkins production methods, her recordings began to become a mix "The Nashville Sound" and what was becoming known as "The Girl Group Sound."

Skeeter would have a couple of Top 5 country hits along with other chart successes until "The End of the World" came along.  After its crossover appeal, RCA began to have Skeeter record both traditional country tunes along with those more in the "pop" vein such as Goffin and King's "Let Me Be Close to You" which was issued on a single in July 1964.  It would become the title track of her fifth solo studio RCA album in December, 1964.  This new album was a mix of old and new songs, bringing together several singles dating as far back as 1962 including another Goffin-King cut "I Can't Stay Mad at You" which went to No. 7 Pop in 1963.  It also included several tunes recorded for inclusion on the album such as Dottie West's "Didn't I" and Johnny Tillotson's "Another You."

Let Me Be Close to You, which is making its first CD appearance outside of Japan, has been expanded with a generous 13 tracks by Playback Records for this new edition.  It features an additional 10 single sides, including the No. 9 Country "I'm Saving My Love" from 1963.  All in all, this edition features all of Davis' charting solo singles between 1963 and 1965.  It also includes other songs from this era such as "On and On and On" from a 1966 various artists compilation, "I Don't Want to Love You" which was unissued originally and didn't appear until a 2006 CD and "La, La, La" which has never been released before.  The deluxe package contains a 16-page color booklet featuring Joe's 8 pages of liner notes exploring Skeeter's and the album's history.  All tracks have been remastered from the original tapes by Warren Barnett.

If you would like to hear Skeeter's blend of pop and country, we've got the full tracklisting and ordering links below.

Skeeter Davis, Let Me Get Close to You: Expanded Edition (Playback Records, 2017) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

1. Now I Lay Me Down to Weep
2. Gonna Get Along Without You Now
3. Didn't I
4. My Sweet Loving Man
5. I Can't Stay Mad At You
6. My Happiness
7. Let Me Get Close to You
8. Another You
9. Ladder of Success
10. He Says the Same Things to Me
11. Ask Me
12. Easy to Love (So Hard to Get)
13. Don't Let Me Stand In Your Way
14. La, La, La
15. I Don't Want to Love You
16. What Am I Gonna Do With You
17. Sunglasses
18. On and On and On
19. The Face of Clown
20. Now You're Gone
21. It Was Only a Heart
22. How Much Can a Lonely Heart Stand
23. Somebody Else On Your Mind
24. I'm Saving My Love
25. The End of the World

Tracks 1-12 from Let Me Get Close to You, RCA Victor LP 2980, 1964
Tracks 13, 16 from RCA Victor Single 47-8450, 1964
Track 14 Previously Unreleased
Track 15 Unreleased originally, appeared on The Pop Hits Collection Volume 2, Taragon CD 21108, 2006
Track 17 from RCA Victor Single 47-8862, 1965
Track 18 from Country Girls Sing Country Songs, RCA Camden LP CAS-959, 1966
Track 19 from RCA Victor Single 47-8397, 1964
Track 20 from RCA Victor Single 47-8347, 1964
Track 21 from RCA Victor Single 47-8219, 1963
Track 22 from RCA Victor Single 47-8288, 1964
Tracks 23-24 from RCA Victor Single 47-8176, 1963
Track 24 from RCA Victor Single 47-8098, 1962