No Charge - wikipedia No Charge For the Future song, see Purple Reign. `` No Charge '' Melba Montgomery 's 1974 album No Charge Single by Melba Montgomery from the album No Charge A-side `` No Charge '' B - side `` I Love Him Because He 's That Way '' Released April 1974 Format 7 '' Recorded January 1974 Genre Country, Pop Length 3 : 25 Label Elektra 45883 Songwriter ( s ) Harlan Howard Producer ( s ) Pete Drake Melba Montgomery singles chronology `` He 'll Come Home '' ( 1974 ) `` No Charge '' ( 1974 ) `` Your Pretty Roses Come Too Late '' ( 1974 ) `` He 'll Come Home '' ( 1974 ) `` No Charge '' ( 1974 ) `` Your Pretty Roses Come Too Late '' ( 1974 ) `` No Charge '' ' is a country music song, written by songwriter Harlan Howard. It was made famous in North America by country singer Melba Montgomery, whose 1974 version was a # 1 country hit in both the US and Canada, as well as making # 39 on the US pop charts. In the UK, the song is associated with J.J. Barrie, whose 1976 cover was a # 1 UK hit. Contents 1 About the song 1.1 Synopsis 2 Chart performance 3 Cover versions 4 Succession 4.1 Melba Montgomery version 4.2 J.J. Barrie version 5 References About the song Melba Montgomery had already recorded a series of duets hits with country music artists George Jones, Charlie Louvin, and Gene Pitney during the 1960s ( the most successful of those being `` We Must Have Been Out of Our Minds '' with Jones ). In the early 1970s, she began focusing on a solo career, but did not have notable success. Eventually, she began recording for Elektra Records, where her struggles continued. Then, Howard forwarded a song to Montgomery he thought would be perfect for her : `` No Charge. '' She recorded `` No Charge '' in early 1974, and it was released that April. By the end of May, Montgomery enjoyed her first taste of solo success, reaching No. 1 on the Billboard 's Hot Country Singles chart. The song also reached No. 39 on the Billboard Hot 100. Commenting on the record to Tom Roland in The Billboard Book of Number One Country Hits, Harlan Howard said, `` I 've never written a song that moves people so much. I 've had guys tell me they almost wrecked their truck when they heard it ' cause it made them cry. I had a lot of delightful records in many different languages on that song, but I guess that 's probably my favorite song as far as impact is concerned. '' Synopsis A young boy hands his mother an itemized list of charges he says he 's owed for performing various chores and comes to collect ; the singer performs this in spoken word. The mother responds ( singing ) by reminding her son about all the things she 's done for him, that she never asked him to pay for services rendered and that, all things considered, `` the cost of real love is no charge. '' Enlightened, the young boy realizes that his mother is right and changes the amount due to `` paid in full '' ( once again, narrated ) before the singer sings the moral. `` No Charge '' was one of the few songs that talked about motherhood during this time, which might be one of the reasons why it was so popular. Chart performance Chart ( 1974 ) Peak position U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles U.S. Billboard Hot 100 39 Canadian RPM Country Tracks Canadian RPM Top Singles 47 Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary Tracks 24 Cover versions The song has been recorded by numerous other artists since its release by Montgomery. The most successful version was recorded by J.J. Barrie, who took the Bill Amesbury produced song to No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart in June 1976, where it remained for one week. In Canada the song is often associated with Tommy Hunter who performed the song on the CBC Television show. Fellow country singers Johnny Cash and Tammy Wynette recorded versions of the song in the 1970s. It has also been a popular Christian song through the years, most famously performed by Shirley Caesar, who added to the moral by recalling Jesus ' sacrifice for humanity. Billy Connolly recorded a parody of the song in 1976 called `` No Chance ( No Charge ) '', which had a reference to domestic violence. It reached a Top 40 position in the UK chart. C.C. ( Chris ) Sandford recorded a comedy version in 1976 entitled : No Charge ( Chuck ) ( UK : Power Exchange Records PX 223 ) Succession Melba Montgomery version Preceded by `` Country Bumpkin '' by Cal Smith Billboard Hot Country Singles number - one single May 25, 1974 Succeeded by `` Pure Love '' by Ronnie Milsap Preceded by `` Hello Love '' by Hank Snow RPM Country Tracks number - one single May 25, 1974 Succeeded by `` Honeymoon Feelin ' '' by Roy Clark J.J. Barrie version Preceded by `` Fernando '' by ABBA UK number one single June 5, 1976 Succeeded by `` The Combine Harvester '' by The Wurzels References Jump up ^ Whitburn, Joel ( 2004 ). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits : 1944 - 2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 236. Jump up ^ Whitburn, Joel ( 2004 ). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits : Eighth Edition. Record Research. p. 435. Jump up ^ Roland, Tom, `` The Billboard Book of Number One Country Hits '' ( Billboard Books, Watson - Guptill Publications, New York, 1991 ( ISBN 0 - 82 - 307553 - 2 ), p. 112 Jump up ^ Roberts, David ( 2006 ). British Hit Singles & Albums ( 19th ed. ). London : Guinness World Records Limited. p. 43. ISBN 1 - 904994 - 10 - 5. Jump up ^ NME.com - accessed October 2009 Archived June 12, 2009, at the Wayback Machine. Jump up ^ Roberts, David ( 2006 ). British Hit Singles & Albums ( 19th ed. ). London : Guinness World Records Limited. p. 327. ISBN 1 - 904994 - 10 - 5. Jump up ^ Double, Oliver ( 1997 ). Stand Up ! On Being A Comedian. A&C Black. p. 144. ISBN 978 - 0 - 413 - 70320 - 0... Billy Connolly had three chart hits, ' D.I.V.O.R.C.E. ', which reach number one in 1975, ' No Chance ( No Charge ) ' in 1976, and ' In The Brownies ' in 1979. Melba Montgomery Discography Collaborative and solo studio albums What 's in Our Heart Bluegrass Hootenanny Do n't Let the Good Times Fool You Compilation albums A King & Two Queens Famous Country Duets Collaborative singles `` We Must Have Been Out of Our Minds '' `` Let 's Invite Them Over '' `` What 's in Our Heart '' `` Blue Moon of Kentucky '' `` Baby Ai n't That Fine '' `` Something to Brag About '' Solo singles `` No Charge '' `` Do n't Let the Good Times Fool You '' `` Angel of the Morning '' See also George Jones Gene Pitney Charlie Louvin Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=No_Charge&oldid=793162381 '' Categories : Melba Montgomery songs 1974 singles 1976 singles UK Singles Chart number - one singles Billboard Hot Country Songs number - one singles RPM Country Tracks number - one singles Songs written by Harlan Howard 1974 songs Elektra Records singles Hidden categories : Webarchive template wayback links Articles with hAudio microformats Talk Contents About Wikipedia Add links This page was last edited on 31 July 2017, at 01 : 24. 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Question: who sang the country and western song no charge
Answer: Melba Montgomery