We Only Make Believe

AMG Review of We Only Make Believe

Greg Adams
All Music Guide

When two of the biggest country stars joined forces, the result was instant success. "After the First Is Gone," Loretta Lynn and Conway Twitty's first duet single, soared to number one and crossed over to the pop charts, inaugurating a professional association that would yield over a decade of hits. We Only Make Believe, their first duet album, plays on the title of Twitty's first big solo hit, "It's Only Make Believe," which the pair reinterprets as a country duet with steel guitar. "After the Fire Is Gone" is here, and Lynn and Twitty each contribute an original song. Lynn's composition, "Don't Tell Me You're Sorry," is reminiscent of the playful sparring songs of Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton and ends with some strained ad libs (they'd get better at that as time went on). Nothing on the album approaches the excellence of "After the Fire Is Gone," but We Only Make Believe is a good starting point for one of the archetypal duos in country music.