About The Song
“Under Your Spell Again” was the record that first made the country world sit up and pay attention to Buck Owens. Co-written by Owens and Dusty Rhodes and released as a single on Capitol in July 1959, it captured a young singer just as he was finding the sharp, electric Bakersfield sound that would define his career. At a time when Nashville was polishing country music with strings and choirs, this two-minute-and-forty-second track offered something leaner and more direct: twangy guitars, a driving beat and a voice that sounded both hurt and stubborn at the same time.
The single was cut in 1959 with producer Ken Nelson, the Capitol A&R man who became Owens’ key ally. Nelson gave Buck room to use his own band and chase a more aggressive sound than what was typical on Music Row. “Under Your Spell Again” came on the heels of his first Top 40 entry, “Second Fiddle,” and together they marked the moment when Owens moved from struggling West Coast act to serious national contender. A couple of years later, the song would be folded into his debut album Buck Owens, issued in 1961 and later reissued under the title Under Your Spell Again, underlining how central it was to his early identity.
On the charts, the song was a breakthrough. “Under Your Spell Again” climbed to No. 4 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart in late 1959, his first Top 5 hit and the real beginning of the streak that would dominate the 1960s.:contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0} It stayed on the survey for weeks, holding its own alongside more traditional Nashville records and proving that a harder-edged California sound could compete nationwide. Looking back, historians often point to this single as the one that opened the door for later classics like “Above and Beyond,” “Foolin’ Around” and, eventually, “Act Naturally.”
The lyric hits a nerve that country fans recognized immediately. The narrator admits he has been completely taken over by someone he loves, almost like a man under a spell he cannot break. Friends warn him, his pride tells him to walk away, but he keeps circling back, unable to resist. The phrase “under your spell again” perfectly captures that mix of frustration and surrender: he knows this love isn’t good for him, but he also knows he isn’t going anywhere. It is simple storytelling, but the combination of plain language and emotional precision makes it feel like a conversation listeners might have with themselves late at night.
Owens’ vocal performance sells every line. He sings in a clear, ringing tenor that carries a hint of steel underneath the sadness, as if the man in the song is already bracing for the next disappointment. Behind him, the band leans into a bright, shuffling groove with clean electric guitar, steel and a snapping snare drum. There are no lush strings or choir parts to soften the blow; instead, the space in the arrangement lets the ache in his voice come through. That uncluttered approach became a Bakersfield trademark and helped distinguish Buck from the smoother crooners of the era.
The influence of “Under Your Spell Again” spread quickly. Ray Price cut his own version in 1959, giving the song additional life on country radio, and over the years it was revisited by Johnny Rivers, Barbara Fairchild, Shelby Lynne and others.:contentReference[oaicite:1]{index=1} In 1971, Waylon Jennings and Jessi Colter turned it into a duet, threading it into the emerging outlaw movement. Each cover emphasized a different shade — from Nashville polish to pop-soul crossover — but all of them kept the skeleton that Owens and Rhodes had built: a stubborn melody and a confession too honest to ignore.
Within Buck Owens’ own story, the song now feels like the first real chapter of his prime. It arrived just before the flood of 1960s No. 1s, at a moment when he was still fighting for attention and refining the sound that would later define Bakersfield on records, tours and TV. Modern compilations still place “Under Your Spell Again” near the beginning of any serious overview of his work, not just for historical reasons but because the record still hits as hard as ever. More than six decades after its release, the feeling of being pulled back into a love you know is dangerous remains as recognizable as the snap of Buck’s guitar and the ache in his voice.
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Lyric
You’ve got me under your spell again
Sayin’ those things again
Makin’ me believe that you’re just mine
You’ve got me dreamin’ those dreams again
Thinkin’ those things again
I’ve gotta take you back just one more time
I swore the last time that you let me down
That I wouldn’t see you if you came around
But I can’t tell my heart what’s right or wrong
And I’ve been so lonely since you’ve been gone
You’ve got me under your spell again
Sayin’ those things again
Makin’ me believe that you’re just mine
You’ve got me dreamin’ those dreams again
Thinkin’ those things again
I’ve gotta take you back just one more time
Well, everybody tells me that I’m a fool
That I never should have put my faith in you
And way down deep inside I guess I know it’s true
But no one else can make me feel the way you do
You’ve got me under your spell again
Sayin’ those things again
Makin’ me believe that you’re just mine
You’ve got me dreamin’ those dreams again
Thinkin’ those things again
I’ve gotta take you back just one more time