It Won't Happen With Me (take named (1) on BCD 17254)

Take 1. Firstly issued in 1977 on "Sun - The Roots of Rock, Volume 9: More Rebel Rockabilly".
Mistakenly identified on the booklet of "The Sun Years" (12 LP set) as single master. In fact the master is take 2 with length 3:01.
Note from the back cover of Record 2 of "The Sun Years". Chosen as the follow-up to "What'd I Say", this song derives from Jerry's second Nashville session and was released almost immediately after Jerry recorded it in June 1961. Hopes must have been high for this one; it's about as self-consciously commercial as anything Jerry ever recorded. It was a fine vehicle for Jerry who was able to write off all his competitors and proclaim his own virtues at the same time. The song begins in true pop-gospel fashion, moving along in a 1-6 minor progression with some simulated Raelets along for the ride. It refers to a bevy of contemporary pop stars from Fabian to Jackie Wilson. Even Elvis features in the song. Aside from its vapid pop lyric, the song is a nicely played gospel-tinged rocker with fine piano work and some very inspired drumming by Buddy Harman.
The origin of the song is interesting. Otis Blackwell is said to have written it in 1958 and sold it to Jud Phillips along with other songs for Jerry. By the time Jerry actually used it, two years later, Blackwell had apparently copyrighted the song under the pseudonym Raymond Evans. There is a complication, though; when it did appear, the song was published by Sun's Knox Music and the content referred to songs that had not been issued back in 1958 (for instance, Ricky Nelson's"Travellin' Man" from April 1961).