"Don't Toss Us Away" is a song written by

Bryan MacLean Bryan Andrew MacLean (September 25, 1946 – December 25, 1998) was an American singer, guitarist and songwriter, best known for his work with the influential rock band Love. His famous compositions for Love include "Alone Again Or", "Old Man ...

and recorded by country rock band

Lone Justice Lone Justice was an American country rock band formed in 1982 by guitarist Ryan Hedgecock and singer Maria McKee in Los Angeles. The band released two albums, '' Lone Justice'' in 1985 and '' Shelter'' the following year, before disbanding in ...

in 1985 on their

self-titled An eponym is a noun after which or for which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. Adjectives derived from the word ''eponym'' include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Eponyms are commonly used for time periods, places, innovati ...

debut album. In 1988, the song was recorded by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

singer

Patty Loveless Patty Loveless (born Patricia Lee Ramey, January 4, 1957) is an American country music singer. She began performing in her teenaged years before signing her first recording contract with MCA Records' Nashville division in 1985. While her first ...

, who released it as the second single from her album '' Honky Tonk Angel'', in February 1989. Loveless' version reached the number five position on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

Hot Country Singles Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data along with digital sales and streaming. ...

chart in May 1989.

Background

Loveless and her brother, Roger Ramey, heard the song while driving with Tony Brown. All of them agreed it would be a good song for her to record, as the ballad fit her vocal style quite well.

Maria McKee Maria Luisa McKee (born August 17, 1964) is an American singer-songwriter. She is best known for her work with Lone Justice, her 1990 song " Show Me Heaven", and her song "If Love Is a Red Dress (Hang Me in Rags)" from soundtrack of the film ...

, songwriter Bryan MacLean's sister and Lone Justice singer, told Loveless at the studio that she was singing/recording the song the way her brother had always intended.

Chart positions

The song charted for 17 weeks on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles chart, reaching number 5 during the week of May 6, 1989.

Year-end charts

References

{{authority control 1985 songs 1989 singles Patty Loveless songs Song recordings produced by Tony Brown (record producer) Songs written by Bryan MacLean Country ballads MCA Nashville Records singles