Johnny Mathis / Behind the Songs
The Twelfth of Never: The B-Side That Refused to Stay There
He didn’t think much of it. Radio disagreed — all the way to No. 9.
The record in context
“The Twelfth of Never” was written by Jerry Livingston and Paul Francis Webster — the melody, except for the bridge, adapted from the old English folk tune “The Riddle Song” (“I Gave My Love a Cherry”). Mathis recorded it in the same June 16, 1957 session as “Chances Are,” and it was released as the B-side of that single on August 12, 1957. Mathis reportedly didn’t think much of the song. Radio DJs thought otherwise: they flipped the record, and “The Twelfth of Never” charted on its own, reaching No. 9 on the Billboard chart — one of the great B-side success stories in pop history.
The song’s afterlife is remarkable. Cliff Richard took it to No. 8 in the UK in 1964; Donny Osmond made it a No. 1 in the UK in 1973. But Mathis was first, and his remains the template: the tender, unhurried original against which every cover is measured.
Listen closely
The lyric is a vow of impossible devotion: I’ll love you until “the twelfth of never” — a date that will never come, which is exactly the point. It’s a young man’s grand romantic gesture, and Mathis sings it with complete sincerity, never winking at the extravagance. Listen to how he handles the title phrase: not as a punchline, but as a promise, delivered with the same gravity he’d give a wedding vow.
The folk-song DNA is audible in the melody’s plainspoken rise and fall — this is a tune that could be sung around a fire, and Mathis honors that simplicity. He doesn’t ornament it; he lets the long notes do the work. Notice the bridge, the one section not drawn from “The Riddle Song”: the melody lifts, the orchestra swells slightly, and Mathis follows it upward with that effortless breath control, as if the song is ascending on its own and he’s simply riding it.
It’s worth pondering why Mathis undervalued it. Perhaps it felt too simple next to the sophisticated “Chances Are”; perhaps the folk origin made it feel less like “his” kind of song. Whatever the reason, the public heard what he didn’t: that simplicity, in that voice, was devastating. The B-side that refused to stay a B-side is a reminder that artists are often the worst judges of their own work — and that sometimes the throwaway is the treasure.
Play it after “Chances Are” and marvel at the single: two songs, both timeless, one record. The summer of 1957 really was like that.
Discography and chart reference ↗
Release context is sourced above. Listening observations are Past Tunes’ original interpretation, not quotations from the artist.
More from Johnny Mathis
The single that introduced the voice — and started the greatest year in pop.
1957 / Behind the SongsIt’s Not for Me to Say: The Movie Song That Outlived the MovieA small role in Lizzie, a Top 5 hit, and a song that never left.
1957 / Behind the SongsChances Are: The Song That Made a SummerRecorded in June, No. 1 by October — the making of a signature.
1957 / Behind the SongsWild Is the Wind: The Title Song That Outlived Its FilmHe recorded it first; history remembers the covers. Hear the original.
1958 / Behind the SongsA Certain Smile: The Oscar-Nominated WhisperA film song, an Oscar nomination, and understatement as art.
1959 / Behind the SongsMisty: The Teenager’s Request That Became a SignatureHe asked Erroll Garner for lyrics as a boy. A decade later, he made it immortal.
1962 / Behind the SongsGina: The Early-Sixties ComebackThe rock era arrived; Mathis answered with a Top 10 ballad.
1963 / Behind the SongsWhat Will Mary Say: Gossip Set to MusicA small-town scandal in three minutes — his last Top 10 for fifteen years.
1978 / Behind the SongsToo Much, Too Little, Too Late: Twenty-One Years Between Number OnesA duet with Deniece Williams, and the longest gap between No. 1s in pop history.