This song is so dreadfully earnest that I couldn't listen to it for more than 57 seconds. It was some consolation to discover that Mary MacGregor (born 1948) couldn't stand this song either, despite being successful with it, as she didn't have sympathy for its narrator. Sadly, the song led to the breakup of her own marriage, as she was touring away from home for so long that she and her husband decided to separate.
Ms. MacGregor was from St. Paul, Minnesota. She started her career singing backup for Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul & Mary. Yarrow co-wrote and produced "Torn Between Two Lovers"; it reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was certified as a gold record.
Ms. MacGregor continued to release albums and singles up to 1981, making it to the lower reaches of the chart a few times. She performed and toured up to about the turn of the millennium, from what I could determine. She remarried, had two children, and eventually retired to California.
Created September 18, 2026.