Joe South Wrote One Of The Biggest Hits In The History Of Country Music

There are those select few of the Country Classic's that, when you hear them, you just have to turn up the volume and sing along.  You just can't help yourself.

'Kiss An Angel Good Morning' by Charley Pride.  'Pure Love' by Ronnie Milsap.  Of course 'Ring of Fire' by the Man In Black.

And 'Rose Garden'.

Lynn Anderson had that monster country and pop music smash hit in late 1970.  It was one of those songs that, yep, crank it up and sing right along...'I beg your pardon, I never promised you a rose garden....'.

Did Lynn Anderson write that great classic?  No.

It was a guy named Joe South.  Joe isn't considered one of the legendary songwriters in Country Music history, but he wrote one of the signature songs in the genre.

Joe was already well known in folk and pop music circles.  He'd written such pop hit's as 'Down In The Boondocks' for Billy Joe Royal, 'Yo-Yo', an eventual hit for the Osmonds, 'Hush', which the rock band Deep Purple would have a hit with, along with many others.

It was 1969 that Joe South's name first became famous around the country with his huge Pop/Rock anthem, the no-nonsense 1960's social song 'Games People Play', a song that freddie Weller would have a hit with in Country Music.

And then came 'Rose Garden'.  Wow.  A huge hit in 16 countries world-wide, it earned Lynn Anderson a Grammy and Joe two Grammy nominations.

By the way, Joe also wrote another Lynn Anderson #1 hit 'How Can I Unlove You'.

Joe passed away at his home in Buford, Georgia in 2012 at the age of 72.