Dickey Lee
Encyclopedia
Royden Dickey Lipscomb known professionally as Dickey Lee (sometimes misspelled Dickie Lee or Dicky Lee), is an American
pop
/country
singer and songwriter
, best known for the 1960s teenage tragedy song
s "Patches" and "Laurie (Strange Things Happen)."
in his hometown of Memphis for Tampa Records and Sun Records
in 1957-58. He achieved his first chart
success in 1962, when his composition "She Thinks I Still Care
" was a hit
for George Jones
(covered by Elvis Presley, Connie Francis
and later Anne Murray
as "He Thinks I Still Care"). Later that year, "Patches," written by Barry Mann
and Larry Kobler and recorded by Lee for Smash Records
, rose to #6. The song tells in waltz-time the story of teenage lovers of different social classes whose parents forbid their love. The girl drowns herself in the "dirty old river." The singer concludes: "It may not be right, but I'll join you tonight/ Patches I'm coming to you." Because of the teen suicide
theme, the song was banned by a number of radio station
s. However, it sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc
.
Lee had a #14 hit in 1963 with a song he co-wrote, a conventional rocker, "I Saw Linda Yesterday." The song has a strong resemblance to Dion DiMucci
's #1 pop hit, "Runaround Sue
," released two years earlier. In 1965, he returned to teen tragedy with "Laurie (Strange Things Happen)," a song related to the urban legend
s known as the vanishing hitchhiker
and Resurrection Mary
.
After the 1960s, Lee devoted his efforts to country music performing and songwriting. His 1970s country hits as a singer include "Never Ending Song of Love," "Rocky" (another bitter-sweet song, written by Jay Stevens of Springfield, MO - a.k.a. Woody P. Snow), "Angels, Roses, and Rain," and "9,999,999 Tears."
He co-wrote the 1994 Tracy Byrd hit "The Keeper of the Stars
," and has written or co-written songs for a number of other prominent country artists, including George Strait
, Charley Pride
, and Reba McEntire
.
He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame
in 1995. Lee is included as co-writer and singer on singer-songwriter
Michael Saxell
's 2005 album Wonky Windmill on the song "Two Men".
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
/country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
singer and songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
, best known for the 1960s teenage tragedy song
Teenage tragedy song
The "teenage tragedy song", also known as death rock, "tear jerker" or a "splatter platter", is a style of ballad that was most popular between the late 1950s and early 1960s...
s "Patches" and "Laurie (Strange Things Happen)."
Career
Lee made his first recordingsSound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
in his hometown of Memphis for Tampa Records and Sun Records
Sun Records
Sun Records is a record label founded in Memphis, Tennessee, starting operations on March 27, 1952.Founded by Sam Phillips, Sun Records was known for giving notable musicians such as Elvis Presley , Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison, and Johnny Cash...
in 1957-58. He achieved his first chart
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
success in 1962, when his composition "She Thinks I Still Care
She Thinks I Still Care
"She Thinks I Still Care" is a song written by Dickey Lee and Steve Duffy which became the third C&W #1 hit for George Jones, spending six weeks at #1 in the spring/summer of 1962...
" was a hit
Hit single
A hit single is a recorded song or instrumental released as a single that has become very popular. Although it is sometimes used to describe any widely-played or big-selling song, the term "hit" is usually reserved for a single that has appeared in an official music chart through repeated radio...
for George Jones
George Jones
George Glenn Jones is an American country music singer known for his long list of hit records, his distinctive voice and phrasing, and his marriage to Tammy Wynette....
(covered by Elvis Presley, Connie Francis
Connie Francis
Connie Francis is an American pop singer of Italian heritage and the top-charting female vocalist of the 1950s and 1960s. Although her chart success waned in the second half of the 1960s, Francis remained a top concert draw...
and later Anne Murray
Anne Murray
Morna Anne Murray CC, ONS is a Canadian singer in pop, country and adult contemporary styles whose albums have sold over 54 million copies....
as "He Thinks I Still Care"). Later that year, "Patches," written by Barry Mann
Barry Mann
Barry Mann is an American songwriter, and part of a successful songwriting partnership with his wife, Cynthia Weil.-Career:...
and Larry Kobler and recorded by Lee for Smash Records
Smash Records
Smash Records is an American record label. It was founded in 1961 as a subsidiary of Mercury Records by Mercury executive Shelby Singleton and run by Singleton with Charlie Fach. Fach took over after Singleton left Mercury in 1966...
, rose to #6. The song tells in waltz-time the story of teenage lovers of different social classes whose parents forbid their love. The girl drowns herself in the "dirty old river." The singer concludes: "It may not be right, but I'll join you tonight/ Patches I'm coming to you." Because of the teen suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
theme, the song was banned by a number of radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
s. However, it sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
.
Lee had a #14 hit in 1963 with a song he co-wrote, a conventional rocker, "I Saw Linda Yesterday." The song has a strong resemblance to Dion DiMucci
Dion DiMucci
Dion Francis DiMucci , better known as Dion, is an American singer-songwriter whose work has incorporated elements of doo-wop, pop oldies music, rock and R&B styles....
's #1 pop hit, "Runaround Sue
Runaround Sue
"Runaround Sue" is a pop song, originally a US No. 1 hit for the singer Dion during 1961. The song ranked No. 342 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time".-Original recording:...
," released two years earlier. In 1965, he returned to teen tragedy with "Laurie (Strange Things Happen)," a song related to the urban legend
Urban legend
An urban legend, urban myth, urban tale, or contemporary legend, is a form of modern folklore consisting of stories that may or may not have been believed by their tellers to be true...
s known as the vanishing hitchhiker
Vanishing hitchhiker
The vanishing hitchhiker story is an urban legend in which people travelling by vehicle meet with or are accompanied by a hitchhiker who subsequently vanishes without explanation, often from a moving vehicle...
and Resurrection Mary
Resurrection Mary
Resurrection Mary is a well-know Chicago area ghost story. Of the "vanishing hitchhiker" type, the story takes place outside Resurrection Cemetery in Justice, Illinois, a few miles southwest of Chicago....
.
After the 1960s, Lee devoted his efforts to country music performing and songwriting. His 1970s country hits as a singer include "Never Ending Song of Love," "Rocky" (another bitter-sweet song, written by Jay Stevens of Springfield, MO - a.k.a. Woody P. Snow), "Angels, Roses, and Rain," and "9,999,999 Tears."
He co-wrote the 1994 Tracy Byrd hit "The Keeper of the Stars
The Keeper of the Stars
"The Keeper of the Stars" is the title of a song recorded by American country music artist Tracy Byrd. Released in early 1995 as the last single from his 1994 album No Ordinary Man, it went on to reach a peak of #2 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts...
," and has written or co-written songs for a number of other prominent country artists, including George Strait
George Strait
George Harvey Strait is an American country music singer, actor, and music producer. Strait is referred to as the "King of Country," and critics call Strait a living legend. He is known for his unique style of western swing music, bar-room ballads, honky-tonk style, and fresh yet traditional...
, Charley Pride
Charley Pride
Charley Frank Pride is an American country music singer. His smooth baritone voice was featured on thirty-nine number-one hits on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts. His greatest success came in the early- to mid-1970s, when he became the best-selling performer for RCA Records since Elvis...
, and Reba McEntire
Reba McEntire
Reba Nell McEntire is an American country music artist and actress. She began her career in the music industry as a high school student singing in the Kiowa High School band , on local radio shows with her siblings, and at rodeos. As a solo act, she was invited to perform at a rodeo in Oklahoma...
.
He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame
Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame
The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame was established by the Nashville Songwriters Foundation, Inc. in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. A non-profit organization, its objective is to honor and preserve the songwriting legacy that is uniquely associated with music community in the city of...
in 1995. Lee is included as co-writer and singer on singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
Michael Saxell
Michael Saxell
Michael Saxell is a singer-songwriter, composer, lyricist, multi-instrumentalist and producer. He was born in Helsingborg, Sweden but has spent many years on the Canadian west coast...
's 2005 album Wonky Windmill on the song "Two Men".
Albums
| Year | Album | Chart Positions | Label | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
|||
| 1962 | The Tale of Patches | — | 50 | Smash |
| 1965 | Laurie and the Girl from Peyton Place | — | — | TCF Hall |
| 1971 | Never Ending Song of Love | 12 | — | RCA Victor |
| 1972 | Ashes of Love | 16 | — | |
| Baby, Bye Bye | — | — | ||
| 1973 | Crying Over You | 42 | — | |
| Sparklin' Brown Eyes | — | — | ||
| 1975 | Rocky | 8 | — | |
| 1976 | Angels, Roses and Rain | 27 | — | |
| 1979 | Dickey Lee | — | — | Mercury |
| 1980 | Again | — | — | |
| 1981 | Everybody Loves a Winner | — | — |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart Positions | Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales... |
US Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
CAN Country | CAN | |||
| 1962 | "Patches" "More Or Less" |
— | 6 | — | — | The Tale of Patches |
| 1963 | "I Saw Linda Yesterday" | — | 14 | — | — | singles only |
| "Don't Wanna Think About Paula" | — | 68 | — | — | ||
| "I Go Lonely" | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Day the Sawmill Closed Down" | — | 104 | — | — | ||
| 1964 | "To the Aisle" | — | — | — | — | |
| "Me and My Teardrops" | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Big Brother" "She's Walking Away" |
— | 101 | — | — | ||
| 1965 | "Laurie (Strange Things Happen)" | — | 14 | — | 6 | Laurie And The Girl From Peyton Place |
| "Girl from Peyton Place" | — | 73 | — | 23 | ||
| 1966 | "Good Girl Goin' Bad" | — | — | — | — | singles only |
| "Good Guy" | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1968 | "Red, Green, Yellow and Blue" | — | 107 | — | — | |
| 1970 | "All Too Soon" | — | — | — | — | |
| "Special" | — | — | — | — | Never Ending Song of Love | |
| 1971 | "The Mahogany Pulpit" | 55 | — | — | — | |
| "Never Ending Song of Love" | 8 | — | 31 | — | ||
| 1972 | "I Saw My Lady" | 25 | — | — | — | Ashes of Love |
| "Ashes of Love" | 15 | — | — | — | ||
| "Baby, Bye Bye" | 31 | — | 15 | — | Baby, Bye Bye | |
| 1973 | "Crying Over You" | 43 | — | — | — | Crying Over You |
| "Put Me Down Softly" | 30 | — | — | — | Sparklin' Brown Eyes | |
| "Sparklin' Brown Eyes" | 49 | — | — | — | ||
| 1974 | "I Use the Soap" | 46 | — | — | — | Rocky |
| "Give Me One Good Reason" | 90 | — | — | — | ||
| "The Busiest Memory in Town" | 22 | — | 15 | — | ||
| 1975 | "Door Is Always Open" | — | — | — | — | |
| "Rocky" | 1 | — | 9 | — | ||
| 1976 | "Angels, Roses and Rain Angels, Roses and Rain "Angels, Roses and Rain" is a single by American country music artist Dickey Lee. Released in January 1976, it was the first single from his album Angels, Roses and Rain. The song peaked at number 9 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. It also reached number 1 on the RPM Country Tracks chart... " |
9 | — | 1 | — | Angels, Roses and Rain |
| "Makin' Love Don't Always Make Love Grow" | 35 | — | — | — | ||
| "9,999,999 Tears" | 3 | 52 | 3 | 85 | ||
| 1977 | "If You Gotta Make a Fool of Somebody" | 20 | — | 17 | — | singles only |
| "Virginia, How Far Will You Go" | 22 | — | 12 | — | ||
| "Peanut Butter" | 21 | — | 39 | — | ||
| 1978 | "Love Is a Word" | 27 | — | — | — | |
| "My Heart Won't Cry Anymore" | 49 | — | — | — | ||
| "It's Not Easy" | 58 | — | — | — | ||
| 1979 | "I'm Just a Heartache Away" | 58 | — | — | — | Dickey Lee |
| "He's an Old Rock 'N' Roller" | 94 | — | — | — | ||
| 1980 | "Don't Look Back" | 61 | — | — | — | |
| "Workin' My Way to Your Heart" | 30 | — | — | — | Again | |
| "Lost in Love Lost in Love (Air Supply song) "Lost in Love" is a 1980 song recorded by the Australian group Air Supply. The song was written by group member Graham Russell and included on their Life Support... " (w/ Kathy Burdick) |
30 | — | — | — | ||
| 1981 | "Honky Tonk Hearts" | 37 | — | — | — | Everybody Loves a Winner |
| "I Wonder If I Care as Much" | 53 | — | — | — | ||
| 1982 | "Everybody Loves a Winner" | 56 | — | — | — |
External links
- [ Allmusic]