Wayne Carson Thompson is an American 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...

 musician. He is a songwriter, producer and plays percussion, piano, guitar, and bass. His most famous songs include "Neon Rainbow

Neon Rainbow

"Neon Rainbow" is a song written by Wayne Carson Thompson and made famous by Memphis blue-eyed soul band The Box Tops.-About:The track is featured on The Letter/Neon Rainbow...

", "The Letter", "Always on My Mind

Always on My Mind

"Always on My Mind" is an American country music song by Johnny Christopher, Mark James and Wayne Carson, originally recorded by Brenda Lee in 1972.Allmusic lists over 300 recorded releases of the song in versions by dozens of performers...

" (with Mark James

Mark James

Mark Hugh James is an English professional golfer who had a long career on the European Tour and captained Europe in the 1999 Ryder Cup. He now plays senior golf on the U.S.-based Champions Tour....

 and Johnny Christopher), and "Soul Deep".

Biography

Born in Denver, Colorado

Colorado

Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...

, his parents, Odie and Olivia Thompson, played music professionally. They met in Nebraska while working for radio station KMMJ, moved to Colorado and eventually to Springfield, Missouri

Springfield, Missouri

Springfield is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County. According to the 2010 census data, the population was 159,498, an increase of 5.2% since the 2000 census. The Springfield Metropolitan Area, population 436,712, includes the counties of...

 to join the KWTO-AM

KWTO

KWTO refers to two radio stations in Springfield, Missouri, USA. On AM, KWTO can be found at 560 kHz, where it airs a news-talk format. On FM, KWTO operates at 98.7 MHz and carries a sports talk format....

 music staff. By then, they were better known by their stage names, Shorty and Sue Thompson. Shorty Thompson was perhaps best known around the Ozarks as a member of radio and television mainstay the Tall Timber Boys.

Carson wanted to pick up a guitar when he was about 14, after hearing a recording by Merle Travis

Merle Travis

Merle Robert Travis was an American country and western singer, songwriter, and musician born in Rosewood, Kentucky. His lyrics often discussed the life and exploitation of coal miners. Among his many well-known songs are "Sixteen Tons", "Re-Enlistment Blues" and "Dark as a Dungeon"...

. Even so, he was quickly taken by the newer sound of rock 'n' roll. He lived in several cities, including Denver, as a young man leading bands; and moved to Nashville, Tennessee

Nashville, Tennessee

Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...

 in 1962.

He eventually came back to Springfield where he began working with music publisher and promoter Si Siman. Together they pitched songs for years, but without success until Siman's friend and producer Chet Atkins

Chet Atkins

Chester Burton Atkins , known as Chet Atkins, was an American guitarist and record producer who, along with Owen Bradley, created the smoother country music style known as the Nashville sound, which expanded country's appeal to adult pop music fans as well.Atkins's picking style, inspired by Merle...

 took a liking to a tune called "Somebody Like Me" and wanted to have Eddy Arnold

Eddy Arnold

Richard Edward Arnold , known professionally as Eddy Arnold, was an American country music singer who performed for six decades. He was a so-called Nashville sound innovator of the late 1950s, and scored 147 songs on the Billboard country music charts, second only to George Jones. He sold more...

 record it. Carson was taken aback when he got a call from Arnold, one of the most successful country acts of all time.

"Eddie said, 'Wayne, I love the song, but it needs another verse'," Carson recalled. "So I said, 'Well, the third verse goes like this' and I just wrote it right there over the phone." The song became his first number one hit in late 1966, and spent four weeks on top of the country charts.

"Always on My Mind" won Grammy awards in 1983 for Song of the Year and Best Country Song; in 1982 it reached #1 on the Billboard charts. The Country Music Association

Country Music Association

The Country Music Association was founded in 1958 in Nashville, Tennessee. It originally consisted of only 233 members and was the first trade organization formed to promote a music genre...

 named it the Song of the Year in 1982 and 1983. Also in 1982, The Nashville Songwriters Association International named it Song of the Year and the Academy of Country Music

Academy of Country Music

The Academy of Country Music was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California as the Country & Western Music Academy. Whereas the Country Music Association, founded in 1958, was based in Nashville, the Academy sought to promote country music in the western states. Among those involved in the...

 named it Single of the Year.

The song "The Letter" was nominated for two Grammys.

In 1997, Carson 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...

.

Well-known songs

• "Somebody Like Me" - Eddy Arnold
• "Always On My Mind
  Always on My Mind
  "Always on My Mind" is an American country music song by Johnny Christopher, Mark James and Wayne Carson, originally recorded by Brenda Lee in 1972.Allmusic lists over 300 recorded releases of the song in versions by dozens of performers...
  
  " - Brenda Lee, Elvis Presley, Willie Nelson, The Pet Shop Boys
• "The Letter" - The Box Tops, The Beach Boys, Joe Cocker featuring Leon Russell
• "Keep On" - Bruce Channel
• "Who's Julie" - Mel Tillis
• "She's Actin' Single (I'm Drinkin' Doubles)
  She's Actin' Single (I'm Drinkin' Doubles)
  "She's Actin' Single " is athe title of a song written by Wayne Carson and recorded by American country music singer Gary Stewart. It was released in March 1975 as the third and final single from the album, Out of Hand. The song would be Gary Stewart's third top ten hit on the country chart and his...
  
  " - Gary Stewart, Wade Hayes
• "Neon Rainbow
  Neon Rainbow
  "Neon Rainbow" is a song written by Wayne Carson Thompson and made famous by Memphis blue-eyed soul band The Box Tops.-About:The track is featured on The Letter/Neon Rainbow...
  
  " - The Box Tops
• "Soul Deep" - The Box Tops, Tina Turner, Eddy Arnold
• "The Clown" - Conway Twitty
• "Slide Off Your Satin Sheets" - Johnny Paycheck
• "Whiskey Trip" - Gary Stewart
• "No Love At All" - B.J. Thomas
• "Drinkin' Thing" - Gary Stewart
• "Barstool Mountain" - Moe Bandy
• "Carryin' On" - Tina Turner
• "That's The Only Way To Say Good Morning" - Ray Price
• "A Horse Called Music" - Willie Nelson, Randy Travis
• "Dog Day Afternoon" - Shelby Lynne
• "I See the Want To in Your Eyes
  I See the Want To in Your Eyes
  "I See the Want To in Your Eyes" is a 1974 single written by Mischa Scorer and Wayne Carson, recorded by Conway Twitty. "I See the Want To in Your Eyes" would be Conway Twitty's 11th number one on the country chart...
  
  " - Conway Twitty
• "(Don't Let The Sun Set On You In) Tulsa" - Waylon Jennings
• "Something's Wrong In California" - Waylon Jennings
• "I Want Some More" - Dan Auerbach