Bill Anderson

Country Music Hall of Famer and Grand Ole Opry titan Bill Anderson is the rare songwriter whose first major label cut went to No. 1 on the charts, was named Song of The Year and sparked a writing career that is currently in its seventh decade. The song, “City Lights,” was written when Anderson was a 19-year old Georgia disc jockey and became a career-defining hit for Ray Price in 1958.  The song opened doors for him in Nashville, leading him to signing with BMI and Tree Publishing. Anderson was far from a one-hit wonder. He followed “City Lights” with country standards like “Tips Of My Fingers,” the GRAMMY-nominated “Once A Day,” “Saginaw, Michigan,” “That’s What It’s Like To Be Lonesome,” “I Missed Me,” “Cold Hard Facts Of Life,” which earned him another GRAMMY nomination, “Mama Sang A Song,” the crossover smash, “Still,” and countless others. He was voted country Songwriter of the Year six times during his first decade in Music City. His success continued into the 1970’s with award-winning hits like “Slippin’ Away,” “The Lord Knows I’m Drinking,” “I May Never Get To Heaven,” and the disco-flavored, “I Can’t Wait Any Longer.” The 1980’s saw Anderson’s chart-topping career take a hiatus as he became a TV network game show host, spokesman for a national restaurant chain and a nonstop touring Grand Ole Opry performer. In the 1990’s he came roaring back with a vengeance, however, as he seriously turned to co-writing for the first time. Inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2001, his collaborations with the newer generation of Nashville tunesmiths resulted in hits like “Wish You Were Here,” the GRAMMY-nominated “Two Teardrops,” “A Lot Of Things Different,” for Kenny Chesney, “Which Bridge To Cross (Which Bridge To Burn),” for Vince Gill and two CMA Song Of The Year trophies for “Whiskey Lullaby,” with Brad Paisley and Alison Krauss and George Strait’s “Give It Away,” in 2005 and 2007 respectfully.  He continues to write today with songs like Brad Paisley’s “Dying To See Her.” For more information, visit BillAnderson.com.

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Bill Anderson Receives Dr. David Godbold Lifetime Achievement Award

April 30th, 2024|Comments Off on Bill Anderson Receives Dr. David Godbold Lifetime Achievement Award

Country Music Hall of Fame member, Songwriters Hall of Fame member and ACM and CMA-award-winning entertainment titan, Bill Anderson, was honored with the 2024 Dr. David Godbold Lifetime Achievement Award by the South Carolina Entertainment and Music Hall of Fame on Thursday, April 25. Anderson was inducted by the organization in 1994, and is the first Lifetime Achievement Award honoree. Anderson was born in Columbia, South Carolina and lived there for the first 8 years of his life until moving to Georgia.

Bill Anderson Releases Lyric Video for “The Country I Grew Up With (Song Featuring Bobby Bare, Jimmy Fortune, Vince Gill, Willie Nelson)”

March 1st, 2024|Comments Off on Bill Anderson Releases Lyric Video for “The Country I Grew Up With (Song Featuring Bobby Bare, Jimmy Fortune, Vince Gill, Willie Nelson)”

Entertainment titan and Country Music Hall of Famer, Bill Anderson, releases the sentimental lyric video for "The Country I Grew Up With," available everywhere today. Anderson enlisted four fellow Hall of Famers – Bobby Bare, Jimmy Fortune, Vince Gill and Willie Nelson – for the new collaboration, which was released in 2023 via MCA Nashville/UMe.

Bill Anderson Releases New Collaboration “The Country I Grew Up With (Featuring Bobby Bare, Jimmy Fortune, Vince Gill, Willie Nelson)”

November 17th, 2023|Comments Off on Bill Anderson Releases New Collaboration “The Country I Grew Up With (Featuring Bobby Bare, Jimmy Fortune, Vince Gill, Willie Nelson)”

Entertainment titan and Country Music Hall of Famer, Bill Anderson, enlists four fellow Hall of Famers – Bobby Bare, Jimmy Fortune, Vince Gill and Willie Nelson – on their new collaboration, "The Country I Grew Up With," available everywhere today via MCA Nashville/UMe.

Bill Anderson to be First Lifetime Achievement Honoree by South Carolina Entertainment and Music Hall of Fame

September 22nd, 2023|Comments Off on Bill Anderson to be First Lifetime Achievement Honoree by South Carolina Entertainment and Music Hall of Fame

 Country Music Hall of Fame member, Songwriters Hall of Fame member and ACM and CMA-award-winning entertainment titan, Bill Anderson, will be honored with the 2024 Lifetime Achievement Award by the South Carolina Entertainment and Music Hall of Fame. Anderson was inducted by the organization in 1994, and will be the first Lifetime Achievement Award honoree on April 25, 2024. 

ICYMI: GRAND OLE OPRY MEMBER BILL ANDERSON’S 62ND ANNIVERSARY, LONGEST-SERVING MEMBER IN SHOW’S HISTORY

July 27th, 2023|Comments Off on ICYMI: GRAND OLE OPRY MEMBER BILL ANDERSON’S 62ND ANNIVERSARY, LONGEST-SERVING MEMBER IN SHOW’S HISTORY

Country Music Hall of Fame member, Songwriters Hall of Fame member and entertainment titan, Bill Anderson, was recognized for his indelible 62 years as the longest-serving member in Grand Ole Opry history. Many of Anderson’s Opry family and friends including Vince Gill, Jamey Johnson and Jeannie Seely paid tribute to him throughout the show.

Whisperin’ Bill Anderson Releases ‘1984,’ Available to Stream for the First Time

July 6th, 2023|Comments Off on Whisperin’ Bill Anderson Releases ‘1984,’ Available to Stream for the First Time

Prolific songwriter and country music titan, Whisperin' Bill Anderson releases 1984, a ten-song collection he recorded nearly 40 years ago for Swanee Records, available to stream for the first time. This is the 75th album release for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Songwriters Hall of Fame member, whose illustrious career has spanned through an impressive seven decades. Anderson's prior album release featured a duet with Dolly Parton, "Someday It'll All Make Sense," which inspired the 2023 GRAMMY® nominated bluegrass version.

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