Liz Anderson
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Liz Anderson | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Elizabeth Jane Haaby |
| Also known as | Liz Anderson |
| Born | January 13, 1930 |
| Origin | Roseau, Minnesota, United States |
| Genre(s) | Country |
| Occupation(s) | Songwriter, Singer |
| Years active | 1964–Present |
| Label(s) | RCA Records Epic Records Showboat Records |
| Associated acts | Norma Jean, Lynn Anderson, Cindy Walker |
| Website | Liz Anderson Official Site |
Liz Anderson (born Elizabeth Jane Haaby January 13, 1930 in Roseau, Minnesota) is an American Country Music Singer-Songwriter. She is also the mother of Country-Music singer Lynn Anderson.
Liz Anderson was a successful country singer in her own right. In 1967, she scored a Top 5 hit, the self-penned "Mama Spank". She is also one of Country Music's most respected songwriters, writing the Merle Haggard hits "All My Friends Are Gonna Be Strangers" and "The Lonesome Fugitive". Merle named his band "The Strangers" after the hit "All My Friends Are Gonna Be Strangers". In addition, she has written many other country hit songs.
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[edit] Rise to Fame
Born Elizabeth Jane Haaby in Roseau, Minnesota to a poor, but religious, family. At the age of 8, her family had a mandolin, which Anderson played, and she also sang in the local church. At age 13, the family moved west to Grand Forks, North Dakota. At the age of 16, Liz was married to Casey Anderson and then had her daughter Lynn a year later. Casey was involved in the Navy, and he returned in 1951. They moved to California where Casey was to attend Jet Engine school. When they arrived in California, the family was very short of money, so Casey helped his family out by selling cars as a car salesman. Liz studied at the Redwood City Business College in Redwood City, California, and worked as a secretary.
In 1957, the family moved out to Sacramento, California, and Liz started to write songs, due to her husband's encouragement. Casey was a member of the Sherrif's Posse, which was going to take part in the National centennial Pony Express Celebration. Casey convinced his wife to write a song in honor of the Pony Express. The song was named the official song, and earned Liz the Medal of Honor. One of his co-workers, Jack McFadden, was trying to make a name for himself in the music business. He successfully pitched Anderson's song "I Watched You Walking" to country singer Del Reeves. Reeves recorded many other songs by Anderson, including "Be Quiet Mind" and "I Don't Wonder".
[edit] The Height of Her Career
Liz Anderson wrote "Pick of the Week", which was recorded by Roy Drusky in 1964. The song became a Top 15 Country hit for Drusky. In 1965, Merle Haggard recorded her song "All My Friends Are Gonna Be Strangers". The success of "Strangers" helped make Anderson one of Country Music's most successful songwriters. She won a BMI award for the song. Anderson became one of the most prolific country songwriters, publishing over 260 songs during her career and earning five BMI awards. Virtually every major country artist of the 1960s recorded at least one of her songs on their albums, including Charley Pride, Tammy Wynette, Ernest Tubb, Loretta Lynn, George Jones, Skeeter Davis, Waylon Jennings, Kitty Wells, Connie Smith, and Bill Anderson.
Anderson was noticed by RCA producer Chet Atkins. He liked Anderson's style of singing, and signed her to RCA in 1966. This was around the same time daughter Lynn was getting signed to Chart Records. Her two initial singles fared well, but it was her third, "Game of Triangles", with Bobby Bare and Norma Jean that became a big hit. The song was a Top 5 hit. In April 1967, Anderson finally made it big as a solo star with the Top 5 Country hit, "Mama Spank". Liz Anderson's own top 40 hit list, as a singer, includes "Go Now Pay Later" (1966), "The Wife of the Party" (1967), "Thanks A Lot For Tryin' Anyway" (1968), and "Husband Hunting" (1970).
Around this same time her only child, daughter Lynn Anderson, was rising as a country singer. Liz wrote some of Lynn's early hits, including her 1967 debut single "Ride, Ride, Ride", as well as her first big hit, the Top 5 "If I Kiss You (Will You Go Away)" (also in 1967). She had a Top 25 duet with daughter Lynn in 1968, "Mother May I", and even appeared with Lynn on a Mother's Day episode of the Lawrence Welk Show that May. Lynn Anderson would later have her biggest success in the 1970s, becoming one of Country Music's most successful female vocalists of all time.
[edit] Later Career & Life Today
Liz Anderson's own chart success began to fade from view by the start of the 70s. In 1971, she moved to Epic Records, where she had very little chart success. She charted four singles under Epic, that went no higher then the Country Top 60. One of those singles was a cover version of "I'll Never Fall In Love Again". Anderson was most successful as a songwriter, receiving many prestigious awards for her work, including several BMI awards. Liz Anderson also served as Vice President of the Nashville Songwriters Association International. In the 1990s, she started her own record company, Showboat Records'. The following year, she produced an album from her record company entitled The Cowgirl Way. In 2006, daughter Lynn Anderson released an album entitled Cowgirl, which were all songs penned by her mother.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Singles
| Year | Single | Chart Positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | |||
| 1966 | "Go Now, Pay Later" | 23 | All My Friends Are Gonna Be Strangers |
| 1966 | "So Much for Me, So Much for You" | 45 | All My Friends Are Gonna Be Strangers |
| 1966 | "The Game of Triangles" (with Bobby Bare and Norma Jean | 5 | The Game of Triangles (with Bobby Bare and Norma Jean) |
| 1967 | "The Wife of the Party" (with Bobby Bare and Norma Jean) | 22 | The Game of Triangles (with Bobby Bare and Norma Jean) |
| 1967 | "Mama Spank" | 5 | Liz Anderson Sings |
| 1967 | "Tiny Tears" | 24 | Cookin' Up Hits |
| 1968 | "Thanks a Lot for Tryin' Anyway" | 40 | Liz Anderson Sings Her Favorites |
| 1968 | "Mother May I" (with Lynn Anderson) | 21 | |
| 1968 | "Like a Merry Go-Round" | 43 | Like a Merry Go-Round |
| 1968 | "Cry, Cry Again" | 58 | Like a Merry Go-Round |
| 1968 | "Me, Me, Me, Me, Me" | 53 | Like a Merry Go-Round |
| 1968 | "Love Is Ending" | 51 | Like a Merry Go-Round |
| 1970 | "Husband Hunting" | 26 | Husband Hunting |
| 1970 | "All Day Sucker" | 64 | |
| 1970 | "When I'm Not Looking" | 75 | |
| 1971 | "It Don't Do No Good to Be a Good Girl" | 69 | |
| 1972 | "I'll Never Fall in Love Again" | 56 | |
| 1972 | "Astrology" | 67 | |
| 1973 | "Time to Love Again" | 72 |
[edit] Albums
| Year | Title | U.S. Country Albums |
| 1966 | All My Friends Are Gonna Be Strangers | |
| 1967 | Liz Anderson Sings | 20 |
| 1967 | The Game of Triangles | 18 |
| 1967 | Cookin' Up Hits | 18 |
| 1968 | Like A Merry Go Round | 22 |
| 1968 | Liz Anderson Sings Her Favorites | 16 |
| 1969 | Country Style | |
| 1969 | If the Creek Don't Rise | |
| 1970 | Husband Hunting | 36 |
| 1985 | My Last Rose | |
| 1996 | Coyote Christmas | |
| 1998 | The Cowgirl Way |
[edit] Billboard Top Country 40 Hits Written By Liz Anderson
- "All My Friends are Gonna Be Strangers" a hit in two versions, one by Merle Haggard, one by Roy Drusky (the song is bested know by Haggard)
- "Be Quiet Mind" a hit in two versions, one by Del Reeves, one by Ott Stephens
- "Big Girls Don't Cry" recorded by Lynn Anderson
- "Flattery Will Get You Everywhere" recorded by Lynn Anderson
- "Go Now Pay Later" recorded by Liz Anderson
- "Guess My Eyes Were Bigger Than My Heart" recorded by Conway Twitty
- "Husband Hunting" recorded by Liz Anderson
- "I Cried All the Way to the Bank" recorded by Norma Jean
- "(I'm a Lonesome) Fugitive" recorded by Merle Haggard
- "If I Kiss You" recorded by Lynn Anderson
- "Just Between the Two of Us" recorded by Merle Haggard and Bonnie Owens
- "Mama Spank" recorded by Liz Anderson
- "Mother May I" recorded by Liz & Lynn Anderson
- "Pick of the Week" recorded by Roy Drusky
- "Promises, Promises" recorded by Lynn Anderson
- "Ride Ride Ride" a hit in two versions, one by Lynn Anderson, pop hit for Brenda Lee
- "The Wife of the Party" recorded by Liz Anderson
- "Tiny Tears" recorded by Liz Anderson
