Wayne Carson
Wayne Carson Thompson ( born May 5, 1942 in Denver, Colorado) is an American country musician and two -time Grammy winner. He is a songwriter, producer and studio engineer and multi-instrumentalist ( drums, piano, guitar and bass ). Two of his best-known compositions are The Letter and became a classic Always on My Mind.
Life
Member of pop groups
Thompson began as a rhythm guitarist in the versatile rock band Tommy Burk & the Counts, which received a record deal with the small record label NAT Records. Their repertoire consisted of Doo Wop, Rock & Roll and pop music of the time. End of 1962, they took in the new American Recording Studios of Chips Moman in Memphis (Tennessee ) is probably the Doo Wop title 'll Feel It Too / Counted Out ( NAT # 100) and the single True Love 's Gone / Stormy Weather ( # NAT 101) on the first singles in the catalog of NAT Records. He then formed the band Heatwave, where he played drums. Lead singer was his wife Melissa Thompson. Next, he worked as a writer for Earl Barton Music Inc. in Springfield (Missouri ), a company founded in March 1955 and specialized in country music music publisher. Here seen published his first composition with Turn Around And Look Again, the Roy Clark has recorded as a B- side for his single So Much to Remember on February 3, 1965, released in October 1965. A year later, his breakthrough came as an author, as on April 20, 1966 by Chet Atkins produced Somebody Like Me by Eddy Arnold was recorded for the four weeks topped the country singles chart occupied by publication in September 1966. Arnold then took over the title Calling Mary Names, produced on 16 December 1966.
Contact with chips Moman
When Thompson began his composition Little Noise Maker for chips Momans American Recording Studios in December 1966 itself, he came again in contact with this producer. Now a long-lasting cooperation should arise, because Moman asked Thompson as a composer in his recording studio at. This paid off quickly, since the beginning of 1967, he wrote the title The Letter, the brought out the Box Tops in June 1967 and four million copies sold. It should be in terms of sales remain his most successful composition, even if they belonged to the Blue - Eyed Soul.
Sandy Posey took over the country-pop title Shattered B-side of What A Woman in Love Will not Do (recorded on January 11, 1967), then followed by the pop duo Jon & Robin & The In Crowd, which takes its title Do It Again A Little Bit Slower brought out in May 1967 and reached rank 18 on the pop charts. The Thompson - Drums composition was followed for the duo in August 1967, and was ranked 100th
In October 1967, he wrote for the Box Tops both sides of the single Neon Rainbow / She Knows How to undervalued Dance Keep On board for Bruce Channel abolished in June 1968 a rank 12 on the British charts. Again for the Box Tops, he composed the middle Hit Soul Deep ( June 1969 ), for their fourth and final LP Dimensions ( September 1969 ), he contributed the title Sandman, and ultimately they ended with You Keep Tightening up on Me ( February 1970 ) their short-lived career.
Focus on Country Songs
The current mix of pop, Blue - eyed soul and soul compositions had abandoned in 1970 in favor of the compositions of Country Music Thompson. Brenda Lee took on 22 September 1971, the original of Always on My Mind, which was created in the cooperation of John L. Jr. Christopher, Mark James and Thompson; it took only rank 45 on the country charts. Because of this moderate chart presence of the title at first remained relatively unknown. Elvis Presley grabbed the song on March 29, 1972, however, brought him as a B- side to its 500,000 copies sold single Separate Ways out, which came on the market in November 1972.
It was only in the version of Willie Nelson gained the title of international renown. The recorded on October 11, 1981 in Nashville Momans Studios and produced by studio owner version was published in March 1982, occupied for two weeks the first rank of the country charts and has sold over two million copies. She was with three Grammys ( including " Song of the Year " for the composer ) excellent. André Heller took thereof in June 1983, a German -language version under the title How Mei heartbeat out who took second place in Austria. The Pet Shop Boys revitalized the song successfully in December 1987, as it hereby occupied the first rank in the British charts and Rank 4 in the U.S. with a synth pop version. Other cover versions submitted by Floyd Cramer ( November 1988) or the Stylistics (July 1991). The title received a BMI Award and has been covered, according Cover Info 94 times.
More Country compositions followed with No Love At All (composed by Johnny Christopher ) Lynn Anderson ( August 1970; Rank 15 on the country charts ), or ( Do not Let The Sun Set On You In) Tulsa for Waylon Jennings ( October 1970). This was followed by Gary Stewart Drinkin 'Thing (July 1974 rank 10) and She's Actin' Single (I'm Drinkin ' Doubles ) ( March 1975; Rank 1), Slide Off Of Your Satin Sheets ( composed together with Donn Tankersley ) for Johnny Paycheck ( February 1977; Rank 7 ), while Conway Twitty called The Clown ( co-authored with Brenda Kay Barnett / Charles Romaine Chalmers / Sandra I. Rhodes) in February 1982 (Rank 1) took over.
Statistics and awards
Wayne Carson Thompson, according to BMI can protect a total of 414 titles by copyright, including 11 excellent with a BMI award compositions, and thus one of the major composers. Always on my Mind Award at the Grammy Awards 1983 in the categories "Song of the Year" and "Best Country Song ". The Country Music Association (CMA ) honored him in 1982 and 1983 as "Song of the Year". The Nashville Songwriters Association International ( NSAI ) honored him in 1982 as " Song of the Year " and the Academy of Country Music as " Single of the Year". In 1997, he was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.