Lynn Anderson, "Rose Garden" singer, dies

Lynn Anderson, whose version of the song "(I Never Promised You a) Rose Garden" was one of the biggest country hits of the 1970s, has died. She was 67.

Anderson died Thursday of a heart attack at Vanderbilt Hospital in Nashville after being admitted for pneumonia, publicist Mark Logsdon told CNN.

Anderson was born in Grand Forks, North Dakota, in 1947, and grew up in Sacramento, California. Born to the music business -- both her parents were songwriters -- she got her start as a professional singer while still in her teens, releasing her first record, "For Better or for Worse," when she was 19.

Soon Anderson was having major success, with such hits as 1967"s "If I Kiss You (Will You Go Away)" and 1969"s "That"s a No-No" and appearances on "The Lawrence Welk Show."

She had her biggest hit, the Joe South-penned "Rose Garden," in late 1970 and early 1971. The song was No. 1 on the country charts for five weeks and topped out at No. 3 on Billboard"s pop charts.

"I totally believed in Joe South, and in this song," she told Country Stars Online. A share of the credit, Anderson added, was due to then-Columbia Records head Clive Davis, whom she called "my hero." It was Davis who championed the song as a single and helped promote it.

Her performance netted the singer a Grammy for best country vocal performance (female) and helped her win female vocalist of the year from the Country Music Association in 1971.

All told, Anderson had 18 country Top 10 hits, including five No. 1 songs. Among her other hits: "Rocky Top," the Felice and Boudleaux Bryant tune that"s one of Tennessee"s state songs. Anderson"s version hit No. 17 on the country charts in 1970.

"I am a huge fan of Lynn"s. She was always so nice to me. She did so much for the females in country music," country star Reba McEntire said in a statement.

Anderson"s final album, "Bridges," came out last month.

The singer is survived by her father, Casey Anderson, partner, Mentor Williams, three children and four grandchildren.

Source: http://www.wyff4.com/entertainment/lynn-anderson-rose-garden-singer-dies/34474194

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Lynn Anderson releases first album in a decade

PHOTO PROVIDED BY PLA MEDIA

Wearing a silver bedazzled hat, Brentwood resident Lynn Anderson sits with her hands clasped, as she candidly talks about her first album in more than a decade.

The 67-year-old country star has only added to her genre repertoire with her newest gospel album "Bridges" that released in the beginning of June.

The Grammy winner is best known for her song "I Never Promised You a Rose Garden." Billboard also recognized her as "Artist of the Decade" for 1970-1980.

"A lot of people asked me why I didn"t have a gospel album," she said. "But I got baptized in the Rio Grande [River] and started going to the church in New Mexico I go to regularly. It seemed like a natural thing I needed to do."

Songwriters pitched Anderson their ideas for potential melodies and lyrics that could land on the album.

"I think the most interesting part was finding the songs," Anderson said after taking a sip of Diet Coke. "We had a big meeting at an office downtown. I was amazed by how sensitive the songs are. We didn"t do the songs we sang from the Baptist hymnal. Almost all of these are brand new. It"s a different feeling."

Anderson set out to sing a 12-song album about redemption and salvation. The Oak Ridge Boys and The Martins also accompany her on some of her new music.

Her favorites so far are the title track and "Drift Away," written by her boyfriend Mentor Williams, which is the first single on the record.

"The song has been a standard for pop music field and number one in country," Anderson said. "Only thing it hasn"t been is as gospel."

The name seemed kind of hard to come up with. Many of the album"s executives sat around a table and went through several options.

The title track of "Bridges" stuck out the most, with several variations strewn out on the table.

"This album is all about the gap between country and gospel and taking that step that I"ve taken to become that member of the church," Anderson said. "There were several names thrown about, and I said "Just The Bridge or Bridges" and that"s what it came to be."

Coming out again in a different genre after decades of music played differently means something for Anderson. She"s trying to connect with a younger fan base who might not have heard of her.

"There"s a whole generation since I had big hit records," she said. "This is a foray into a strange market. So it is a challenge."

Her new album is available on centersoundproductions.com/lynn/.

Fans can get her new work digitally and two forms of hard copy through CD and red vinyl.

Emily West covers Franklin for Home Page Media Group. Contact her at emily@franklinhomepage.com. Follow her on Twitter via @emwest22.

Source: http://www.franklinhomepage.com/lynn-anderson-releases-first-album-in-a-decade-cms-20893

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