Curly Putman | |
---|---|
Birth name | Claude Putman Jr. |
Born |
Princeton, Alabama, U.S. |
November 20, 1930
Died | October 30, 2016 Lebanon, Tennessee, U.S. |
(aged 85)
Genres | Country music |
Occupation(s) | Songwriter |
Claude "Curly" Putman Jr. (November 20, 1930 – October 30, 2016) was an American songwriter.
Born in Princeton, Alabama, his greatest success was "Green, Green Grass of Home" (1964, sung by Porter Wagoner), which was covered by Roger Miller, Elvis Presley, Kenny Rogers, Don Williams, Burl Ives, Johnny Darrell, Gram Parsons, Joan Baez, Jerry Lee Lewis, The Grateful Dead, Johnny Cash, Roberto Leal, Dean Martin, Merle Haggard, Bobby Bare, Joe Tex, Nana Mouskouri, and Tom Jones.
The Paul McCartney & Wings hit "Junior's Farm" was inspired by their short stay at Putman's farm in rural Wilson County, Tennessee in 1974.
Putman was the son of a sawmill worker. He joined the Navy and spent four years on the aircraft carrier USS Valley Forge.
He married Bernice Soon in 1956. Putnam worked several jobs in different places in the late 1950s and early 60s, inspiring his later hit "My Elusive Dreams". He penned his first big hit, "Green, Green Grass of Home", when working in Nashville plugging songs for Tree Records.