Joe South
| Joe South | |
|---|---|
Joe South in 1970
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Joseph Alfred Souter |
| Born |
February 28, 1940 Atlanta, Georgia, United States |
| Died | September 5, 2012 (aged 72) Buford, Georgia, United States |
| Genres | Country, Folk, Rock |
| Occupation(s) | Songwriter, musician, singer |
| Instruments | Guitar |
| Years active | 1958–2012 |
| Labels | Capitol |
| Associated acts | Lynn Anderson, Billy Joe Royal, Bill Lowery (record producer) |
| Website | joesouth |
Joe South (born Joseph Alfred Souter; February 28, 1940 – September 5, 2012) was an American songwriter, singer, guitarist and record producer. Best known for his songwriting, South won the Grammy Award for Song of the Year in 1970 for "Games People Play" and was again nominated for the award in 1972 for "Rose Garden".
South started his pop career in July 1958 with the NRC Records novelty hit "The Purple People Eater Meets the Witch Doctor". After this hit, South's music grew increasingly serious.
In 1959, South wrote two songs which were recorded by Gene Vincent: "I Might Have Known", which was on the album Sounds Like Gene Vincent (Capitol Records, 1959) and "Gone Gone Gone" which was included on the album The Crazy Beat of Gene Vincent (Capitol Records, 1963).
South had met and was encouraged by Bill Lowery, an Atlanta music publisher and radio personality. He began his recording career in Atlanta with the National Recording Corporation, where he served as staff guitarist along with other NRC artists Ray Stevens and Jerry Reed. South's earliest recordings have been re-released by NRC on CD. He soon returned to Nashville with The Manrando Group and then onto Charlie Wayne Felts Promotions. (Charlie Wayne Felts is the cousin of Rockabilly Hall of Fame Inductee and Grand Ole Opry Member, Narvel Felts.)
South was also a prominent sideman, playing guitar on Tommy Roe's "Sheila", Bob Dylan's Blonde on Blonde album, and Aretha Franklin's "Chain of Fools". South played electric guitar on Simon & Garfunkel's second album, Sounds of Silence, although Al Gorgoni and/or Vinnie Bell feature on the title track.
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