"Thank God I'm a Country Boy" | |||||||||||
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Single by John Denver | |||||||||||
from the album Back Home Again | |||||||||||
B-side | "My Sweet Lady" | ||||||||||
Released | March 1975 | ||||||||||
Format | 7" | ||||||||||
Recorded | August 26, 1974 | ||||||||||
Genre | Country folk | ||||||||||
Length | 3:13 (1974 studio version) 3:40 (live version) |
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Label | RCA | ||||||||||
Writer(s) | John Martin Sommers | ||||||||||
Producer(s) | Milton Okun | ||||||||||
John Denver singles chronology | |||||||||||
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"Thank God I'm a Country Boy" | ||||
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Single by Billy Dean | ||||
from the album Let Them Be Little | ||||
Released | 2004 | |||
Genre | Country | |||
Label | Curb | |||
Writer(s) | John Martin Sommers | |||
Producer(s) | Ray Barnette, Billy Dean, Lari White | |||
Billy Dean singles chronology | ||||
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"Thank God I'm a Country Boy", also known as "Country Boy", is a song written by John Martin Sommers and recorded by American singer/songwriter John Denver.
The song was originally included on Denver's 1974 album Back Home Again.
A version recorded live on August 26, 1974 at the Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles was included on his 1975 album An Evening with John Denver.
The live version was released as a single and went to No. 1 on both the Billboard magazine Hot Country Singles and Billboard Hot 100 charts. The song topped both charts for one week each, first the country chart (on May 31), and the Hot 100 chart a week later.
"Thank God I'm a Country Boy" was one of six songs released in 1975 that topped both the Billboard Hot 100 and Billboard Hot Country Singles charts. Denver's two-sided hit "I'm Sorry"/"Calypso" also received that distinction.
The song was written by John Martin Sommers, a guitar/banjo/fiddle/mandolin player in Denver's backup band, on December 31, 1973 (coincidentally Denver's thirtieth birthday) when he was driving from his home in Aspen, Colorado to Los Angeles.
Sommers recalls that at the time he was feeling “peaceful, happy and content” with his lot in life, and started scribbling some notes about his blissful state along the way. They served as the inspiration for the song.
The song is in cut (2/2) time that is typical of two-step. Both the verse and chorus comprise eight measures with 3/2 added between the first four measures and last three measures. Emotionally, this creates an intended slight stall.