An obvious over-achiever, he still has a few aspirations, “I always thought I'd like to try my hand at writing a novel and then seeing it made into a movie. Of course, I would then want to write all the music for the movie. Maybe I can do that in my next life. I don't seem to be able to find time in this one.”
With accolades still piling up, Bill Anderson shows no signs of stopping. In 2005, he won CMA Song of the Year for “Whiskey Lullaby” co-written with Jon Randall and recorded by Brad Paisley and Allison Krauss. In 2007, Bill received a Dove Award from the Gospel Music Association for co-writing with Tia Sillers, the Country/Gospel Recorded Song of the Year, "Jonah, Job, and Moses," sung by the Oak Ridge Boys. He also was presented with his first ACM Song of the Year Award for "Give It Away," recorded by George Strait and written with Buddy Cannon and Jamey Johnson. "Give It Away" went on to win the CMA Song of the Year.
In 2001, he received the ultimate honor, membership in Nashville ’s prestigious Country Music Hall of Fame. In 1994, South Carolina inducted him into their Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame. In 1993, he was made a member of the Georgia Broadcasters’ Hall of Fame. In 1985, the State of Georgia honored him by choosing him as only the 7th living performer inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. In 1975, he was voted membership in the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. Bill has been voted Songwriter Of The Year six times, Male Vocalist Of The Year, half of the Duet Of The Year with both Jan Howard and Mary Lou Turner and received four Grammy nominations.
He takes a humorous look at the music business in his 1993 book, “I Hope You’re Living As High On The Hog As The Pig You Turned Out To Be,” which was published in 1993 and is currently in its fourth printing. He says of the business now, “The only thing that is constant in the music business is that it's constantly changing.”
His writing skills have brought country music some of its most memorable songs, such as “Still”, “Wish You Were Here”, “City Lights”, and “Once A Day.” His compositions have been recorded by countless hit makers from the last six decades in just about every genre of music.
His throaty, gentle vocal style earned him the nickname “Whisperin’ Bill.” He and his backup band, “The Po Folks,” crooned out hit after hit like, “Po’Folks,” “Mama Sang A Song,” and “The Tips Of My Fingers.”
Along with being one of the most beloved country music stars ever and a prolific songwriter, Bill Anderson has been a talk show host, a game show host and frequent game show panelist, restaurant spokesperson, soap opera star, radio host, television co-producer, and author. Yet, with all he’s accomplished in his life, in his typical humble style, he cites his greatest accomplishment as, “ Having three children who have never caused me one moment's trouble in their lives.”
His professional triumphs have been offset at times with personal difficulty. He chronicles these in his 1990 autobiography, “Whisperin’ Bill,” where he relays in powerful prose, not only the joys of his life, but also the trials, including his wife’s devastating car crash and his own health problems.
Before moving to Nashville, Bill graduated from the University of Georgia where he began seriously writing songs and performing. “The wisest choice I ever made was to finish my education. Having that diploma on my wall probably never put a dime directly in my pocket, but knowing it was there gave me the security to be adventurous. I knew that if I failed in the entertainment business, I could always fall back on my degree and find a real job somewhere.”
As a young man, his faith and talent was southern bred and cultivated, “I sing a lot of songs about coming from a large family, but, in truth, there was only my mom, my dad, and one sister. I was born in Columbia, South Carolina, but spent most of my growing-up years just outside Atlanta, Georgia. As a kid, my two loves were baseball and what they used to call "hillbilly" music.”
“I knew I had a great love for music before I ever started to school, but didn't try to apply it to anything until I was ten or eleven years old. I got my first guitar about that time, started making up songs, and from then on, it was Katy Bar The Door!”
“My grandfather was a Methodist preacher, so I was raised in a Christian home. Some of the first songs I ever learned to sing were the songs of the church. In fact, when I first came to Nashville as a songwriter, my publisher told me that all my melodies sounded like they came right out of the Broadman hymnal. And they probably did.”
Bill’s momentum to keep creating comes from a place deep inside and from genuinely loving what he does, “When I was still a young pup in this business, I clipped a quote out of the local newspaper: "Find something you like doing so much that you'd do it for nothing. Then learn to do it so well that they'll pay you, and you've got it made." That pretty much sums up my life and my career in show business.”
Bill Anderson’s own philosophy is as simple as it is profound, “Just stay true to your beliefs and try to never lose focus, and if you should happen to find a four-leaf clover along the way, stuff it in your pocket and don't wash your pants.”
| written by Debbie DuBois Miller
