Who wrote you picked a fine time to leave me lucille

Kenny Rogers' song "Lucille" was heard around the world. It was a huge international hit.

It was released in January 1977. It became Rogers' first major hit as a solo artist after leaving the successful country/rock group The First Edition the previous year.

Kenny says the story of Lucille began in the summer of 1958 when he was near Tulsa, Oklahoma to help his uncle cut hay. During that time, a local TV station there was broadcasting something.

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It was the voice of a heartbroken man whose wife had left him. His words were, "You picked a fine time to leave me, Lucille, with four hungry children and a crop in the field. We had some good times and we had some bad times..."

The man's words haunted Kenny for years and he felt there was a great song in those few lines. Kenny Rogers kept those words in his head and later got help from some other songwriters.

He turned to Roger Bowling and Hal Bynum. Together they took the lines that Kenny had heard in 1958 and created a song which became one of Kenny Roger's greatest hits.

Who wrote you picked a fine time to leave me lucille


"You picked a fine time to leave me Lucille”, are lyrics to the song Lucille, written by Roger Bowling and Hal Bynum. The song, which became an international hit, was released by Kenny Rogers in January 1977.

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Kenny’s UK No.1 arrived as he was in the early stages of redirecting his career into the country arena.

Who wrote you picked a fine time to leave me lucille

Kenny Rogers 'Lucille' artwork - Courtesy: UMG

Today’s trivia question: which girl’s name lent itself to two completely different songs, one that topped the US R&B chart in 1957 and another that was a No.1 country hit and in the UK, 20 years later? Her name was “Lucille,” and after Little Richard’s rock’n’roll smash of the 50s, Kenny Rogers picked a fine time to record his song of that name on August 5, 1976.

The country “Lucille” was written by two accomplished composers in the genre, Roger Bowling and Hal Bynum, both of whom have many other notable credits to their name. Bowling’s include Billie Jo Spears’ country chart-topper and international hit of 1975, “Blanket On The Ground,” and the later Rogers hit “Coward Of The County.” Bynum also wrote Jim Reeves’ posthumous 1970 country top tenner “Nobody’s Fool,” Patty Loveless’ 1990 No.1 in that format, “Chains,” and many others. He died in June 2022 at the age of 87.

At the time their “Lucille” crossed his path, Rogers was in the early stages of reshaping a career that had waned after his great success with the First Edition in the late 1960s. He had had three country chart appearances in 1975 and 1976 including the Top 20 entries “Love Lifted Me” and “Laura (What’s He Got That I Ain’t Got?),” the second a cover of Leon Ashley’s 1967 No.1. But this traditionally-flavored story song blew his solo career wide open.

A good afternoon’s work

On August 5, 1976, Rogers went into American Studio in Nashville and recorded “Lucille” in an afternoon. It proved to be time very well spent. The following January, the song was released as the follow-up to that “Laura” single, from his self-titled album of 1977. It entered the country charts at the end of that month, and by early April, it was starting a two-week run at the summit.

Listen to the All Time Greatest Country Hits playlist.

By then, the single was breaking beyond its country boundaries, entering the Hot 100 in late March and climbing to No.5. In late April, “Lucille” began a UK run that took it to No.1 there in mid-June, as it hit the Top 10 everywhere from Australia to Switzerland. Rogers was well on his way to becoming one of country’s new superstars.

Buy or stream “Lucille” on Lucille: The Collection.

Who originally sang the song Lucille?

"Lucille" is a 1957 rock and roll song originally recorded by American musician Little Richard. Released on Specialty Records in February 1957, the single reached number 1 on the Billboard R&B chart, 21 on the US pop chart, and number 10 on the UK chart.

When did Kenny Rogers write Lucille?

"Lucille" is a song written by Roger Bowling and Hal Bynum, and recorded by American country music artist Kenny Rogers. It was released in January 1977 as the second and final single from the album Kenny Rogers. ... Lucille (Kenny Rogers song).

Who wrote the gambler?

Don Schlitz

Who topped the charts in 1977 with Lucille?

Kenny Rogers had his first hit single independent of his group The First Edition, with "Lucille" topping the chart. The Jacksons previously charted as The Jackson 5, their name having been changed in 1976 as Jermaine Jackson was replaced by Randy Jackson in the group.