Joe South

Singer, songwriter, and producer Joe South born Joseph Souter in Atlanta, Georgia on February 28, 1940 – was best known for his solo hits “Games People Play” (1968) and “Walk a Mile in My Shoes” ( 1969) and for writing hit singles for artist like Lynn Anderson, Billy Joe Royal, the Osmonds, Deep Purple, and others. He began his music career in the late 1950s as a session guitarist and recorded with artists like Ray Stevens and Jerry Lee Lewis. Joe South began his solo career in 1958 with a Top 50 single, a cover of “The Purple People Eater Meets the Witch Doctor,” which had been a B-side for The Big Bopper.  He issued another single in 1961 – “You’re the Reason” – but spent most of the 1960s as a session musician, playing on recordings by Tommy Roe, Bob Dylan, Aretha Franklin, Simon & Garfunkel. Rock and roll pioneer Gene Vincent recorded a pair of Joe South’s songs. While playing on hit records, he also penned five songs for Billy Joe Royal, one of which became a big hit for Royal (“Down in the Boondocks”) while others later became hits for the Osmonds (“Yo-Yo”), Deep Purple (“Hush”), and Lynn Anderson (“Rose Garden”). Joe South became influenced by the political issues of the late 1960s and released the single “Games People Play” in 1969. The song rose to number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 and made the Top 10 in Canada. The song was later covered by numerous artists over the years. Joe South released several other single in 1969 including the international hit “Don’t It Make You Want to Go Home,” which went Top 20 Australia and Canada. Recording with his backing band the Believers, his 1970 single “Walk a Mile in My Shoes” was another international hit, reaching number 12 in the US and Top 20 in Australia and Canada. When Joe South’s brother Tommy – who was a member of the Believers – took his own life, he became depressed and turned to drugs. His musical output came to a close towards the end of the 1970s although he did occasionally record and produce other artists. Joe South died of a heart attack on September 5, 2012, at the age of 72.