"City Lights" is an American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

song written by

Bill Anderson James William Anderson III (born November 1, 1937) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and television host. His soft-spoken singing voice earned him the nickname "Whispering Bill" from music critics and writers. As a songwriter, hi ...

on August 27, 1957. He recorded it on a small Texas label called TNT Records in early 1958 to little acclaim. The song was first cut by Anderson in 1957 at the campus of the

University of Georgia The University of Georgia (UGA or Georgia) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Athens, Georgia, United States. Chartered in 1785, it is the oldest public university in th ...

. In June 1958,

Ray Price Noble Ray Price (January 12, 1926 – December 16, 2013) was an American country music singer, songwriter, and guitarist. His wide-ranging baritone is regarded as among the best male voices of country music, and his innovations, such as prope ...

recorded it and his version hit number 1 on the ''Billboard''

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data along with digital sales and streaming. ...

singles chart in August 1958.

Mickey Gilley Mickey Leroy Gilley (March 9, 1936 – May 7, 2022) was an American country music singer, businessman, actor, and musician. Among his hits are " Room Full of Roses", " Don't the Girls All Get Prettier at Closing Time", and “ Lonely Nights”. ...

's version also hit number 1 in June 1975.

About the song

"City Lights" was one of Anderson's earliest major successes. Released in June 1958, Price's version of "City Lights" stalled at #2 on the ''

Billboard magazine ''Billboard'' (stylized in lowercase since 2013) is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events and styles related to th ...

'' Most Played C&W by Disc Jockeys chart later that summer. When ''Billboard'' introduced its all-encompassing chart for country music (called "Hot C&W Sides") on October 20, "City Lights" was the new chart's first #1 song. It remained atop the chart for 13 weeks, its last week being January 12, 1959. The song spent a total of 34 weeks on the chart. The song was popular enough to cross over to US

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), o ...

, where it peaked at #71.

Cover versions

* Dave Rich recorded this song in May 1958 and was the first to have it played on the Nashville radio stations. *

Ivory Joe Hunter Ivory Joe Hunter (October 10, 1914 – November 8, 1974) was an American rhythm-and-blues singer, songwriter, and pianist. After a series of hits on the US R&B chart starting in the mid-1940s, he became more widely known for his hit recordi ...

recorded it in 1959 during his shift to country music late in his career and his version peaked at #92 on the US Billboard charts. *

Debbie Reynolds Mary Frances "Debbie" Reynolds (April 1, 1932 – December 28, 2016) was an American actress, singer and entrepreneur. Her acting career spanned almost 70 years. Reynolds performed on stage and television and in films into her 80s. She was nom ...

recorded it in 1960 and her version peaked at #55 on pop charts. *

Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American pianist, singer, and songwriter. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as "rock 'n' roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis m ...

recorded it his 1965 album, ''

Country Songs for City Folks ''Country Songs for City Folks'' is the fifth studio album by Jerry Lee Lewis released on the Smash label in 1965. Background After leaving Sun Records in 1963 for Smash, Lewis embarked on what is often referred to as his "wilderness years," ch ...

'',Jerry Lee Lewis, ''Country Songs for City Folks''
Retrieved June 15, 2012. *

recorded a piano-backed honky-tonk rendition on his 1975 album, ''City Lights'', and his version hit number 1 on the country charts in February 1975. *

Mel Tillis Lonnie Melvin Tillis (August 8, 1932 – November 19, 2017) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Although he recorded songs since the late 1950s, his biggest success occurred in the 1970s as part of the outlaw country movement, ...

's 1989 version peaked at number 67 on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles chart. *Others who have recorded the song are:

Connie Smith Connie Smith (born Constance June Meador; August 14, 1941) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Her contralto vocals have been described by music writers as significant and influential to the women of country music. A similarity ...

Rick Trevino Ricardo Treviño Jr. (born May 16, 1971), known professionally as Rick Trevino, is an American country music artist. Signed to Columbia Nashville in 1993, Trevino began his career that year with the release of his debut single "Just Enough Rope", ...

Conway Twitty Harold Lloyd Jenkins (September 1, 1933 – June 5, 1993), better known by his stage name Conway Twitty, was an American singer and songwriter. Initially a part of the 1950s rockabilly scene, Twitty was best known as a country music performer. ...

, Johnny Bush and

Dottie West Dottie West (born Dorothy Marie Marsh; October 11, 1932 – September 4, 1991) was an American country singer and songwriter. She also had several credits as an actress. A distinguished figure in the country genre, West was among several people ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:City Lights (Bill Anderson Song) Songs about cities 1958 singles 1975 singles Songs written by Bill Anderson (singer) Bill Anderson (singer) songs Ray Price (musician) songs Debbie Reynolds songs Jerry Lee Lewis songs Mickey Gilley songs Mel Tillis songs Song recordings produced by Eddie Kilroy Columbia Records singles Playboy Records singles 1958 songs