"I'm Just a Country Boy" is a song written by Fred Hellerman and

Marshall Barer Marshall Barer (born Marshall Louis Barer; February 19, 1923 in Astoria, Queens – August 25, 1998 in Santa Fe, New Mexico) was a lyricist, librettist, singer, songwriter and director. Early career Barer began his career as a lyricist and songw ...

. In 1954, the song was recorded by Harry Belafonte accompanied by Hugo Winterhalter And His Orchestra (RCA Victor) and released on 78 rpm and 45 rpm record. It was the B-side of the record, "Hold 'Em Joe" (Calypso) being the A-side. The print on the record informs us that the song was written by Fred Brooks and Marshall Barer, noting that Fred Brooks was a pseudonym for Fred Hellerman (of The Weavers fame) who was blacklisted in the McCarthy era for his socialist ideals.

Cover versions

*In 1960

Sam Cooke Samuel Cook (January 22, 1931 – December 11, 1964), known professionally as Sam Cooke, was an American singer and songwriter. Considered to be a pioneer and one of the most influential soul artists of all time, Cooke is commonly referred ...

recorded the song as the second track on his album Swing Low. *In 1962 Steve Camacho released the song on the album "Folk and other songs" with the title "Turtle Dove". * Bobby Vinton covered the song on his 1966 LP '' Country Boy''. *In 1967,

Julie Felix Julie Ann Felix (June 14, 1938 – March 22, 2020) was an American-British folk singer and recording artist who achieved success, particularly on British television, in the late 1960s and early 1970s. She later performed and released albums on h ...

' version "I'm Just A Country Girl" appeared on EP "Songs from the Frost Report, Part 2" (Fontana). Also in this case Fred Brooks and Marshall Barer were identified as the creators of the song. *American country music artist Don Williams released his version in July 1977 as the first single from the album ''Country Boy''. "I'm Just a Country Boy" was Don Williams' seventh number one on the country chart. The single stayed at number one for one week and spent a total of eleven weeks on the country chart. * Richard Manuel of The Band recorded the song in 1985. It was one of his last recordings before his death, and was released posthumously as "Country Boy" on The Band's 1993 album ''

Jericho Jericho ( ; ar, أريحا ; he, יְרִיחוֹ ) is a Palestinian city in the West Bank. It is located in the Jordan Valley, with the Jordan River to the east and Jerusalem to the west. It is the administrative seat of the Jericho Gove ...

''. *In 2007, the song was included in Alison Krauss' CD '' A Hundred Miles or More: A Collection'' (Rounder) as "You're Just a Country Boy". In the booklet that comes with the CD, Fred Hellerman and

are given the credits for the song. The text of the booklet indicates unawareness of recorded versions before Don Williams'. *Other known versions are:

George McCurn George McCurn (born January 21, 1920 in Chicago – September 1985) was a bass singer who started off singing gospel and switched to pop in the 1960s. He had a hit in 1963 with "I'm Just A Country Boy". Career Group In 1948, he joined the vocal ...

- March 16March 16, 1963, Vancouver CFUN Radio 1963, Jim Ed Brown - 1965, Ronnie Lane - 1975; Jimmie Rodgers (pop singer); Jim Croce (demo); Roger Whittaker; David Ball; John Holt; The Brothers Four; Bobby Vinton. *60s pop icon Bobby Vee recorded the song in his final sessions, released in 2014 as ''The Adobe Sessions''

Chart performance

Footnotes

References

* 1954 songs 1977 singles Harry Belafonte songs Sam Cooke songs Bobby Vinton songs Don Williams songs Bobby Vee songs ABC Records singles Dot Records singles Songs written by Fred Hellerman {{1970s-country-song-stub