"A Poor Man's Roses (or a Rich Man's Gold)" is a song was written by

Bob Hilliard Bob Hilliard (born Hilliard Goldsmith; January 28, 1918 – February 1, 1971) was an American lyricist. He wrote the words for the songs: "Alice in Wonderland", " In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning", " Any Day Now", " Dear Hearts and Gentl ...

(lyricist) and Milton De Lugg (composer). The song was popularized by both

Patsy Cline Patsy Cline (born Virginia Patterson Hensley; September 8, 1932 – March 5, 1963) was an American singer. One of the most influential vocalists of the 20th century, she was known as one of the first country music artists to successfully Cross ...

and

Patti Page Clara Ann Fowler (November 8, 1927 – January 1, 2013), better known by her stage name Patti Page, was an American singer. Primarily known for Pop music, pop and Country music, country music, she was the top-charting female vocalist and b ...

1957 Events January * January 1 – The Saarland joins West Germany. * January 3 – Hamilton Watch Company introduces the first electric watch. * January 5 – South African player Russell Endean becomes the first batsman to be Dismissal (cricke ...

. Cline rerecorded the song with a string arrangement and in

stereo Stereophonic sound, commonly shortened to stereo, is a method of sound reproduction that recreates a multi-directional, 3-dimensional audible perspective. This is usually achieved by using two independent audio channels through a configurat ...

, in 1961. Page recorded the song again in

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...

Chart performances

The song was first recorded by

on November 8, 1956. It was released on the flip side of her single "

Walkin' After Midnight "Walkin' After Midnight" is a song written by Alan Block and Don Hecht and recorded by American country music artist Patsy Cline. The song was originally given to pop singer Kay Starr, but her label rejected it. The song was left unused until He ...

." The song reached number 14 on the Most Played C&W by Jockeys chart that year for Cline. The 1957 Page recording was issued by

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. Mercury Records released ...

as catalog number 71059, (the flip side of "

The Wall ''The Wall'' is the eleventh studio album by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on 30 November 1979 by Harvest/ EMI and Columbia/ CBS Records. It is a rock opera which explores Pink, a jaded rock star, as he constructs a psychologic ...

") and first reached the Billboard magazine charts on March 23, 1957. On the Disk Jockey chart, it peaked at number 14; on the composite chart of the top 100 songs, it reached number 27. The 1981 Page recording was issued by Plantation Records as catalog number PL-201, (the flip side of "On the Inside") and first reached the

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

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 ...

chart on July 18, 1981, lasting 6 weeks and peaking at number 66, in a joint listing with its flip side.

Other recordings

Other artists who have recorded the song include: *

Kitty Kallen Kitty Kallen (born Katie Kallen; May 25, 1921 – January 7, 2016) was an American singer whose career spanned from the 1930s to the 1960s, including the Swing era of the Big Band years, the post-World War II pop scene, and the early years ...

(1961) *Red Hurley & The Colours (1969) *Filipino singers

Nora Aunor Nora Cabaltera Villamayor (May 21, 1953 – April 16, 2025), known professionally as Nora Aunor (), was a Filipino actress, producer and singer. Known for her leading roles with patriotic, feminist and Political sociology, socio-political th ...

and

Victor Wood Victor Nobleza Wood (February 1, 1946 – April 23, 2021) was a Filipino singer, actor and politician. His voice earned him various titles, including "Jukebox King" and "Plaka King". Before becoming a singer, Wood starred in some production ...

(both 1972) *

Reba McEntire Reba Nell McEntire ( ; born March 28, 1955), or simply Reba, is an American country music, country singer and actress. Dubbed "Honorific nicknames in popular music, The Queen of Country", she has sold more than 75 million records worldwide. Sin ...

(1980) on her " Feel the Fire" LP

References

1957 singles Patsy Cline songs 1981 songs Songs with lyrics by Bob Hilliard Songs written by Milton DeLugg 1956 songs {{Pop-standard-stub