"Good Time Charlie's Got the Blues" is a song written and performed by American folk singer

Danny O'Keefe Danny O'Keefe (born May 20, 1943) is an American folk singer and songwriter. Career In 1968, O'Keefe was a member of a four-man heavy psychedelic rock band named the Calliope. The group recorded one album, ''Steamed'', for Buddah Records befor ...

. It was first recorded by O'Keefe in 1967, but not released. It was recorded by The Bards and released in 1968 as the b-side to the song "Tunesmith" on

Parrot Records Parrot Records was an American record label, a division of London Records, which started in 1964. The label usually licensed (or leased) recordings made by Decca Records, England, for release in the United States and Canada, most notably by th ...

. The Bards were a band from

Moses Lake, Washington Moses Lake is a city in Grant County, Washington, United States. The population was 25,146 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Moses Lake is the most populous city in Grant County. The city anchors the Moses Lake Micropolitan area, w ...

, United States. The song was recorded by O'Keefe for his self-titled debut album in

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses (Solar eclipse of February 25, 1971, February 25, Solar eclipse of July 22, 1971, July 22 and Solar eclipse of August 20, 1971, August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 1971 lunar eclip ...

. The following year he re-recorded it (with a slower, more downbeat arrangement) for his second album, '' O'Keefe''. The second version was issued as a single, reaching number 9 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 singles chart, number 5 on the

adult contemporary chart The Adult Contemporary chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary radio stations in the United States. The chart is compiled based on airplay data submitted to ''Billboard'' by stati ...

, and number 63 on the country chart. The song was also recorded by

Mel Tormé Melvin Howard Tormé (September 13, 1925 – June 5, 1999), nicknamed "the Velvet Fog", was an American musician, singer, composer, arrangement, arranger, drummer, actor, and author. He composed the music for "The Christmas Song" ("Chestnuts Roa ...

, especially for a 1986 episode of

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

's ''

Night Court ''Night Court'' is an American television sitcom that premiered on NBC on January 4, 1984, and ended on May 31, 1992, after nine seasons consisting of List of Night Court episodes, 193 episodes. The show is set in the night shift of a Manhattan ...

'' entitled "Leon, We Hardly Knew Ye". It was recorded by numerous artists. A recording by

Leon Russell Leon Russell (born Claude Russell Bridges; April 2, 1942 – November 13, 2016) was an American musician and songwriter who was involved with numerous bestselling records during his 60-year career that spanned multiple genres, including rock a ...

peaked at number 63 on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles chart in 1984.

Charts

Selected list of recorded versions

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor and activist. He was one of the main figures of the outlaw country subgenre that developed in the late 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restr ...

on his album "City of New Orleans" *

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. ...

(1977), on the album ''Play, Guitar Play'' * The Bards (1968) on Parrot Records *

(1971), on the album ''Danny O'Keefe'' *

Dwight Yoakam Dwight David Yoakam (born October 23, 1956) is an American singer-songwriter, actor, and filmmaker. He first achieved mainstream attention in 1986 with the release of his debut album ''Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc.''. Yoakam had considerable s ...

(1997), on the album Under the Covers *

Waylon Jennings Waylon Arnold Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He is considered one of the pioneers of the Outlaw country, outlaw movement in country music. Jennings started playing ...

(1973), on the album Lonesome, On'ry and Mean * Mike Farris *

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

, recorded at Stax and featured on his 1974 album

Good Times ''Good Times'' is an American television sitcom that aired for six seasons on CBS, from February 8, 1974, to August 1, 1979. Created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans (actor), Mike Evans and developed by executive producer Norman Lear, it was televis ...

Chris Hillman Christopher Hillman (born December 4, 1944) is an American musician. He was the original bassist of the Byrds. With frequent collaborator Gram Parsons, Hillman was a key figure in the development of country rock, defining the genre through his w ...

Earl Klugh Earl Klugh ( ; born September 16, 1953) is an American acoustic guitarist and composer. He has won one Grammy Award and received 13 nominations. Biography At the age of six, Klugh commenced training on the piano until he switched to the guitar ...

on his 1978 album '' Magic in Your Eyes'' * Rita Wilson *

Charlie Rich Charles Allan Rich (December 14, 1932July 25, 1995) was an American country singer. His eclectic style of music also blended influences from rockabilly, jazz, blues, soul, and gospel. In the later part of his life, Rich acquired the nickname t ...

(1980), on the album ''Once a Drifter'' *

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 ...

and

Holly Cole Holly Cole (born November 25, 1963) is a Canadian jazz singer and actress. For many years she performed with her group The Holly Cole Trio. Background Cole was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Halifax, Nova Scotia. Her father, Leon Cole, was a note ...

, from the album ''

Night Night, or nighttime, is the period of darkness when the Sun is below the horizon. Sunlight illuminates one side of the Earth, leaving the other in darkness. The opposite of nighttime is daytime. Earth's rotation causes the appearance of ...

'' (2012) *

Harry Manx Harry Manx (born 1955) is a Canadian musician who blends blues, folk music, and Hindustani classical music. His official website describes his music as being a "blend Indian folk melodies with slide guitar blues, add a sprinkle of gospel and ...

(2008), from the album ''Live at the Glenn Gould Studio'' *

, (1986), for a ''

'' episode entitled "Leon, We Hardly Knew Ye" *

Nat Stuckey Nathan Wright Stuckey (December 17, 1933 – August 24, 1988) was an American country singer. He recorded for various labels between 1966 and 1978, charting in the top 10 of Hot Country Songs with " Sweet Thang", "Plastic Saddle", "Sweet Thang ...

(1973), on the album ''Take Time To Love Her'' * Shooter Jennings (2016), on the album ''Black Country Rock 2015 Mixtape'' * Charley Crockett on his 2018 album, ''Lil G.L.'s Blue Bonanza'' *Ronnie Dunn on his 2020 album ''RE-DUNN'' *

Cab Calloway Cabell "Cab" Calloway III (December 25, 1907 – November 18, 1994) was an American jazz singer and bandleader. He was a regular performer at the Cotton Club in Harlem, where he became a popular vocalist of the Swing music, swing era. His niche ...

in multiple live recordings on YouTube from 1987 thru 1990

References

External links

*
Cab Calloway Good Time Charlie (live)
{{authority control 1967 songs 1972 singles Elvis Presley songs Willie Nelson songs Jerry Lee Lewis songs Leon Russell songs Song recordings produced by Ahmet Ertegun Songs written by Danny O'Keefe Songs about loneliness Songs about blues