Early life
After the separation of his parents, Lee grew up in Sacramento on the poultry farm of his grandparents. At the age of seven, he began playing the saxophone, and at the age of nine became a member of a dance ensemble. In 1969, he joined the Chester Smith Band and had his first television appearance. A short time later, he worked with the country musician Del Reeves.
He founded his first band, Apollo, in 1962. He briefly battled a cocaine addiction and moved to Iceland to go to rehab. The band, which changed its name later to Lee Greenwood Affair, played mostly pop music and appeared mostly in casinos in Las Vegas. A few records were recorded in Los Angeles with the Paramount label. After the band broke up in the 1970s, Greenwood moved back to Las Vegas, where he worked as a black jack dealer during the day, and as a singer at night.
Career
In 1979, he was discovered in Reno, Nev., by Larry McFaden, the bandleader and bassist of Mel Tillis. After making some demo tapes, Greenwood was signed in 1981 by the Nashville-based MCA label, and McFaden became his manager.
The first single, "It Turns Me Inside Out", made it to a spot in the top 20 of the country charts. Greenwood had written this song for Kenny Rogers, but Rogers turned it down due to the sheer volume of songs he had been offered at the time. "Ring On Her Finger and Time on her Hands" landed him in the country top 10.
He is best known for writing and recording the patriotic song "God Bless the USA" in the early 1980s. "God Bless the USA" gained renewed popularity following the launch of Operation: Desert Storm in 1991, and again, ten years later, following the September 11, 2001 attacks; in fact, the song even re-entered the Top 20 of the country charts in late 2001. Since then, Greenwood has played at many public events and commemorations of the attacks. He supports the United States Republican Party.
Theater
In 1995, Greenwood took a break from his touring schedule to spend time with his wife and newborn son. In his time off, he elected to build a theater in Sevierville, Tenn., and in April 1996, the "Lee Greenwood Theater" opened its doors. This gave Greenwood the opportunity to still perform daily shows, in addition to being with his family. The theater operated for five seasons, and closed for Greenwood to continue touring. The theater was not located in the heavily entertainment and tourist oriented areas of Pigeon Forge, Tenn., and Gatlinburg, Tenn., which contributed to the theater closing. The former theater building is now host to a church.
Fools Gold
Lee Greenwood Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You wouldn't be sayin' goodbye
But I let you down, I was never around
When you needed me there by your side
I took a perfect love and gave you a perfect heartache
I took a band of gold and made a 24-carat mistake
And turned it into
Fool's gold, yes I was a fool 'cause I didn't know
Too many times I just didn't try
Now all I hear is you sayin' goodbye
Starin' at an empty hand full of fool's gold
If I'd spent the time just holdin' you tight
And sharin' my feelings with you
Then you'd understand what's inside of this man
And you'd know what I'm goin' through
I know that I was wrong now that it's too late
I took a band of gold and made a 24-carat mistake
And turned it into
Fool's gold, and I was a fool 'cause I let you go
Fool's gold, yes I was a fool 'cause I didn't know
Too many times I just didn't try
Now all I hear is you sayin' goodbye
Starin' at an empty hand full of fool's gold
In Lee Greenwood's song "Fools Gold," the singer delivers a poignant message of regret and heartache. The lyrics speak about a man who realized his mistakes too late, and now he's lost the love of his life. He laments about not being there when she needed him the most, and how he failed to cherish the perfect love that she gave him. The singer regrets not spending enough time with his lover, not trying hard enough to make things work, and not opening up about his feelings. He realizes that he took her for granted, turned her band of gold into a 24-carat mistake and turned their perfect love into fools' gold. Now, all he has is an empty hand full of fools' gold, and all he hears is her saying goodbye.
The song "Fools Gold" is a beautiful and emotional ballad that speaks to anyone who has lost someone they loved due to their own mistakes. The song's lyrics deliver a powerful message about the importance of cherishing the ones we love and being there for them when they need us. The song's smooth and soothing melody compliments the lyrics and evokes feelings of sadness, regret, and loss. Overall, "Fools Gold" is a heartfelt and memorable song that speaks to the heart.
Line by Line Meaning
If I only knew then what I know now
If I had been more knowledgeable and experienced then as much as I am now, I would not have to bear the pain of you leaving me.
You wouldn't be sayin' goodbye
If I had been different, you would not have to say goodbye and leave me behind, all alone.
But I let you down, I was never around
I was not there for you when you needed me the most. I let you down by not being around.
When you needed me there by your side
It's sad that I wasn't by your side when you needed me, it was my lack of presence that caused me to lose you.
I took a perfect love & gave you a perfect heartache
I had the perfect love, yet I managed to taint it and give you a heartache that perfectly fit the mark.
I took a band of gold & made a 24-carat mistake
Instead of valuing and keeping the precious band of gold that we had, I made a mistake that is worth 24-carat stupidity.
& turned it into...
And because of my own immaturity and foolishness, I turned it into something devastating.
Fool's gold, and I was a fool 'cause I let you go
I let go of something that was valuable beyond measure and ended up with something that is only worth being called 'Fool's Gold' causing me to feel like a fool for losing you.
Fool's gold, yes I was a fool 'cause I didn't know
I didn't realize that the love we had was genuine and rare, I was foolish enough to let it slip from my fingers.
Too many times I just didn't try
I didn't even attempt to make things right, which could have prevented this heartbreak.
Now all I hear is you sayin' goodbye
All I'm left with now is your goodbye, and the realization that things could have been different if only I had done things differently.
Starin' at an empty hand full of fool's gold
With nothing left in my hands, but a worthless reminder of what I once had, I realized that true love is irreplaceable and worth fighting for.
If I'd spent the time just holdin' you tight
If I had just held on to you tighter and realized how important you were to me, then things would have been so very different.
& sharin' my feelings with you
If I had communicated with you and shared how I was feeling things would have been different between us.
Then you'd understand what's inside of this man
If I had done these things, you would truly have understood who I was at the core of my being.
& you'd know what I'm goin' through
If I had only shared my feelings and my struggles, you would have understood and been there for me.
I know that I was wrong now that it's too late
After it's all said and done, I realize how wrong I was this whole time, and it's too late to do anything about it.
I took a band of gold & made a 24-carat mistake
Once again, I must face the terrible realization of how much of a mistake I've made and the consequences for my choices.
& turned it into...
And once again, I need to face the devastating results of my own bad choices.
(chorus)
Repeating the chorus once again as a way to further emphasize that true love is rare and irreplaceable, and when lost, it is lost forever.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Timmy Tappan, Don Roth
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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on Ring On Her Finger, Time On Her Hands
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