Anderson charted 12 No. 1, 18 Top 10, and more than 50 Top 40 hits. In addition to being named "Top Female Vocalist" by the Academy of Country Music (ACM) twice and "Female Vocalist of the Year" by the Country Music Association (CMA), Anderson won a Grammy Award (earning seven nominations), People's Choice Award and an American Music Award (AMA). She was named Billboard's Female Artist of the Decade (1970–1980).
Anderson was the first female country artist to win the American Music Award (in 1974), as well as the first to headline and sellout Madison Square Garden that same year.
Anderson debuted in 1966, at the age of 19, and had her first hit with Ride, Ride, Ride. After a series of Top 10 hit singles on the country charts during the late 1960s, Anderson signed with Columbia Records in 1970. Under Columbia, she had her most successful string of hits. Her signature song, "(I Never Promised You a) Rose Garden", remains one of the biggest selling country crossover hits of all time. In addition, the song also went to No. 3 on the Billboard Pop Chart and reached the top of the charts in several countries, an unprecedented achievement at the time. CMT ranks "Rose Garden" at No. 83 on its list of the "100 Greatest Songs in Country Music History". Anderson continued to record and remained a popular concert attraction until her death, regularly headlining major casino showrooms, performing arts centers and theaters.
She grew up in Sacramento, California with her mother, acclaimed singer-songwriter Liz Anderson who wrote "The Fugitive" and "(All My Friends Are Gonna Be) Strangers", both Merle Haggard hits, among others. She began her solo career in 1966 with "In Person", followed by a hit with her mother's "If I Kiss You (Will You Go Away)".
In 1968 she married Glenn Sutton, a future Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee, with whom she had a daughter, Lisa. (They divorced in 1977.)
Consistent hits followed, and she was a regular on The Lawrence Welk Show during the 1967-68 season. In 1969 Anderson signed to Columbia where her work veered a bit more toward a polished, pop sound. She released her signature song, "Rose Garden" in late 1970. The song, written by Joe South, won a Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance reached number 1 on the U.S. country charts, and also hit number 3 on the pop charts, as well as being a hit in fifteen countries. Anderson also received Grammy nominations for her recordings "Big Girls Don't Cry" (1968), "That's a No No" (1969), and "How Can I Unlove You" (1971)> Anderson's other hits during this period included "You're My Man", "Listen to a Country Song", "Top of the World" (a number 1 country record for Anderson before becoming a pop hit for The Carpenters), "Cry", "Keep Me in Mind", "What a Man My Man Is" and "Smile For Me". In 1971, she was voted Top Female Vocalist of the year by both the Academy of Country Music and Country Music Association. Anderson charted eight no.one singles, 18 Top-Tens and earned a total of 17 international Gold records. She was perhaps the most in-demand country female vocalist on network television throughout the 1970's but after 1975 her records usually peaked in the top 20 as opposed to her earlier top ten success.
Anderson married a Louisiana businessman in 1978. The second marriage produced two more children, and she was divorced in 1982.
Anderson remained one of the top female country singers into the 1980's. Her last top ten record was 1984s "You're Welcome to Tonight". During the late 1980's and early 1990s, she received much press for her disputes with her now-divorced second husband. After spending time on her ranch, raising horses and participating in equestrian events, she began recording again in 1992.
"The Bluegrass Sessions", released in 2004, earned Anderson her first Grammy nomination in over 30 years.
That same year Anderson was arrested in Denton, Texas, for drunk driving.
The American Rose Society created and named in her honor a white and raspberry hybrid tea rose.
Anderson released a new CD of original songs entitled "Cowgirl" in 2006, all of the songs penned by her mother, the acclaimed songwriter Liz Anderson.
Paper Mansions
Lynn Anderson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
For love can't live in paper mansions that only stand until you've gone
You paint the nicest futures of anyone I know
You always leave me holding on to pretty words that glow
You've built a thousand mansions out of dreams that seem so strong
But they're always made of paper not of stone
Don't build for me...
You've always been a dreamer dear and I'm a dreamer too
But I guess I've had too many of the kind that don't come true
So don't build me no mansions with paper walls so thin
That only stand until you leave again
Don't build for me...
Lynn Anderson's "Paper Mansions" is a poignant country ballad about the hauntingly fragile nature of love presented through a metaphor of a house built from paper. The singer addresses her lover, saying that she does not want him to build for her these "paper mansions" which she can never truly call her own. The singer reminds her lover that love cannot thrive in such structures, which are ephemeral and will last only until he is gone. She sings, “Love can't live in paper mansions that only stand until you've gone.”
The singer speaks of her lover's tendency to paint idyllic pictures of their future together, leaving her with nothing but the pretty words that do not hold any promises. He builds "a thousand mansions out of dreams that seem so strong" but they are made of only paper, fragile and temporary. She implores him not to build for her such houses with paper walls that only stand until he leaves once again.
This touching ballad presents the idea that love should go beyond temporary pleasures and last for eternity. The images of paper mansions resonate with the listener, as the vulnerability of the material defines the uncertainty of love. It is a reminder that true love should be substantial and permanent.
Line by Line Meaning
Don't build for me no paper mansions that I can never call my own
I don't want a superficial life that is not built on love and commitment
For love can't live in paper mansions that only stand until you've gone
If you only build something temporary, then it won't last and love can't truly exist there
You paint the nicest futures of anyone I know
You have a great imagination and can create wonderful images of the future
You always leave me holding on to pretty words that glow
However, your words are often empty and don't come to fruition, leaving me disappointed
You've built a thousand mansions out of dreams that seem so strong
You've imagined many possible futures that seem solid and real
But they're always made of paper not of stone
But upon closer inspection, these dreams are not actually strong or permanent
You've always been a dreamer dear and I'm a dreamer too
We both have big imaginations and tend to look towards possibilities
But I guess I've had too many of the kind that don't come true
However, I have been let down too many times before by dreams that never materialized
So don't build me no mansions with paper walls so thin
Therefore, I don't want any more imaginary promises that are easily broken
That only stand until you leave again
I want a true commitment that lasts even when you're not around
Don't build for me...
Overall, I desire a genuine and permanent love, not a facade or temporary illusion
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing
Written by: TED HARRIS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind