Whisperin’ Bill Anderson: An Unprecedented Life in Country Music

Bill Anderson is one of the most successful songwriters, performers, and personalities in country music history. Known as Whisperin’ Bill to generations of fans, Anderson’s soft vocalisations and spoken lyrics are the hallmarks of his style. A long-standing member of the weekly Grand Ole Opry radio program and stage performance in Nashville, he also discovered future Country Music Hall of Famer Connie Smith and wrote her first hits, toured with Johnny Cash, hosted his own television show, sang eighty charting singles and thirty-seven Top Ten country music hits, and wrote songs recorded by James Brown, Jerry Lee Lewis, the Louvin Brothers, Dean Martin, Aretha Franklin, and many more.

Anderson’s current and reinvigorated career is covered in this revision and expansion of his 1989 autobiography. Over the past twenty years, he has won two Country Music Association Song of the Year prizes, been nominated for GRAMMY awards, won the Academy of Country Music’s Song of the Year distinction, and had works recorded by superstars Brad Paisley, Kenny Chesney, Alison Krauss, George Strait, Vince Gill, Elvis Costello, and many more. In 2001, he entered the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Whisperin’ Bill: An Unprecedented Life in Country Music presents a portrait of a long-gone Nashville and introduces readers to the famous and fascinating characters who helped build what is now known as country music. Richly illustrated with black-and-white photos of Anderson interacting with the superstars of American roots music, including such legends as Patsy Cline, Vince Gill, and Steve Wariner, this autobiography highlights Anderson’s trajectory in the business and his influence on the past, present, and future of this dynamic genre.