Rose Colored Glasses (John Conlee song)

"Rose Colored Glasses" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music singer John Conlee. It was released in April 1978 as the first single and title track from his debut album Rose Colored Glasses. The song peaked at number 5 in the United States and number 6 in Canada. Conlee wrote the song with George Baber.

"Rose Colored Glasses"
Single by John Conlee
from the album Rose Colored Glasses
B-side"I'll Be Easy"[1]
ReleasedApril 25, 1978
GenreCountry
Length3:24
LabelABC #12356
Songwriter(s)John Conlee
George Baber
Producer(s)Bud Logan
John Conlee singles chronology
"The In Crowd"
(1977)
"Rose Colored Glasses"
(1978)
"Lady Lay Down"
(1978)

Content

edit

The songs references the expression "rose-colored glasses," with the male narrator "deluding himself about the woman he loves."[2]

Critical reception

edit

Kurt Wolff and Orla Duane, in Country Music: The Rough Guide, described the song as "a surprise hit that defined him as a traditionalist[…]and put him more in league with modern-day honky-tonkers Gene Watson and Moe Bandy[.]"[3] The song was the most commercially successful single for the ABC Records label in 1978.[4]

Chart performance

edit

"Rose Colored Glasses" was Conlee's fourth release on the ABC label, but his first to enter a singles chart.[5] The song spent twenty weeks on the Hot Country Singles (now Hot Country Songs) charts, peaking at number 5 there.[1] It also peaked at number 6 on the Canadian country music charts published by RPM.[6]

Chart (1978) Peak
position
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[7] 5
Canadian RPM Country Tracks 6

References

edit
  1. ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (August 2008). Hot Country Songs 1944 to 2008. Record Research, Inc. p. 102. ISBN 978-0-89820-177-2.
  2. ^ Barbosa, Susan (25 February 1979). "John Conlee Looks Through 'Rose Colored Glasses'". Lakeland Ledger.
  3. ^ Wolff, Kurt; Duane, Orla (2000). Country Music: The Rough Guide. Rough Guides. p. 431. ISBN 1-85828-534-8.
  4. ^ Hurst, Jack (3 November 1978). "Conlee Future Enhanced by Rose Colored Glasses". The Milwaukee Journal.
  5. ^ Stambler, Irwin; Landon, Grelun (14 July 2000). Country Music: The Encyclopedia. Macmillan. pp. 102–103. ISBN 0-312-26487-9.
  6. ^ "RPM Country 75 Singles for the week ending September 9, 1978". RPM. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  7. ^ "John Conlee Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.