Rolling Stone
Contact Rolling Stone by Email View all posts by Rolling Stone October 22, 2026
John Anderson's hits include songs like "Swingin'," "Straight Tequila Night," and "Seminole Wind." Scott Harrison/Hulton Archive/Getty Images John Anderson was one of country music’s preeminent song stylists. While he was also a gifted songwriter — his self-written “Seminole Wind” is a masterclass in setting a sense of place through lyrics — Anderson could make any song his own, regardless of who wrote it or recorded it before him. The 2024 inductee of the Country Music Hall of Fame died Oct. 21 at 71, but leaves behind a catalog of incredible vocal performances. These are 10 you need to hear.
-
‘Swingin” (1983)
Image Credit: Rick Diamond/WireImage The 1983 CMA Single of the Year, besting efforts by fellow traditionalists Ricky Skaggs, George Jones, and Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard, “Swingin’” is a veritable feast for the senses, setting its cozy rural scene with young Charlotte Johnson’s brother eating chocolate pie on the sofa as her mama cooks up fried chicken in the kitchen. But it’s Charlotte and the song’s narrator who savor simpler delights as they cuddle together on the front porch swing, swaying back and forth to one of the most deliciously inviting country tunes of all time. —S.B.
