Born 79 Years Ago in New York, the Folk Singer Who Moved to Nashville and Wrote Hits for Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood, and Kathy Mattea

September 23, 2026, 2:55pm

On this day (September 23) in 1947, Pat Alger was born in Long Island City, Queens, New York. After performing in multiple regional folk scenes across the United States and finding success as a pop songwriter, he moved to Nashville. There, he wrote songs that became major hits for Garth Brooks, Kathy Mattea, Trisha Yearwood, and many others.

Alger’s family relocated to LaGrange, Georgia, when he was very young. He taught himself to play guitar and began writing songs as a teenager. However, he didn’t immediately chase a music career. Instead, he attended Georgia Tech in Atlanta, where he studied graphic design and architecture at Georgia Tech and Georgia State University. While there, he also performed in the Atlanta Folk Music Society’s semi-annual concerts.

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According to his website, Alger began performing in acoustic clubs around Atlanta. Later, he joined and formed several bands, including The Hand Band, Milkweed, and Hansen & Alger. During this time, he toured the Southeast. When he opened for Jonathan Edwards, he became the first artist to perform at the Great Southeastern Music Hall.

In 1973, he moved to Woodstock, New York, where he joined the Woodstock Mountain Revue. While there, he connected with Artie Traum and toured Europe and the United States. They later recorded an album together after he relocated to Manhattan to focus on songwriting. He got his first hit when Livingston Taylor took “First Time Love” to No. 37 on the Hot 100. The next year, he relocated again.

Pat Alger Goes to Nashville

Pat Alger moved to Nashville in the summer of 1981. He planned to write songs and work as a graphic designer for the Country Music Hall of Fame. His songwriting career took off more quickly than he’d imagined. “My songs immediately began to be recorded, starting with a top 10 Canadian country hit by John Allen Cameron,” he wrote on his website. Ironically, the song was “Overnight Success.” Six years later, he got his first No. 1 when Kathy Mattea topped the Billboard country chart with “Goin’ Gone.”

In 1984, the Everly Brothers recorded “I’m Takin’ My Time.” Then, they hired Alger as the opening act on their tour. He stayed on the road with the reunited duo for two years. As the 1980s drew to a close, he started working with an up-and-coming Garth Brooks, who made several of Alger’s songs hits.

Alger Writes Country Gold

Pat Alger has won several awards and was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. More importantly, he wrote several songs that became memorable hits in the 1980s and ’90s. The list below contains some highlights from his deep catalog.