Born 90 Years Ago Today in Tennessee, the Teen Pop Idol Turned Country Star Who Co-Wrote George Jones’ Favorite Song

September 21, 2026, 4:30am

Born in Memphis on this day (September 21) in 1936, Royden Dickey Lipscomb — known professionally as Dickey Lee — is responsible for an impressive number of chart-topping hits. The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member’s resume includes “She Thinks I Still Care” by George Jones; “Let’s Fall To Pieces Together” by George Strait; Reba McEntire’s “You’re The First Time I’ve Thought about Leaving”; “I’ll Be Leaving Alone” by Charley Pride; and Tracy Byrd’s 1995 hit “The Keeper of the Stars”.

However, Lee’s talents aren’t limited to the writers’ room. He’s also a performer, getting his start on the 1960s pop scene with the teenage tragedy hits “Patches” (1962) and “Laurie (Strange Things Happen)” (1965). Not content to rest on his laurels, Lee has also recorded a number of country hits, including the number-one 1975 hit “Rocky”.

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In honor of Dickey Lee’s 90th birthday, we’re taking a trip through his remarkable life and career.

Who is Dickey Lee?

Writing his first song “Anna Lee” at just 13 years old, Dickey Lee grew up on the songs of Webb Pierce, Hank Thompson, Carl Smith, and Faron Young.

Forming his first country music trio at just 16 years old, Lee got his start performing at his school and local functions.

Shortly after graduating high school, Lee achieved regional success with his song “Dream Boy”.

Ignoring his father’s advice to “take his guitar and throw it in the Mississippi River and get a job,” he soon signed with Sun Records.

“She Thinks I Still Care”

Moving to Texas in the early 1960s, Dickey Lee’s first taste of songwriting success came in 1962, when George Jones recorded “She Thinks I Still Care”.

Lee co-wrote the song with Steve Duffy, and Jack Clement played it for Jones at Gulf Coast Studio in Beaumont, Texas. According to Jones’ biographer, Bob Allen, the country singer didn’t exactly fall in love with it right away.

“It’s got too many damn ‘just becauses’ in it,” Jones said. “I don’t think nobody really wants to hear that s—, do you?”

(Jones disagreed with this recollection, insisting he “couldn’t wait to get into the studio.)

“She Thinks I Still Care” spent 23 weeks on the U.S. country chart, six of them at number one.

“George Jones told me later that his two favorite songs of his career were ‘He Stopped Loving Her Today’ and ‘She Thinks I Still Care,’ but that ‘She Thinks’ was his favorite of all of them,” Lee said in 2022. “That was pretty cool.”

Hitting the Pop Charts

That same year, Lee found a song called “Patches” among a bunch of demos in Chet Atkins’ office. Convinced it was a hit, Lee recorded the song and released it on the Mercury Records subsidiary Smash.

Indeed, the tragic teenage suicide tale shot to number six on the U.S. pop chart and number 10 on the R&B listing. It managed to sell a million copies despite being banned from several radio stations due to its heavy subject matter.

And suddenly, Dickey Lee was a teen idol.

After two more pop hits — “I Saw Linda Yesterday” and “Laurie (Strange Things Happen)” — Lee spent the next few years focusing more on songwriting and production.

A Bona Fide Country Star

In 1969, Dickey Lee returned to Nashville and signed with RCA Records. Six years later, he reached the top of the U.S. country charts with the bittersweet track “Rocky”, followed by the number-three hit “9,999,999 Tears”.