How a Second Chance at Recording It Maximized the Potential of Danny O’Keefe’s Biggest Hit

The term “one-hit wonder” has conditioned us to expect that the lone big hit from the artist in question might be lightweight somehow. Now and again, however, a one-hit wonder offers a song of rare depth and potency.

We can say that about Danny O’Keefe, who went to the Top 10 in 1972 with the song “Good Time Charlie’s Got The Blues”. O’Keefe’s oft-covered song captures the hard times with a lived-in accuracy that still hits hard.

Chasing “Charlie”

Hailing from Spokane, Washington, Danny O’Keefe first thought he’d make his mark as a psychedelic rocker. But his band, Calliope, released an album that went nowhere in 1968. O’Keefe simply pivoted and tried his hand at being a singer-songwriter.

When he wrote “Good Time Charlie’s Got The Blues”, he thought he might be able to pitch it around to country artists. He made a demo for that purpose. A band called The Bards recorded it in 1968, but it didn’t leave much of an imprint.

O’Keefe eventually used the song to help him get a record deal, and he recorded it for his first solo album in 1970. But the arrangement, which included a prominent flute, wasn’t right for the song. Luckily, he’d give it another chance a few years later, which is when he finally unlocked the potential of the song.

“Blues” Power

When O’Keefe wrote “Good Time Charlie’s Got The Blues”, he was very much the struggling artist who was feeling a bit miserable about the vagabond life of a musician. When he took his second crack at the song, he and the session musicians in Memphis created a version that tapped into that melancholy. They were aided by O’Keefe’s performance, which, while underplayed, still captured the deep wells of emotion within the lyrics.

This time around, the song hit the mark, landing at No. 9 on the pop charts. It didn’t take long for other artists to latch onto the track. Just two years after O’Keefe had his big hit with it, Elvis Presley did a version, accompanied by many of the same musicians who played on the hit take as well.

Jerry Lee Lewis, Willie Nelson, and Leon Russell are a few of the other luminaries who have done their own versions of “Good Time Charlie’s Got The Blues”. The income stream from those covers helped O’Keefe sustain a long career in music, even though he never again managed a hit at that level.

Behind the Lyrics of “Good Time Charlie’s Got The Blues”

“Everybody’s leavin’ town,” O’Keefe sings at the beginning of “Good Time Charlie’s Got The Blues”, referencing all the folks who bugged out of his home base in Washington state to head to LA. “They said this town will waste your time,” he admits. “I guess they’re right, it’s wastin’ mine.”

The passing time only exacerbates his malaise. “You know my heart keeps tellin’ me,” he says. “You’re not a kid at thirty-three.” He tries whatever he can to feel better, to no avail. “I got my pills to ease the pain,” he admits. “Can’t find a thing to ease the rain.”

The refrain comes off as a shrug with some sting to it: “Some gotta win, some gotta lose/Good time Charlie’s got the blues.” Technically, Danny O’Keefe qualifies as a one-hit wonder. But what an abnormally substantial single hit it was.

Photo via Billboard/Wikimedia Commons