John Schweers has died. The songwriter passed away at the age of 78. It's a sad day for country music fans as the songwriter offered a lot to the genre.
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Scheweers was the pen behind hits like Charley Pride's "Amazing Love," Ronnie Milsap's "Daydreams About Night Things," Dave & Sugar's "Golden Tears" and Trace Adkins' "I Left Something Turned on at Home." That's to name just a few. A native of San Antonio, Schweers began songwriting when he was just in high school.
After college, he made his first big splash in 1980 with "Alabama Bull of the Woods" by Del Reeves. The songwriter followed that up with the Stoney Edwards hit "Poor Folks Stick Together" in 1971. Finally moving to Nashville in 1972, Schweers made a splash by partnering with Charley Pride. Pride would record more than 20 of Schweers's songs throughout his career. He wrote Pride's "Don't Fight the Feelings of Love" in 1973. That song became Schweers's first No.1 hit.
Schweers also partnered with Ronnie Milsap for the No.1 hit "Daydreams About Night Things" in 1975.
John Schweers's Career
"I just heard of somebody interviewing Olivia Newton-John," Schweers once said. "And when he interviewed her, his comment was, 'Boy, when we were talking, I was having daydreams about night things.' And then I thought, 'Well, man, that's a song idea! What's the matter with you guys!
"So I did a demo of it and everything," he continued. "I was out showing a house for a relative, and they called and said 'Are you John Schweers? You have somebody calling you on the phone.' And it was Ronnie Milsap: 'Man, I love that song. I want to do it. Don't pitch it to anybody else!'"
Among his late career hits, Schweers wrote "Born Country" by Alabama in 1992 and "I Left Something Turned on at Home" by Trace Adkins in 1997. Schweers continued to partner with some of the biggest names in country music including George Strait and Joe Nichols. Schweers earned six nominations for the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, but sadly, the organization didn't induct him prior to his passing. He had 12 top 10 hits, mainly solely written by him.
Schweers passed away in the early hours on May 28. His wife confirmed that he passed. They will be holding a funeral through Harpeth Hills Memorial Gardens. She will also be holding a memorial for him at Brentwood Baptist Church.