Please Walk On Out of My Mind

Category:  News/Obituary 

Red Lane has died.

The Nashville Songwriter Hall of Fame member died this evening (7/1) of cancer at approximately 7 PM central time in Nashville, according to his Facebook page.

Born in Louisiana in 1939, Red Lane was one of the great prolific songwriters in Nashville in the 60's through the 80's.  The long string of hits he wrote include John Conlee's "Miss Emily's Picture" (inspired by Lane's grandmother, Emily), "Country Girl" (co-written with and a hit by Dottie West), Conway Twitty's "Darlin', You Know I Wouldn't Lie" (co-written with Wayne Kemp, who passed away earlier this year), Eddy Arnold's "They Just Don't Make Love Like They Used To," and "New Looks From an Old Lover" by B.J. Thomas.

Two of Lane's best-known compositions were the haunting "Black Jack County Chain," recorded by Willie Nelson, about a group of inmates who beat a sadistic jailer to death with their chains, and the classic Waylon Jennings song "Walk On Out of My Mind," with its terrific chorus of, "Since you walked out of my life, out of my world, please walk on out of my mind."

Lane was elected to the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1993.  He has been honored with presentations on his career at the "songwriters session" at the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Red Lane was 76.