Singer-songwriter Joe South, who wrote Lynn Anderson's pop crossover hit "Rose Garden," died Wednesday morning (Sept. 5) in Atlanta at age 72.

Born in Atlanta, he joined steel guitarist Pete Drake's band in the late '50s. He worked as a studio guitarist in Nashville and Muscle Shoals, Ala., playing on Bob Dylan's classic Blonde on Blonde album and other sessions for artists ranging from Marty Robbins and Eddy Arnold to Aretha Franklin and Solomon Burke.

As a solo artist, South is best known for his 1969 pop hit "Games People Play," which received Grammys for best contemporary song and song of the year. After a string of solo hits that included "Don't It Make You Want to Go Home" and "Walk a Mile in My Shoes," South went into semi-retirement following his brother's death in 1971.

He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1979. Read more at CMT.