I’ve been picking fairly poetic songs for this series of posts, and have so far ignored some of the tightly written hit songs that drew the attention of both country and pop music fans. Among the most-successful of these was “Once A Day,” recorded by Connie Smith on her debut LP for RCA in 1965. The song spent eight weeks at #1 in the Country charts, longer than any other single.

Once A Day (recorded by Connie Smith)
Written by Bill Anderson

When you found somebody new
I thought I never would forget you
For I thought then I never could
But time has taken all the pain away
Until now, I’m down to hurtin’
Once a day

Once a day
All day long
And once a night
From dusk till dawn
The only time
I wish you weren’t gone
Is once a day
Everyday
All day long

I’m so glad that I’m not like
A girl I knew one time
She lost the one she loved
Then slowly lost her mind
She sat around and cried her life away
Lucky me
I’m only cryin’ once a day

Once a day
All day long
And once a night
From dusk till dawn
The only time
I wish you weren’t gone
Is once a day
Everyday
All day long

I’m not sure what songwriters and music critics call a turn of phrase like “Once a day, everyday, all day long,” but this is an example of the kind of clever line heard so often in country music that defies the theory that it’s unsophisticated music. The line that Bill Anderson wrote here isn’t a simple pun; it’s a declaration of irony. And in Connie Smith’s hands, it’s proud and heartbreaking at the same time.