Leesa Cross Smith Popular Books
Leesa Cross Smith Biography & Facts
"Goodbye Earl", written by Dennis Linde, is a country murder ballad. Initially recorded by the band Sons of the Desert for an unreleased album in the late 1990s, the song gained fame when it was recorded by Dixie Chicks on their fifth studio album, Fly. After charting from unsolicited airplay in late 1999, the song was released as that album's third single in 2000, peaking at #13 on Billboard's Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) charts. The CD single includes a 'B-Side' cover of "Stand By Your Man" by Tammy Wynette. In 2021, it was listed at No. 469 on Rolling Stone's "Top 500 Best Songs of All Time". Composition "Goodbye Earl" was written by songwriter Dennis Linde. He plays acoustic guitar on the song, while producers Blake Chancey and Paul Worley, along with Charlie Robison, provide backing vocals. It is composed in the key of C major with a vocal range of G3-C5 and a main chord pattern of C-F/C-C-Gsus4. Using black comedy, the song tells the story of two best friends from high school, and what became of them after graduation. Mary Ann leaves the town where they were raised (probably to pursue her fortune), while Wanda settles on marrying a man named "Earl," who physically abuses her repeatedly. Wanda files for divorce based on the domestic violence, but "Earl walked right through that restraining order and put her in intensive care." Mary Ann flies in from Atlanta, Georgia, and after a discussion, the women decide "that Earl had to die," and they kill him, by poisoning or drugging his black-eyed peas. The song plot has been described as a cross between the films Fried Green Tomatoes and Thelma and Louise. The character of Earl previously appeared in Linde's composition "Queen of My Double Wide Trailer", recorded by Sammy Kershaw. Controversy The violent themes of the song caused some radio stations to approach playing the song with caution. According to an April 2000 Los Angeles Times article, at the time of publication, 20 of the 149 country radio stations tracked by Radio & Records were not playing the track due to hesitation from programmers. KRTY in San Jose, California attracted local media attention for banning the song and holding an on-air discussion on March 13, 2000 about the decision. The debate also centered, however, around creating awareness of domestic violence issues. Rita Smith, executive director of Denver-based National Coalition Against Domestic Violence argued it fomented necessary public dialogue around a taboo subject. “Many battered women feel trapped and feel that violence is their only option to get away from the abuser,” she told the Los Angeles Times. “We don’t want them feeling that way. We want them to know there are resources available to them. . . . We want stations who play the record to tell their listeners that there is a hotline number they can call if they’ve been a victim of violence.” Many stations decided to provide phone numbers to domestic violence hotlines whenever they aired the song. KRTY later reversed their decision and donated to a domestic violence shelter for each broadcast of the song. USA Today reported in April 2000 that KEEY "K102" in Minneapolis played a message promoting a domestic violence shelter alongside the song and WKIX in Raleigh, North Carolina, excluded the song from its playlist. Chart performance "Goodbye Earl" reached a peak position of number 13 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, a spot somewhat short of the Chicks' usual placings at the time. It also made the Top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at number 19, and would become the trio's highest charting song among pop listings until "Long Time Gone" in the summer of 2002. Regardless of rankings, the song has become one of the Chicks' most well-known tunes. It is an enthusiastically received staple of all their concert tours. Music video Produced by Keeley Gould, the music video for the song begins with some photographs of Wanda (played by Jane Krakowski) and Mary Ann (played by Lauren Holly) in high school, and their parting. The next scene shows Wanda wearing a wedding dress after marrying a man named Earl (played by Dennis Franz). As Wanda is increasingly abused by Earl, she dons dark glasses, long sleeve blouses and makeup, as conveyed in the song's lyrics, to conceal her injuries. Finally, she hires attorney Ezekiel Kincaid (played by the video's director Evan Bernard) to handle her divorce, but Earl appears, abusing Wanda for the last time. Mary Ann hears of Wanda's admission to the intensive care unit, and the two hatch the plan to kill Earl. After poisoning his black-eyed peas, they wrap his corpse up in blue tarp. A few days later, two police officers (played by Adrian Pasdar and Michael DeLuise) arrive, seeking Earl but are unable to find him (after a remarkably half-hearted search). After the seasons change, the two women are shown as business partners with a roadside stand, selling "Tennessee ham and strawberry jam". As they dispose of Earl's body, the whole town, including a zombie Earl, celebrates his death by dancing in a style evoking Michael Jackson's video for "Thriller". The video ends with all except Zombie Earl jumping in the air. The Chicks and Dennis Franz met backstage at The Rosie O'Donnell Show. They discussed the possibility of Franz appearing in one of their future videos. Told that he would have to play "a nasty guy," Franz's reply was, "Hey, I've done that before." Six months later, however, they asked him to play one of the police officers in the video. He replied, "No, no, no. I want to be Earl." Franz was cast as Earl and Adrian Pasdar played the other policeman instead. Pasdar would later marry the trio's lead singer Natalie Maines in June 2000. The music video won both the Academy of Country Music and the Country Music Association Video of the Year Awards in 2000. The video was subsequently placed at #6 on CMT's 2004 ranking of the 100 Greatest Music Videos, and #7 on their 2008 revision of the rankings. Other versions and parodies The song was originally recorded by the country music band Sons of the Desert but not put onto an album, because of a dispute with the band's label. Sons of the Desert had initially planned to record it on their second album for Epic Records, but the Chicks had claimed the song as their own. The resulting dispute over the song led to Sons of the Desert's exiting Epic in 1998. Punk cover band Me First and the Gimme Gimmes also performed a cover of the song. Country music parodist Cledus T. Judd recorded a parody, titled "Goodbye Squirrel", about two hunters and their unsuccessful attempts to kill a squirrel. Comedian Fortune Feimster performed the song with Maines on The Comedy Jam. In 2000 American songwriter and music publisher Dennis Morgan wrote a parody song entitled "Hey Girls...This Is Earl...I Didn't Die". In the song the girls' attempt to kill Earl only left him with amnesia. He eventually comes back and has them arrested fo.... Discover the Leesa Cross Smith popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Leesa Cross Smith books.
Best Seller Leesa Cross Smith Books of 2024
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Always Yours
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All Fired Up
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A Green Kind of Witch
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The Target
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Masters of Restraint
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Noxious
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A Christmas Carol
Charles DickensAn Apple Books Classic edition. It’s Christmas Eve in Victorian England. While some families don’t know where their next meal will come from, Ebenezer Scrooge sits in his large hom...
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Caught Up with the Captain
Kait NolanCan a retired naval commander and the love he left behind overcome a 34yearold secret to find their way to a second chance? Captain Mitchell Greyson is a man who believes in duty. ...
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Once Upon A One-Night Stand
Zoey LockeAt first sight, there was electrifying chemistry.  So why not go for it? After all, Lynx Grove, the city's most eligible bachelor, wants to claim her, at least for th...
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The Odyssey
HomerAn Apple Books Classic edition. Homer’s eighthcentury epic poem is a companion to The Iliad . It tells the story of Odysseus, who journeys by ship for 10 years after the Trojan War...
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His Own Heaven
Jennie KewWinner of the 2021 Passionate Plume Award for BDSM Romance Finalist in the 2021 Stiletto Contest for Contemporary Romance He taught her to trust, she taught him to love. Lucy Bar...
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The Honeymoon Homicide
J. R. Mathis & Susan MathisEnjoy this SmallTown Murder Mystery Featuring A Unique Sleuthing Couple I'm Father Tom Greer, a Catholic Priest in a smalltown parish who never expected this . . . When I came...
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Death at Hazel House
Betty Rowlands‘Riveting, can't put it down! I love this story… a wonderfully twisted tale of a crime that has more twists than I thought possible... fantastic.’ Goodreads Reviewer, 5 stars ...
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The Three Little Pigs
Mark LeskyClassic fairy tales, legends and folk stories in short version without violence retold with lovely illustrations in simple language. Perfect for reading aloud to small chi...
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The Count of Monte Cristo
Alexandre DumasAn Apple Books Classic edition. Alexandre Dumas’ classic paints a portrait of Edmond Dantès, a dark and calculating man who is willing to wait years to exact his perfect plan for r...
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The Next Girl
Carla KovachIF YOU ONLY READ ONE BOOK THIS YEAR, MAKE IT THE NEXT GIRL... You thought he’d come to save you. You were wrong. ‘ Absolutely the best thriller I’ve read this year! ’ Goodreads Rev...
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Get Lucky
Lila MonroeFall for the hot and hilarious romcom spin on 'The Hangover', perfect for fans of Tessa Bailey, Ali Hazelwood, and Emily Henry! What happens when you wake up in a hotel s...
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Nothing to Hide
Scarlett FinnPrize of a lifetime: travel the world with a celebrity billionaire. Come to LA with us, Roxie… It will be so much fun! We have tickets for a latenight talk show! What could possibl...
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Rogue Alpha
Kimber WhiteOne touch made her crave him. But the pull of fate could be the path to ruin. College student Laura Prince lands a plum internship deep in the Michigan wilderness. When she discove...
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Dark Psychology and Manipulation
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The Art of War
Sun TzuAn Apple Books Classic edition. It’s believed that Sun Tzu wrote this Chinese military primer during the 5th century BChundreds of years before the Bible. The book’s 13 chapters ex...
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Whiskey Girl
Melissa BelleThey'll do anything for each other…except commit. Logan Wild isn’t just the hottest broncriding cowboy in Texas. He’s also my best friendwith benefits. And that’s all we’ll ev...
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Christmas in Sweetbriar Cove
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The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
Arthur Conan DoyleAn Apple Books Classic You get not one, not two, but 25 gripping mysteries in Arthur Conan Doyle’s first of five collections of Sherlock Holmes short stories. Follow the brilliant ...
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Peace on Earth
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Finding Cinderella
Colleen Hoover#1 New York Times bestselling author of It Starts with Us and It Ends With Us writes a free novella about the search for happily ever after. A chance encounter in the dark leads ei...
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How to Choose a Guy in 10 Days
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The Stoic Mind
Addy Osmani & GoLimitlesssDiscover the timeless wisdom of Stoicism in a modern context with "The Stoic Mind," an enlightening visual guide by Addy Osmani and GoLimitlesss. This rich exploration co...
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Man In The Water
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Good Guy
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The Icing on the Cake
Linda SeedShe’s a baker without a kitchen. He’s got a double oven to spare. It’s a recipe for success, until his mother starts stirring up trouble … Cassie Jordan has a sweet dream to open a...
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Silver Santa
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The Great Gatsby
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His Girl Next Door
Khardine GrayFrom USA Today Bestselling author Khardine Gray comes a sizzling hot single dad romance you won't want to miss. No strings attached fun with the ubergorgeous single d...
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Enemies With Benefits
Roxie NoirI don’t love him. I don’t even like him. I just want him. Eli Loveless was my nemesis from the first day of kindergarten until we graduated high school. Everything I did, he had to...
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Inception of Gold
Lexy TimmsThings are not as bad as they seem. They are worse. Being the personal assistant to a narcissistic actress who just happens to own the key to my family's undoing isn't ex...
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The Seduction Series Boxset
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Dracula
Bram StokerAn Apple Books Classic edition. Few characters have seized readers’ imaginations quite like Count Dracula of Transylvania, the hero of Bram Stoker’s classic. The 1897 novel put vam...
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Tempting the King
Jessa YorkAn escaped Mafia Queen, hiding from her past. A Mafia King who wants to claim her… Giselle They think I'm lostbut I know better. I can never be found. The path I've creat...
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Bewitching a Highlander
Roma CordonDefying all for the love of a bewitching lass. Breena MacRae, a healer from Skye with a touch of witchery in her blood, embarks on a dangerous search for her missing father. She ar...
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Eternal
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Law of Attraction
Jordan HollisHow to Finally Overcome the Hurdles of Manifesting Proven, effective and enjoyable ways to help you manifest faster… Right now, think of something that makes you successful. If you...
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Hot Off the Press
Lexy Timms"This is what really happened… reported by a free press, for a free people…" Wes Shaw leads a secret double life. As the secret owner of a billion dollar newspap...
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Meditations
Emperor of Rome Marcus AureliusMeditations is a series of personal writings by Marcus Aurelius, Roman Emperor 161–180 CE, setting forth his ideas on Stoic philosophy.
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Becoming Lady Dalton
Carrie LomaxA dance of desire and deceit... In the glittering world of London's ton, Mrs. Viola Cartwright revels in her newfound freedom as a lady of leisureuntil a series of jewel theft...
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You Are Kind
Michael GordonA little kindness goes a long way. How can you help encourage your kids to be kind from a young age? Teach kindness to preschoolers Acts of kindness can be fun, easy, and make a ...
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Little Women
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Assisting the Bosshole
Kristin MacQueenNo hot water? Check Missed the train? Check Broke my heel? Check Dropped my coffee? Check My first day of my new job can’t possibly go worse, right? Wrong. When I meet Parker Scott...
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Become A Better Version of Yourself
Ben LeightonThis ebook contains golden nuggets on how to motivate, inspire and improve your current situation. It encompasses the holistic view of self improvement from mental& emotion...
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Pride and Prejudice
Jane AustenAn Apple Books Classic edition. Jane Austen’s beloved classic opens with this witty and very memorable line: “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possessio...