in the 1960s. She had major hits with the Anderson-penned "Count Your Blessings, Woman", "I Still Believe in Love" and "Bad Seed". The latter track was a top ten hit for Howard in 1966. Anderson also wrote several hits for Connie Smith. He was also responsible for helping Smith sign her first recording contract. Anderson had discovered Smith after hearing her perform in a talent contest near Columbus, Ohio. He helped bring her to Nashville, where she recorded several demonstration tapes that were heard by producers at RCA Victor Records. In 1964, Smith was signed to the label. Anderson's composition "Once a Day" was recorded by Smith in 1964. Released as her debut single, it spent a total of eight weeks on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart, becoming his most successful hit as a writer at that point. Smith's career was further facilitated by Anderson, who wrote many of her follow-up hits such as "Then and Only Then", "Cincinnati, Ohio" and "I Never Once Stopped Loving You". Anderson further helped her professional career by helping her become a member of the Grand Ole Opry and make an appearance on The Lawrence Welk Show. "From the beginning, I liked Connie a lot personally and tried to help her", he recalled in his 2016 autobiography. Anderson also wrote material for pop artists during this time. In the 1960s, Brenda Lee recorded Anderson's "My Whole World Is Falling Down". The single peaked at number 24 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August 1963. Other pop artists to record Anderson's material included James Brown, Aretha Franklin and Dean Martin. However, his most successful material would be recorded by country artist, who continued recording his songs into the next decade. In 1972, Cal Smith cut Anderson's "The Lord Knows I'm Drinking", which became a number one hit on the Billboard country chart. The following year, Jean Shepard recorded Anderson's "Slippin Away". The single became Shepard's first top-ten hit in four years and she had further top-twenty hits that decade with Anderson-penned compositions. That same decade, Conway Twitty also had a number-one hit with the tune "I May Never Get to Heaven". 1980–1991: Writing shifts Anderson's writing and recording career both slowed down at the same time. In the early 1980s, he began writing music less frequently. Instead, he began focusing on other projects in television. "I just knew that this is what I wanted