<P> `` Ruby , Do n't Take Your Love to Town '' is a song written by Mel Tillis about a paralyzed veteran of a `` crazy Asian war '' ( given the time of its release , widely assumed -- but never explicitly stated -- to be the Vietnam War ) who either lies helplessly in bed or sits helplessly in his wheelchair as his wife `` paints ( herself ) up '' to go out for the evening without him ; he believes she is going in search of a lover , and as he hears the door slam behind her , he pleads for her to reconsider . The song was made famous by Kenny Rogers and The First Edition in 1969 . `` Ruby '' was originally recorded by Waylon Jennings in 1966 . Johnny Darrell scored a number nine country hit with it in 1967 . </P>
<P> `` Ruby , Do n't Take Your Love to Town '' is a song written by Mel Tillis about a paralyzed veteran of a `` crazy Asian war '' ( given the time of its release , widely assumed -- but never explicitly stated -- to be the Vietnam War ) who either lies helplessly in bed or sits helplessly in his wheelchair as his wife `` paints ( herself ) up '' to go out for the evening without him ; he believes she is going in search of a lover , and as he hears the door slam behind her , he pleads for her to reconsider . The song was made famous by Kenny Rogers and The First Edition in 1969 . `` Ruby '' was originally recorded by Waylon Jennings in 1966 . Johnny Darrell scored a number nine country hit with it in 1967 . </P>
who wrote ruby dont take your love to town
who wrote ruby dont take your love to town
Mel Tillis
Mel Tillis