"Rainy Night in Georgia" is a song written by Tony Joe White

Tony Joe White

Tony Joe White is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist, best known for his 1969 hit "Polk Salad Annie"; "Rainy Night in Georgia", which he wrote but was first made popular by Brook Benton in 1970; and "Steamy Windows", a hit for Tina Turner in 1989...

 in 1962 and popularized by R&B vocalist Brook Benton

Brook Benton

Brook Benton was an American singer and songwriter who was popular with rock and roll, rhythm and blues, and pop music audiences during the late 1950s and early 1960s, when he scored hits such as "It's Just A Matter Of Time" and "Endlessly", many of which he co-wrote.He made a comeback in 1970...

 in 1970.

In 1969, after several years without a major hit, Benton had signed to a new record label, Cotillion Records

Cotillion Records

Cotillion Records was a subsidiary of Atlantic Records and was active from 1968 through 1985. The label was originally formed as an outlet for blues and deep Southern soul; its first single, Otis Clay's version of "She's About A Mover", reached the R&B charts. Cotillion's catalog quickly expanded...

 (a subsidiary of Atlantic Records

Atlantic Records

Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...

). Brought to the attention of producer Jerry Wexler

Jerry Wexler

Gerald "Jerry" Wexler was a music journalist turned music producer, and was regarded as one of the major record industry players behind music from the 1950s through the 1980s...

, Benton recorded the song in November 1969 with producer Arif Mardin

Arif Mardin

Arif Mardin was a Turkish-American music producer, who worked with hundreds of artists across many different styles of music, including jazz, rock, soul, disco, and country...

.

Taken from his "come-back" album Brook Benton Today, the melancholy song became an instant hit. In the spring of 1970

1970 in music

- Events :*January 3**Davy Jones announces he is leaving the Monkees**Former Pink Floyd frontman Syd Barrett releases his first solo album The Madcap Laughs....

, the song had topped the Billboard

Billboard (magazine)

Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...

Best Selling Soul Singles

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...

 chart. It also reached number four on the Billboard Hot 100

Billboard Hot 100

The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

, and number two on the Adult Contemporary chart.

The RIAA certified the single gold for sales of one million copies. In 2004, it was ranked #498 on the List of Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

Covers

The song has been covered

Cover version

In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...

 by a number of musicians, including Ray Charles

Ray Charles

Ray Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records...

, Otis Rush

Otis Rush

Otis Rush is a blues musician, singer and guitarist. His distinctive guitar style features a slow burning sound and long bent notes...

, Little Milton

Little Milton

James Milton Campbell, Jr. , better known as Little Milton, was an American electric blues, rhythm and blues, and soul singer and guitarist, best known for his hit records "Grits Ain't Groceries" and "We're Gonna Make It."-Biography:Milton was born James Milton Campbell, Jr., in the Mississippi...

, Dolla, Randy Crawford

Randy Crawford

Randy Crawford is an American jazz and R&B singer. She has been more successful in Europe than in the United States, where she has not entered the Billboard Hot 100 as a solo artist...

, Tennessee Ernie Ford

Tennessee Ernie Ford

Ernest Jennings Ford , better known as Tennessee Ernie Ford, was an American recording artist and television host who enjoyed success in the country and Western, pop, and gospel musical genres...

, Amos Garrett

Amos Garrett

Amos Garrett is a Juno Award-winning American-Canadian musician, performer, and author. He holds dual citizenship and was raised in Toronto and Montreal...

, Hank Williams, Jr.

Hank Williams, Jr.

Randall Hank Williams , better known as Hank Williams, Jr. and Bocephus, is an American country singer-songwriter and musician. His musical style is often considered a blend of Southern rock, blues, and traditional country...

, Lord Lanamo, John Holt

John Holt

-People:* John Holt , English author* John Holt , trader and businessman* John Holt , West Indian cricketer* John Holt , American teacher and author...

, by the duet of Conway Twitty

Conway Twitty

Conway Twitty , born Harold Lloyd Jenkins, was an American country music artist. He also had success in early rock and roll, R&B, and pop music. He held the record for the most number one singles of any act with 55 No. 1 Billboard country hits until George Strait broke the record in 2006...

 and Sam Moore

Sam Moore

Samuel David Moore is an American Southern Soul and Rhythm & Blues singer who was the tenor vocalist for the soul vocal duo Sam & Dave from 1961 through 1981...

, Aaron Neville

Aaron Neville

Aaron Neville is an American soul and R&B singer and musician. He has had four top-20 hits in the United States along with four platinum-certified albums...

, Chris Young, Shelby Lynne

Shelby Lynne

Shelby Lynne is an American singer, songwriter and actress. The success of the 1999 album I Am Shelby Lynne led to her winning the Grammy Award for Best New Artist, even though she had been active in the music industry for some time...

, Ken Parker

Ken Parker (musician)

Ken Parker is a Jamaican musician who first recorded in the 1960s.-Biography:Like many of Jamaica's singers of the era, Parker began by singing in church, where his father was a preacher. He formed a group called the Blues Benders in the mid-1960s, and their first recording was "Honeymoon by the...

, and reggae bands The Gladiators

The Gladiators (band)

The Gladiators are a Jamaican roots reggae band, most popular during the 1970s. The core was Albert Griffiths , Clinton Fearon and Dallimore Sutherland bass guitar and singer. The two most famous albums are Trenchtown Mix Up and Proverbial Reggae with songs as "Hearsay", "Jah Works", "Dreadlocks...

 and The Congos

The Congos

The Congos are a reggae vocal group from Jamaica active on and off from the mid-1970s until the present day. They are best known for their Heart of the Congos album, recorded with Lee "Scratch" Perry.-History:...

. In 1967 Prince Buster

Prince Buster

Cecil Bustamente Campbell, O.D. , better known as Prince Buster, and also known by his Muslim name Muhammed Yusef Ali, is a musician from Kingston, Jamaica. He is regarded as one of the most important figures in the history of ska and rocksteady music...

 rewrote the lyrics and recorded a very rude reggae version of this song called "Big Five

Big five

- Business and government :* Big 5 Sporting Goods, a publicly traded sporting goods company* Big Five , an oligarchy of five corporations that ruled over Hawaii* Big Five , the five largest banks in Canada...

", usually found with certain words bleeped out. Most recently indie

Indie (music)

In music, independent music, often shortened to indie music or "indie" is a term used to describe independence from major commercial record labels or their subsidiaries, and an autonomous, Do-It-Yourself approach to recording and publishing....

 folk-rock band Hem

Hem (band)

Hem is an indie folk-rock band from New York City, United States. Band members include Sally Ellyson , Dan Messé , Gary Maurer , Steve Curtis , George Rush , Mark Brotter , Bob Hoffnar , and Heather Zimmerman .-Band history:In 1999,...

 released a cover on 'No Word from Tom

No Word From Tom

No Word From Tom is the third album from indie folk band Hem. Released on February 7, 2006, it features covers, live songs, and new recordings from the band.-Track listing:# "All the Pretty Horses"# "Rainy Night in Georgia"# "Radiation Vibe"...

' (2006). Australian band Ross Hanniford Trio recorded a cover of the song on their 1994 album. David Ruffin

David Ruffin

Davis Eli "David" Ruffin was an American soul singer and musician most famous for his work as one of the lead singers of the Temptations from 1964 to 1968...

 recorded a cover version of the song the same year as Benton, however, Motown did not release the album. In 2000, guitarist Eric Essix covered the song from his album "Southbound." An electronic-influenced downtempo/chillout version was recorded by Boozoo Bajou

Boozoo Bajou

Boozoo Bajou is a musical duo from Germany. They are noted for their distinct blend of Cajun sounds with island rhythms. Their first album, Satta, was released in 2001. In 2005 they released Dust My Broom...

 and Tony Joe White

Tony Joe White

Tony Joe White is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist, best known for his 1969 hit "Polk Salad Annie"; "Rainy Night in Georgia", which he wrote but was first made popular by Brook Benton in 1970; and "Steamy Windows", a hit for Tina Turner in 1989...

 in 2006. Rod Stewart

Rod Stewart

Roderick David "Rod" Stewart, CBE is a British singer-songwriter and musician, born and raised in North London, England and currently residing in Epping. He is of Scottish and English ancestry....

included the song on his 2009 Soulbook.