"The Yellow Rose" is set to the same melody as the traditional American folk song "The Yellow Rose of Texas," but with newly-written lyrics[1] by Johnny Lee, Lane Brody and John Wilder.
The song was used for the theme song to the NBC television series The Yellow Rose, starring Cybill Shepherd.[2] While the television show used only the song's first verse and chorus, the commercial single version included a second verse not heard on the program,[3] with Lee's "Say When" on the B-side. Brody and Lee would later chart a second duet, "I Could Get Used to This," in 1986, although it was never included on an album.[1]
"The Yellow Rose" made its chart debut on the Billboard Hot Country Singles (now Hot Country Songs) charts dated for the week of February 4, 1984. The song spent twenty-two weeks on the charts, reaching Number One on the chart dated or April 21 and holding that position for one week.[1] It gave Lee the fourth of five Number One hits in his career, and Brody her only Number One.[4] It was also a Number One hit on the Canadian RPM Country Tracks charts, peaking on the week of May 5, 1984.
