"[6] He returned to Memphis in 1949, and won first place at an amateur show at the Palace Theatre on Beale Street in 1950.

[8] His first hit single, "Saddled the Cow (and Milk the Horse)," released on RPM Records (subsidiary of Modern) reached No.

[3][4] He was paid $250 for the song which became an R&B standard, covered by Etta James, Elvis Presley, and Jerry Butler.

[5] Gordon didn't receive royalties from the millions of copies sold in cover versions, because producer Ralph Bass at King Records stole the song from a demo Rosco sent and had it copyrighted before him.

[6] In the late 1950s, Gordon toured internationally, reaching South America and the Caribbean, where his off-beat rhythmic technique influenced the sound of early ska and reggae.

[5] In 1962, Gordon quit the music industry and moved to Queens, New York with his new wife, where he purchased a partnership in a laundry business after winning a poker game with a pair of deuces.

[5] In 2000, Gordon teamed up with blues guitarist Duke Robillard to release the album Memphis Tennessee.

[15] In 2002, Gordon was invited by the filmmaker Richard Pearce to be included in a documentary film about several blues musicians returning to Memphis for a tribute to Sam Phillips in conjunction with the May 2002 W.C.

[16] Six weeks after filming finished, Gordon died at the age of 74 from a heart attack at his apartment in Rego Park, Queens on July 11, 2002.

[7] He was survived by three daughters, Victoria, Deborah, and Ruby; three sons, Marrc, Rosco III, and Keith; a sister, Ella Gordon Jefferson; and 10 grandchildren.