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Tammy Wynette Never Wanted “Stand By Your Man” To Be Controversial: “I Thought It Was Just A Pretty Love Song”
A classic.
Tammy Wynette recorded her signature song “Stand By Your Man” in 1968, which she co-wrote it with producer Billy Sherrill as the lead single and title track of her subsequent album. Of course, it became a #1 hit, and it was topping the country charts on this date. And it might just be one of the mist recognizable, and controversial songs in the genre.
Let me explain…
Tammy penned it during her infamously tumultuous marriage to George Jones, and at that time, Wynette had already been through two divorces, which is part of the reason people took issue with the song when it came out. Though Tammy never intended for it to become some sort of big social statement, record labels are record labels, and Epic promoted the new single with this line in a huge Billboard ad:
“TAMMY WYNETTE’S ANSWER TO WOMEN’S LIB: ‘STAND BY YOUR MAN,’ NEW RELEASE.”
Of course, that rubbed a lot of women the wrong way, especially those who were a part of the women’s liberation movement. Knowing that her marriage was far from perfect and she hadn’t really stood by her other husbands prior to George, the message was interpreted as one that was both hypocritical and anti-woman. Many saw the song as telling women in bad relationships to shut up and stick it out.
I mean, I get that to a certain extent, but can’t we just let a good song be a good song sometimes? Some things never change, I guess…
Tammy and Billy wrote the song in 20 minutes after a long day trying to crank out multiple new tracks. Billy had come into the write with a title “I’ll Stand By You,” but Tammy wanted to dig a little deeper and find more of an edge for the concept. They even ended up recording it that same day, too.
After the first take, Billy told NPR that Tammy sarcastically joked she hoped it would never become a huge hit, saying:
“God, if this is a hit, I’m going to have to hit that God-awful high note the rest of my life.”
You never know what could become a classic… be careful what you cut, I guess.
Tammy also mentioned that she wasn’t as confident in her writing at that time, and after she went home and played her new song for George, it made her even more nervous to release it, because he didn’t like the song… of course, when he said that to his wife, he didn’t know she was the one who had written it:
“I went home and played it for George, and he didn’t like it. He didn’t know I’d written it. That kinda got me started off wrong.”
And considering who her husband was, it would be hard not to take that to heart and second guess yourself, even though she’d clearly written an amazing song. On The Tonight Show with Jay Leno back in 1993, Tammy talked in-depth about the true meaning “Stand By Your Man,” clarifying her intentions with the subject matter:
“Some of the woman object to, I think, the part where it said ‘If you love him, you’ll forgive him. After all, he’s just a man.’ They said that was the old double standard. Gosh, I didn’t have anything like that in mind at all when I wrote it. Because I have five girls, and by no means would ever write anything that would belittle any of my girls.
But I thought it was just a pretty love song, and that’s all I intended when I wrote it, you know. And I’d like for a man to say, you know, ‘stand by your woman,’ I love that feeling.”
She also previously stated that she wrote the song in just 15 minutes, and spent a lifetime defending it, always insisting that she had no political motive, adding that it was “just a pretty love song.”
Something about that line has always resonated with me, and I think the group of people who still feel that way about this song after so many years and so many interviews where she explains it are certainly in the minority. Even back then, it seems like people were just looking for something to be mad about, and of course music is up for interpretation, but I think her intentions and message with this song is very clear, and considering how beloved it is, I think most country music fans would agree.
You can watch the interview here, it’s pretty interesting to hear her take on what the song was intended to mean and be:
Personally, I love “Stand By Your Man,” and I think Tammy is an absolute genius for writing such a timeless, meaningful hit. A lot of the talent when it comes to songwriting is just being able to put yourself in someone else’s shoes and tell their story with authenticity in a believable way and have it resonate across the board.
56 years later, I think it’s safe to say she certainly did that.
And I absolutely love this 1975 performance she gave, and how vintage and timeless it is:
The post Tammy Wynette Never Wanted “Stand By Your Man” To Be Controversial: “I Thought It Was Just A Pretty Love Song” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.
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