5 Country Songs Depicting Alcohol Abuse In Different Ways

Drink responsibly!

Alcohol abuse is important issue because it is the most commonly used addictive substance in the United States. According to the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, more than 88,000 deaths annually are attributed to using alcohol excessively. Country music tends to cover this controversy in many songs. For this post I will mention 5 songs that address the issue that is alcohol abuse. I selected each song by doing some research and finding the ones that were most successful and had better stories that are more likely to make you feel some emotion. I hope by the end of this post you understand how and why these songs address the topic in different ways.

1. “I Don’t Even Know Your Name” (1994) by Alan Jackson

According to an article written by Gayle Thompson, Jackson wrote the song as a joke for his family, so it depicts alcohol abuse in a comical way from the perspective of a male who sees alcohol as fun. This song is about a man that is sitting in a roadhouse where one of the waitresses catches his eye. Throughout the song he drinks shots of tequila to gain courage and ends up falling in love with the waitress, as he gets very drunk and blacks out. When he finally comes to his senses he realizes he is in his own wedding and is marrying another waitress that was there who apparently was missing a tooth. And no one knows what anyone's name is.

2. “The Everclear Song” (1998) by Roger Creager

For this song, Roger Creager sings about an alcoholic teenager that likes to get drunk off Everclear because it makes him feel better good. Throughout the song, the kid ends up getting himself and other people drunk with Everclear. After doing some research on him I found that he tends to drink a lot, even during his shows, so this gives him credibility that he knows what he is talking about. As in the previous song by Alan Jackson this song pretty much encourages the use of alcohol. And Creager depicts alcohol as a way to have more fun.

3. “Last Name (2007) by Carrie Underwood

Similar to “I Don’t Even Know Your Name” by Alan Jackson, this song has a very up-beat tempo and is not a very serious song that nonetheless addresses the topic of alcohol abuse. This song is about a woman meeting a man at a nightclub and after a long night of heavy drinking she wakes up married to this man in Las Vegas. As in the song by Alan Jackson, the plot of the song is basically the same, just told from a woman’s perspective. As opposed to Alan Jackson’s song, the story of this song is based on Underwood’s personal experience.

4. “Whiskey Lullaby” (2003) by Brad Paisley and Alison Krauss

This song’s video tells the story of a man who went to war, and when he came back, he found out that his wife was cheating on him. He starts drinking uncontrollably because of that, and his excessive drinking led to him to commit suicide. After his death, his wife starts feeling guilty and mourning his loss that she starts to drink excessively, and ends up drinking killing herself as well. As opposed to the previous songs on this list “Whiskey Lullaby” depicts the topic in a completely serious manner. Reputation is something all of these authors have in common, with the exception of Roger Creager who is not as famous in the U.S. as the rest on my list. The song creates mostly sad responses from the audience. Alison Krauss’ beautiful voice definitely helps stimulate these emotional responses from the audience. Paisley commented on her voice and the song in an interview with Entertainment Weekly by stating that “It's an angelic, ghostly bluegrass ballad, really a tragedy, and I think when I get to heaven, if the angels don't sound like Alison Krauss, we have been cheated.” In addition, Paisley tries to convince the audience that alcohol abuse is bad because it often leads to death, and he does this by singing about the tragic story.

5. “Don’t Come Home A-Drinkin’” (1967) by Loretta Lynn

The song is about a woman whose husband comes back home drunk after a night out with his friends and all he wants to do is have sex but she refuses. Loretta Lynn addresses the topic in similar fashion as Carrie Underwood’s song by using personal experience to write the song. This is a powerful song that triggered mixed feelings from the audience. Lynn composed this song in times where there was a significant inequality between men and women; in times when women were supposed to put their husband’s needs before their own. So, when the woman from the song refused to fulfill her husband’s needs, it caused a lot of controversy. Because of this she strongly motivated her female audience to stand up for themselves. In contrast to Alan Jackson’s song, Loretta finally shows the other side of the story, by singing from the perspective of a woman who notices the damaging behavior her husband’s excessive drinking causes. You could say that this song is a response to Alan Jackson’s song.

Alcohol abuse is a controversial and very serious topic so it is important to raise awareness about it. All these songs show the effects the abuse of alcohol can have on not only men, but women and children too. Country music does a good job of blowing the lid off important social issues, and I hope they keep on doing it for many years to come.