Divorce was far from new or uncommon back in the 1960s, but considering some of the country songs that dropped that decade, you’d think that there was a national crisis of broken marriages. And while these songs make it seem like divorce was destroying unions left and right back in the day, they’re still classics that manage to be catchy after all these years. Let’s take a look!
“D-I-V-O-R-C-E” by Tammy Wynette from ‘D-I-V-O-R-C-E’ (1968)
“Our D-I-V-O-R-C-E becomes final today / Me and little J-O-E will be goin’ away / I love you both and this will be pure H-E double L for me / Oh, I wish that we could stop this D-I-V-O-R-C-E.”
Videos by American Songwriter
There probably isn’t a more on-the-nose song I could have chosen for this list. Tammy Wynette’s song about a difficult divorce and the impact it will have on a child caught in the middle was a smash hit back in 1968. In fact, it even earned Wynette a Grammy Award for Best Country Vocal Performance. “D-I-V-O-R-C-E” peaked at No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs chart and No. 63 on the Billboard Hot 100.
“You Ain’t Woman Enough (To Take My Man)” by Loretta Lynn from ‘You Ain’t Woman Enough’ (1966)
“Women like you, they’re a dime a dozen / You can buy ’em anywhere / For you to get to him, I’d have to move over / And I’m gonna stand right here.”
In this iconic Loretta Lynn song, a marriage is under attack. And the narrator isn’t going to go down without a fight. This honky-tonk country classic remains one of Lynn’s most well-known songs. And it was a rare gem at the time in which a female musician got confrontational. “You Ain’t Woman Enough (To Take My Man)” peaked at No. 2 on the Hot Country Singles chart.
“Next In Line” by Conway Twitty from ‘Next In Line’ (1968)
“Everybody knows I love her / But her mind is on another / And just look what he’s done to her pride / And if she should change her mind / Give up the music and the wine / I’ll be standing by to be the next in line.”
This Conway Twitty classic makes it to our list of country divorce songs from the 1960s. Interestingly, it’s sung from the perspective of someone ready to win the heart of a freshly broken-hearted woman. It was a pretty big hit, too. “Next In Line” by Conway Twitty peaked at No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs chart. It also hit No. 2 on the Canadian country chart.
(Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
More The List
-
Boston, MA – August 28: Billy Idol performs live in concert at the Paradise Theater in 1982. The venue is now known as the Paradise Rock Club. (Photo by Jim Wilson/The Boston Globe via Getty Images) -
Tears for Fears – Koninklijk Circus – Brussel – Belgium – 21/04/1985 Roland Orzabal, Curt Smith Photo gie Knaeps -
UNITED KINGDOM – 1st OCTOBER: The Beatles posed with bottles of beer and party snacks and balloons in October 1964. Left to right: Paul McCartney, John Lennon (1940-1980), Ringo Starr and George Harrison (1943-2001). The session was taken to promote the BBC World Service. (Photo by Mark Hayward Archive/Redferns) -
Alanis Morissette, Torhout/Werchter Festival, Werchter, Belgium, 7th July 1996. (Photo by Gie Knaeps/Getty Images) -
Photo by Ivan Keeman/Redferns -
Kurt Cobain of Nirvana during the taping of MTV Unplugged at Sony Studios in New York City, 11/18/93. Photo by Frank Micelotta. *** Special Rates Apply *** Call for Rates *** -
Mick Jagger performing at a Rolling Stones concert. Photo shows: Head and shoulder shot of Mick Jagger in performance. (Photo by © Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images) -
The Monkees pop group Davy Jones, Micky Dolenz, Peter Tork and Mike Nesmith pose in their directors chairs for the 1966-68 tv series. (Photo by Screen Archives/Getty Images)