Country music truly has something for everyone. But especially if someone needs to have a different outlook on life, these four country songs, all out in 1982, will put anyone in a good mood.
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“Redneck Girl” by The Bellamy Brothers
It’s impossible to not hum along while listening to “Redneck Girl” by The Bellamy Brothers. Written by David Bellamy, “Redneck Girl” appears on their eighth studio album, Strong Weakness.
“Redneck Girl” says, “Redneck girl likes to cruise in daddy’s pickup truck / And a redneck girl plays hard when she’s down on her luck / Living for Friday afternoon / She’s gonna show one ol’ boy that weekend moon / And I pray that someday I will find me a redneck girl.”
“Mountain Music” by Alabama
By the time Alabama released “Mountain Music“, they were in the middle of a string of No. 1 hits. Written by lead singer Randy Owen, “Mountain Music” is the title track of Alabama’s sixth studio album.
Celebrating the roots of country music, “Mountain Music” says, “Oh, play me some mountain music / Like grandma and grandpa used to play / Then I’ll float on down the river / To a Cajun hideaway.”
“Mountain Music” features a drum solo, uncommon in country music. It also shows off the amazing fiddle skills of the band’s own Jeff Cook.
“You And I” by Eddie Rabbit and Crystal Gayle
Eddie Rabbit and Crystal Gayle include “You And I” on Rabbit’s Radio Romance record. Written by Frank J. Myers, the sweet love song became both a country and pop hit for the pair.
“You And I” says, “Just you and I / Sharing our love together / And I know in time / We’ll build the dreams we treasure / And we’ll be alright / Just you and I.”
Interestingly, Myers was playing in Eddy Raven’s band at the time. “You And I” became his first hit single as a songwriter. Myers would later go on to have plenty more success as a writer, with tunes like “I Swear” by John Michael Montgomery, “One Honest Heart” by Reba McEntire, and others.
“Bobbie Sue” by The Oak Ridge Boys
“Bobbie Sue” is the title track of The Oak Ridge Boys’ eighth studio album. Written by Jerry Lieber, Mike Stoller, Wood Newton, Dan Tyler, and Adele Tyler, “Bobbie Sue” became a No. 1 hit for The Oak Ridge Boys at country radio. It also peaked in the Top 20 on the pop chart as well.
The uptempo tune says, “Ba ba, ba ba, Bobbie Sue / Ca-can’t you see my love is true? / I want to ma-ma, ma-ma, marry you / Ba-Ba-Ba-ao-Ba- Bobbie Sue.”
Newton reveals the song’s inspiration came from Dan Tyler’s little boy, saying “ba ba” instead of bottle. Although the writers knew they had a catchy song, they never imagined it becoming such a big hit for The Oak Ridge Boys, at least not until they released another one of their big hits, out one year earlier.
“I’d never dreamed that the Oaks would be interested in something like this,” Newton tells The Boot. “But then they released ‘Elvira’. We finished the demo, and it got pitched to them, and just clicked. They were at a perfect place in their career, and they made this wonderful, exciting record.”
Photo by David Redfern/Redferns/Getty Images
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