In the history of country music, no one individual is more controversial than David Allan Coe. Ever since a young age, Coe has been rebellious, socially defiant, and a wayward soul. Due to these attributes, Coe has had one heck of a life and has existed on the outskirts of country music ever since he entered the scene in 1970. And well, his life started on this day, September 5, 1939; the day David Allan Coe was born.
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Born in Akron, Ohio, David Allan Coe grew up in the city, but spent a lot of his time in various correctional facilities starting at the ripe age of nine. As most country music fans and historians know, Coe would go on to be in and out of prison until 1967, when he was around the age of 28 years old. After that, he moved to Nashville and lived in as well as performed on top of a hearse in front of the original Grand Ole Opry, the Ryman Auditorium.
Years later, in 1970, David Allan Coe got his big break with the release of his debut album, Penitentiary Blues. Subsequently, David Allan Coe would go on to become Nashville’s black sheep. To an extent, he still is, as he hasn’t been included in the exclusive club that the Nashville country music industry is.
David Allan Coe Was a True Outlaw Amongst Outlaw Types
The outlaw country music scene’s main players of the 1970s were Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Kris Kristofferson, Hank Williams Jr., and Merle Haggard. On the periphery of those players were the real outlaws, who consisted of Johnny Paycheck and David Allan Coe.
Paycheck went on to put his spin on the Coe-penned track, “Take This Job and Shove It”. Coe also served as the writer behind Tanya Tucker’s hit “Would You Lay With Me (In a Field of Stone)”, which topped the Country Charts in 1974.
Coe’s successful career during the outlaw country movement in the 1970s is primarily attributed to his hit songs, “You Never Even Called Me by My Name”, “If This Is Just A Game”, and “Longhaired Redneck”. Despite his success in the 1970s, no major Nashville music honor societies have inducted Coe, and that is seemingly due to his racially explicit songs and seemingly subversive attitude toward the establishment.
As of today, September 5, 2025, Coe is 86 years old. Given his personality and music, Coe’s fanbase is that of a cult following. Love him, hate him, or just don’t like him, he seemingly just doesn’t care. And that is one of the many reasons Coe’s career in country music is divisive, and consequently, quite memorable.
Photo by David Redfern/Redferns
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