Dierks Bentley and The Chicks Passed on This Massive Hit for Brad Paisley in 2004

In 2004, Brad Paisley and Alison Krauss teamed up to record “Whiskey Lullaby”. A multi-platinum hit, the song is part of Mud On The Tires, Paisley’s third studio album. Written by Bill Anderson and Jon Randall, the song seems tailor-made for Paisley and Krauss.

But surprisingly, Paisley wasn’t the first artist pitched “Whiskey Lullaby”. Another then-rising country star, namely Dierks Bentley, was first pitched “Whiskey Lullaby”. Regrettably, at least for Bentley, he passed on “Whiskey Lullaby”.

“I turned down ‘Whiskey Lullaby’ (because) I never heard it as a duet,” Bentley tells The Boot. “The guy who co-wrote that song is one of my good friends, Jon Randall. I thought, ‘It’s a great song, but it’s pretty dang depressing.’ I write plenty of songs like that. It was just not for me. That’s why I end up writing most of my music … every line has to be right for me because I’m singing these songs for the rest of my life. But, I love ‘Whiskey Lullaby.’ It’s one of my favorite songs that Brad sings.”

In addition to Bentley, The Chicks (then known as The Dixie Chicks) also put a hold on “Whiskey Lullaby”. At the time, Paisley told Anderson he wanted to also put it on hold. Fortunately, The Chicks passed on it, allowing Paisley to record the tune.

How “Whiskey Lullaby” Became a Duet Between Brad Paisley and Alison Krauss

It was Paisley’s idea to have “Whiskey Lullaby” become a duet. He first broached the idea to Anderson, who thought it was a great idea.

“I said, ‘Who are you going to get to do it?’” Anderson remembers asking Paisley. “He said, ‘Well, I’m going to ask Alison Krauss … I don’t know if we can work out all the legal problems because she’s on a different record label, but that’s what I’m going to try.’ And I said, ‘Man, go for it. I think that’s a brilliant idea.’ And looking back on it, it was a brilliant idea!”

“Whiskey Lullaby” is indeed a heartbreaking song. It says in part, “We found him with his face down in the pillow / With a note that said, ‘I’ll love her ’til I die’ / And when we buried him beneath the willow / The angels sang a whiskey lullaby.”

Paisley later reveals why he wanted Krauss to be part of the tragic song.

“It’s an angelic, ghostly bluegrass ballad, really a tragedy,” Paisley tells Entertainment Weekly. “And I think when I get to heaven, if the angels don’t sound like Alison Krauss, we have been cheated.”

Photo by M. Caulfield/WireImage for Bragman Nyman Cafarelli