On This Day in 1964, Buck Owens Stepped Into a Hollywood Studio and Recorded His Biggest Crossover Hit—Against His Co-Writer’s Advice

On This Day (December 1) in 1964, Buck Owens entered the Capitol Recording Studio in Hollywood, California, to record a pair of songs. One of those was the single “I’ve Got a Tiger by the Tail,” which became his biggest crossover hit. He also cut the single’s B-side, “Cryin’ Time.”

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By the mid-1960s, Owens had become one of the most successful artists in country music. In 1963, he began a string of 14 No. 1 singles with “Act Naturally,” which lasted for four years. “I’ve Got a Tiger by the Tail” was the fifth in that long line of chart-toppers.

[RELATED: On This Day in 1963, Buck Owens Was at No. 1 With a Song That Outperformed Every Country Single for the Next Five Decades]

Owens released “I’ve Got a Tiger by the Tail” on December 28, just weeks after he recorded it. It topped the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in February 1965 and retained the top spot for five weeks. The only other song to have a longer run at the top that year was “Before You Go,” another hit for Owens. While it wasn’t his biggest country hit by far, it was his most successful single on the Hot 100, where it peaked at No. 25. It was Owens’ only top 40 hit on the all-genre survey.

Harlan Howard Didn’t Want Buck Owens to Record the Song

Buck Owens was an expert songwriter who could seemingly pull inspiration from any source. “I’ve Got a Tiger by the Tail” is a perfect example of that skill.

Owens co-wrote “I’ve Got a Tiger by the Tail” with his lifelong friend and fellow songwriting legend Harlan Howard. According to an essay written by Howard’s widow, Melanie Smith-Howard, they came up with the idea while on a five-day-long trip around Texas. “Buck was driving, and Harlan was in the back seat, stretched out. Buck was pestering Harlan about the slogan ‘Put a Tiger in Your Tank, which was the slogan for Esso Gasoline stations. Buck thought it was a great idea for a song. Harlan was uninspired,” she wrote.

On the final day of the trip, Howard threw out the “tiger by the tail” lyric, hoping to put an end to Owens’ seeming obsession with the concept. About a week later, Owens called Howard to tell him he’d finished the song and was ready to take it to the studio. “Harlan tried to persuade Buck not to cut it. He said it was a joke and not a good idea. Harlan tried his best to stop Buck from cutting it. He honestly thought it would ruin his booming career,” Smith-Howard wrote.

However, when the January 23 issue of Billboard magazine arrived, Howard learned that the song had debuted at No. 8. Amused, he phoned Buck Owens to admit that he was wrong about the song.

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