On this day (January 28) in 2002, Alan Jackson released “Drive (For Daddy Gene)” as the second single from his album Drive. Late in the year, it reached the top of the Hot Country Songs chart, where it stayed for four weeks. It also reached No. 28 on the Hot 100, making it one of Jackson’s biggest crossover hits.
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Like many songwriters, Jackson is no stranger to sharing pieces of his life with his audience. In fact, some of his biggest hits are autobiographical. For instance, he wrote “I’d Love You All Over Again” for his wife after they’d been married for ten years. More than a decade later, he penned “Remember When,” which looks back on their long relationship. “Drive (For Daddy Gene),” though, may be one of his most vulnerable songs.
He wrote the song for his late father, Eugene Jackson, who died in January 2000. However, it’s not a somber song about grief and loss. Instead, it, like the other hits mentioned above, is a look back at his life. More specifically, it’s about the bond he formed with his dad while driving. At the same time, it gives listeners a glimpse at how he’s following in his father’s footsteps.
Alan Jackson Reflects on “Drive (For Daddy Gene)”
It took Alan Jackson years to write “Drive (For Daddy Gene)” because he needed time to be able to process his grief enough to get away from writing sad songs about death.
“My daddy died a few years ago, and I wanted to write something for him. I tried a couple of times, and I always ended up writing some sad dying song,” he said in an interview with Billboard. “I didn’t want to do that. I wanted to write something nice,” he added.
“Daddy didn’t say much, but one of the things he really gave me is my love for cars,” he explained. “This whole song is just a bunch of facts, really.”
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