Cat Cohen's Songwriters' Community Website Temporary Archive

Redneck Woman by Gretchen Wilson

Share

Gretchen Wilson launched her career with this anthem-like hit for all rebellious country woman who refuse to be the southern belle stereotype, yee-haw!

Concept
A bold statement song about the kind of woman who is assertively redneck if you like it or not.  She's coarse and profane and proud of it. 

Lyric
Rich and Wilson's lyric is fun filled with playful and provocative rural life-style and alcohol-laced imagery. Well, I ain't never been the Barbie doll type No, I can't swig that sweet Champagne, I'd rather drink beer all night In a tavern or in a honky tonk or on a four-wheel drive tailgate I've got posters on my wall of Skynyrd, Kid and Strait Some people look down on me, but I don't give a rip I'll stand barefooted in my own front yard with a baby on my hip 'cause I'm a redneck woman I ain't no high class broad I'm just a product of my raising I say, 'hey ya'll' and 'yee-haw' And I keep my Christmas lights on On my front porch all year long

Groove
A rowdy uptempo blues shuffle that really gets' em up on the dance floor and shaking things up.

Melody
A typical ragtime meets the blues melody with all the funky bluesy noes that comes with it. If it isn't the most unique melody, at least there's enough catchy riffs to light a fire on any bar or over the airwaves for that matter.

Harmony
The song uses typical three chord blues 7th harmonies, not as common in today's pop recordings as one would imagine.

Structure
Easy to follow verse and chorus sections with a post-hook that yells "hell yeah". This is a throwback to an earlier more traditional time. A B A B Solo B TAg

Signature
A hot guitar riff that calls up the dancers to the floor and causes many customers to order another tall one.

Production
The production is at once polished and earthy, a mean feat if you can do it. We don't need any imagination to feel the redneck vibes here at all.

Performance
Wilson has the rebel attitude thing down cold. She could incite a barroom to raucous revelry and even perhaps a brawl with this fiery in-your-face performance.

Predicted Longevity
A big hit in 2004 for WIlson that i first heard while driving along the highway in Missouri ( how fitting). I see this record as a staple for barrooms and jukeboxes for a long time to come.