Mind Your Own Business (song)

"Mind Your Own Business" was recorded on March 2, 1949, at Castle Studio in Nashville. During the same session, Williams also recorded "You're Gonna Change (Or I'm Gonna Leave)", "My Son Calls Another Man Daddy", and "Honky Tonk Blues". He is backed by Dale Potter (fiddle), Don Davis (steel guitar), Zeke Turner (lead guitar), Clyde Baum (mandolin), Jack Shook (rhythm guitar), and probably Ernie Newton (bass).^[3]

Content

In the song, the narrator admonishes a local busybody for snooping and gossiping. While the delivery is light and breezy, the song's lyrics were likely inspired by the singer's own tempestuous relationship with wife Audrey Williams and the buzz it created. The opening lines seem to reference this: "If the wife and I are fussin', brother that's our right/'Cause me and that sweet woman's got a license to fight..." His delivery is measured, laconic, and dry.^[4] The day before, Hank had cut several duets with his wife Audrey, who by all accounts had limited singing talent. Introducing it in October 1949, he told his radio audience that it was a "little prophecy in song", and indeed it would prove to be.^[4]

The song is similar in tone and structure to Williams' first Billboard hit "Move It on Over", with the singer couching his moral indignation in humor, allowing the subject matter to resonate with the public. "Mind Your Own Business" went to No. 6 on the C&W Best Seller list where it stayed for two weeks.^[5]

Hank Williams Jr. version

"Mind Your Own Business"
Single by Hank Williams Jr., Reba McEntire, Tom Petty, and Willie Nelson
from the album Montana Cafe
Released	October 1986
Genre	Country, blues, rock and roll
Length	2:27
Label	Warner Bros./Curb
Songwriter(s)	Hank Williams
Producer(s)	Hank Williams Jr., Barry Beckett

In late 1986, Hank Williams Jr. recorded the song along with Reba McEntire, Tom Petty, Reverend Ike, and Willie Nelson. This version was the most successful, going to No. 1 on the country chart for two weeks.

Other versions

In 1964, Jimmy Dean hit the country charts with his version of the song. His version spent six weeks on the charts and peaked at No. 35.
Ernest Tubb included it on his 1968 LP Ernest Tubb Sings Hank Williams.
In 1971, Steve Goodman recorded it on his debut album.
In 1975, Henry McCullough recorded the song, and used it as the title track of his solo album on Dark Horse Records.
Moe Bandy recorded it for his 1975 LP Here I Am Drunk Again.
Charley Pride recorded it for his 1980 album There's a Little Bit of Hank in Me.
Moe Bandy recorded the song for his 1983 tribute Sings the Songs of Hank Williams.
Taj Mahal recorded the song for his 1997 album Señor Blues.

References

^ Library of Congress. Copyright Office. (1949). Catalog of Copyright Entries 1949 Published Music Jan-Dec 3D Ser Vol 3 Pt 5A. United States Copyright Office. U.S. Govt. Print. Off.
^ "Hank Williams Sessions". jazzdiscography.com. Retrieved 2021-10-19.
^ Escott, Merritt & MacEwen 2004, p. 332.
^ ^a ^b Escott, Merritt & MacEwen 2004, p. 106.
^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944–2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 387.

Sources

Escott, Colin; Merritt, George; MacEwen, William (2004). Hank Williams: The Biography. New York: Little, Brown.

v t e Hank Williams
Discography Songs
Albums	Hank Williams Sings Moanin' the Blues Memorial Album Hank Williams as Luke the Drifter Hank Williams on Stage 40 Greatest Hits The Complete Hank Williams
Songs	"Move It On Over" "Honky Tonkin'" "I Saw the Light" "Lovesick Blues" "Mind Your Own Business" "Lost Highway" "My Bucket's Got a Hole in It" "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" "Long Gone Lonesome Blues" "Why Don't You Love Me" "Cold, Cold Heart" "Hey, Good Lookin'" "I Can't Help It (If I'm Still in Love with You)" "Honky Tonk Blues" "Half as Much" "Jambalaya (On the Bayou)" "You Win Again" "I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive" "Kaw-Liga" "Your Cheatin' Heart" "Take These Chains from My Heart" "The Blues Come Around" "Six More Miles (To the Graveyard)" "I'm Satisfied with You" "The Pale Horse and His Rider" "Weary Blues from Waitin'" "(I'm Gonna) Sing, Sing, Sing"
Family	Hank Williams Jr. Jett Williams Hank Williams III Holly Williams
Related articles	Death of Hank Williams List of tributes to Hank Williams Drifting Cowboys Sterling Records MGM Records Grand Ole Opry The Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams Three Hanks: Men with Broken Hearts The Garden Spot Programs, 1950 Rufus Payne

v t e Jimmy Dean
Studio albums	Everybody's Favourite (1967) Country Boy & Country Girl (1970)
Songs	"My Heart Is an Open Book" "Big Bad John" "PT-109" "Mind Your Own Business" "The First Thing Ev'ry Morning (And the Last Thing Ev'ry Night)" "A Thing Called Love" "I.O.U."
Television	The Jimmy Dean Show
Business ventures	Jimmy Dean sausage
Related	Discography

v t e Hank Williams Jr.
Studio albums	Your Cheatin' Heart Connie Francis and Hank Williams Jr. Sing Great Country Favorites Ballads of the Hills and Plains Blues My Name A Time to Sing Songs My Father Left Me Luke the Drifter Jr. – Vol. 2 Live at Cobo Hall After You, Pride's Not Hard to Swallow Hank Williams Jr. and Friends Family Tradition Whiskey Bent and Hell Bound Habits Old and New Rowdy The Pressure Is On High Notes Strong Stuff Man of Steel Major Moves Five-O Montana Cafe Hank Live Born to Boogie Wild Streak Lone Wolf Pure Hank Maverick Out of Left Field Hog Wild A.K.A. Wham Bam Sam Three Hanks: Men with Broken Hearts Stormy The Almeria Club Recordings I'm One of You 127 Rose Avenue It's About Time Rich White Honky Blues
Compilation albums	Greatest Hits Greatest Hits Vol. 2 Fourteen Greatest Hits Hank Williams Jr.'s Greatest Hits Hank Williams Jr.'s Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 Greatest Hits, Vol. 3 America (The Way I See It) The Best of Hank Williams Jr. Volume One: Roots and Branches Tribute to My Father 20 Hits Special Collection, Vol. 1 Early Years, Vol. 1 Early Years, Vol. 2 The Bocephus Box That's How They Do It in Dixie: The Essential Collection
Notable singles	"Long Gone Lonesome Blues" "Nobody's Child" "All for the Love of Sunshine" "So Sad (To Watch Good Love Go Bad)" (with Lois Johnson) "Rainin' in My Heart" "Eleven Roses" "Rainy Night in Georgia" "I'll Think of Something" "I Fought the Law" "To Love Somebody" "Family Tradition" "Whiskey Bent and Hell Bound" "Women I've Never Had" "Kaw-Liga" "Old Habits" "Texas Women" "Dixie on My Mind" "All My Rowdy Friends (Have Settled Down)" "A Country Boy Can Survive" "Honky Tonkin'" "The American Dream" "Gonna Go Huntin' Tonight" "Leave Them Boys Alone" (with Ernest Tubb and Waylon Jennings) "Queen of My Heart" "Man of Steel" "Attitude Adjustment" "All My Rowdy Friends Are Coming Over Tonight" "Major Moves" "I'm for Love" "This Ain't Dallas" "Ain't Misbehavin'" "Country State of Mind" "Mind Your Own Business" (with Reba McEntire, Tom Petty, Reverend Ike and Willie Nelson) "Born to Boogie" "Heaven Can't Be Found" "Young Country" "If the South Woulda Won" "Early in the Morning and Late at Night" "There's a Tear in My Beer" (with Hank Williams Sr.) "Finders Are Keepers" "Ain't Nobody's Business" "Good Friends, Good Whiskey, Good Lovin'" "If It Will, It Will" "Devil in the Bottle" "Are You Ready for the Country?" (with Eric Church)
Guest singles	"The Conversation" (with Waylon Jennings) "That Old Wheel" (with Johnny Cash) "Bartender Song (Sittin' at a Bar)" (with Rehab)
Family	Hank Williams (father) Audrey Williams (mother) Jett Williams (half-sister) Hank Williams III (son) Holly Williams (daughter) Coleman Williams (grandson)
Related articles	Discography Living Proof: The Hank Williams Jr. Story

v t e Reba McEntire singles
Albums Singles Videos
1970s	"I'd Really Love to See You Tonight" (with Jacky Ward) "Sweet Dreams"
1980s	"(You Lift Me) Up to Heaven" "I Can See Forever in Your Eyes" "I Don't Think Love Ought to Be That Way" "Today All Over Again" "Only You (And You Alone)" "I'm Not That Lonely Yet" "Can't Even Get the Blues" "You're the First Time I've Thought About Leaving" "Why Do We Want (What We Know We Can't Have)" "There Ain't No Future in This" "Just a Little Love" "He Broke Your Memory Last Night" "How Blue" "Somebody Should Leave" "Have I Got a Deal for You" "Only in My Mind" "Whoever's in New England" "Little Rock" "What Am I Gonna Do About You" "Let the Music Lift You Up" "One Promise Too Late" "The Last One to Know" "Love Will Find Its Way to You" "A Sunday Kind of Love" "I Know How He Feels" "New Fool at an Old Game" "Cathy's Clown" "'Til Love Comes Again" "Little Girl"
1990s	"Walk On" "You Lie" "Rumor Has It" "Fancy" "Fallin' Out of Love" "For My Broken Heart" "Is There Life Out There" "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia" "The Greatest Man I Never Knew" "Take It Back" "The Heart Won't Lie" (with Vince Gill) "It's Your Call" "Does He Love You" (with Linda Davis) "They Asked About You" "Why Haven't I Heard from You" "She Thinks His Name Was John" "Till You Love Me" "The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter" "And Still" "On My Own" "Ring on Her Finger, Time on Her Hands" "Starting Over Again" "You Keep Me Hangin' On" "The Fear of Being Alone" "How Was I to Know" "I'd Rather Ride Around with You" "What If It's You" "If You See Him/If You See Her" (with Brooks & Dunn) "Forever Love" "Wrong Night" "One Honest Heart" "What Do You Say"
2000s	"I'll Be" "We're So Good Together" "I'm a Survivor" "Sweet Music Man" "I'm Gonna Take That Mountain" "Somebody" "He Gets That from Me" "My Sister" "You're Gonna Be (Always Loved by Me)" "Love Needs a Holiday" "Because of You" (with Kelly Clarkson) "The Only Promise That Remains" (with Justin Timberlake) "Every Other Weekend" (with Kenny Chesney or Skip Ewing) "Strange" "Consider Me Gone"
2010s	"I Keep On Loving You" "Turn On the Radio" "If I Were a Boy" "When Love Gets a Hold of You" "Somebody's Chelsea" "Going Out Like That" "Until They Don't Love You" "Just Like Them Horses" "Softly and Tenderly" "Back to God" "God and My Girlfriends" "Freedom"
2020s	"Does He Love You" (with Dolly Parton) "I Can't"
Other singles	"Mind Your Own Business" (with Hank Williams Jr.) "Oklahoma Swing" (with Vince Gill) "Cowgirls Don't Cry" (with Brooks & Dunn) "Forever Country" (with Various artists) "Be a Light" (with Thomas Rhett) "What If"

This page was last edited on 22 May 2024, at 18:53

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Recording

Content

Hank Williams Jr. version

Other versions

References

Sources