B-side "It's All Over Now" Format 7" single Genre Country | Released December 14, 1971 Recorded September 1, 1971 Length 3:01 | |
"Good Hearted Woman" is a song written by country music singers Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson. In 1969, Jennings and Nelson were staying in a motel in Fort Worth, Texas. Jennings was inspired to write the song after reading an advertisement that promoted Ike and Tina Turner. Jennings joined Nelson during a poker game and told him about the idea. The singers completed the song while Nelson's wife, Connie Koepke, wrote it down.
Contents
Jennings recorded the single for the same time as the title-track of his 1972 album, peaking at number three on the Billboard's Hot Country Singles. Jennings and Nelson recorded duet version in 1975, that was later included in Wanted: The Outlaws!. It peaked at number one on Billboard's Hot Country Singles and at number 25 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was awarded with the Single of the Year award by the Country Music Association and gave Jennings and Nelson nationwide recognition.
Writing
In 1969, while staying at the Fort Worther Motel in Fort Worth, Texas, Waylon Jennings was inspired to start writing the song when he saw an advertisement on a newspaper promoting Tina Turner as a "good hearted woman loving two-timing men", a reference to Ike Turner. Jennings went to talk to Nelson, who was in a middle of a poker game. He joined the game, and told Nelson about his idea. While they kept playing, they expanded the lyrics as Nelson's wife Connie Koepke was writing them down.
Recording
Jennings recorded the song for the first time as the title track of his 1972 album Good Hearted Woman, the single peaked at number three on the Billboard's Hot Country Singles. In 1975, Jennings remixed the song, adding vocals from Willie Nelson (and adding fake crowd noise to give it a live feel) for the album Wanted: The Outlaws!. The album cemented the pair's outlaw image and became country music's first platinum album. The song peaked at number one on Billboard's Hot Country Singles and at number 25 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song won the Single of the Year award in the 1976 Country Music Association Awards, and took Jennings and Nelson to the mainstream audiences, giving them nationwide recognition.