ASSOCIATED PRESS

'Your Good Girl's Gonna Go Bad': The Story Behind Tammy Wynette's Fiery Warning

Tammy Wynette's "Your Good Girl's Gonna Go Bad" is the song that made the singer a country music icon. Over the course of her career, she charted twenty No. 1 singles and sold more than thirty million records. When she was married to country superstar George Jones, they earned the nickname of the "President and First Lady" of country music.

Wynette had a hard life growing up, just like her steel magnolia sisters Dolly Parton and Loretta Lynn. She grew up in Mississippi and was raised by her grandparents after her musician father passed and her mother moved away.  Growing up, Wynette worked the cotton fields, played her late father's instruments, and took music lessons. She held onto the gospel singers that would travel through town and eventually became a part of her own gospel group — "Wynette, Linda, and Imogene."

Wynette released her debut studio album Your Good Girl's Gonna Go Bad on May 1, 1967, with Epic Records. The first single on the record was 'Apartment No. 9,' a Johnny Paycheck cover. The song did well, but it wasn't on fire. Her next single, written by Billy Sherrill and Glenn Sutton, and the title track of her album, would shoot her to the No. 3 spot on the Billboard Hot Country chart. The album tracks also included hits like "Don't Come Home A Drinkin' (With Lovin' On Your Mind)," (a Loretta Lynn cover) "Send Me No Roses," "Walk Through This World With Me," and "Don't Touch Me."

The album reached No. 7 on the Country Albums Billboard chart. It was the beginning of a very successful career for Wynette. Her greatest hits include "D-I-V-O-R-C-E," "Stand By Your Man," "I Don't Wanna Play House,'" and a duet with Jones "Golden Ring."

Wynette passed away from a blood clot at age fifty-five. Her service took place at the revered Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. Later that year, she was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

'Your Good Girl's Gonna Go Bad' Lyrics:

I've never seen the inside of a barroom
Or listened to a Jukebox all night long
But I see these are the things that bring you pleasure
So I'm gonna make some changes in our home

I've heard it said if you can't beat 'em join 'em
So if that's the way you wanted me to be
I'll change if it takes that to make you happy
From now on you're gonna see a different me

Because your good girl's gonna go bad
I'm gonna be the swinginest swinger you've ever had
If you like 'em painted up, powdered up
Then you oughta be glad
'Cause your good girl's gonna go bad

I'll even learn to like the taste of whisky
In fact, you'll hardly recognize your wife
I'll buy some brand new clothes and dress up fancy
For my journey to the wilder side of life

Because your good girl's gonna go bad
I'm gonna be the swinginest swinger you've ever had
If you like 'em painted up, powdered up
Then you oughta be glad
'Cause your good girl's gonna go bad

Oh yeah, your good girl's gonna go bad

 

Now Watch: Tina Turner Began Her Solo Career as a Country Singer