Ain't Worth the Whiskey

"Ain't Worth the Whiskey"
Single by Cole Swindell
from the album Cole Swindell
Released November 3, 2014 (2014-11-03)
Format Digital download
Recorded 2014
Genre Country pop, Adult Contemporary
Length 3:12
Label Warner Bros. Nashville
Writer(s)
  • Cole Swindell
  • Josh Martin
  • Adam Sanders
Producer(s) Michael Carter
Cole Swindell singles chronology
"Hope You Get Lonely Tonight"
(2014)		 "Ain't Worth the Whiskey"
(2014)		 "Let Me See Ya Girl"
(2015)

"Ain't Worth the Whiskey" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Cole Swindell. It was released to country radio in November 2014 as the third single from his self-titled debut album. The song was written by Swindell, Josh Martin and Adam Sanders.

"Ain't Worth the Whiskey" peaked at number one on the Billboard Country Airplay chart, giving Swindell his third number-one country hit overall, making him the first male country artist since Darius Rucker in 2009 to send their first three singles to number one. It also charted at numbers 3 and 43 on the Hot Country Songs and Hot 100 charts respectively. The song was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and has sold 688,000 copies in that country as of June 2015. The song also charted in Canada at number 10 on the Country chart and number 62 on the Canadian Hot 100. It was also certified Gold by Music Canada, denoting sales of over 40,000 units in that country.

The accompanying music video was directed by Michael Monaco.

Critical reception

Josh Schott of Country Perspective gave the song rated the song 3.5/10 and heavily criticized its weak songwriting. He summarized his review by saying that "“Ain’t Worth The Whiskey” relies heavily on catchy hooks and the stapled topics of mainstream country for its radio and fan appeal. Maybe if there was a bit more effort into telling us what led him here I’d like it, but the song doesn’t do that. I’m still not sold on Cole Swindell."[1] Vickye Fisher of For The Country Record gave the song a similar review, criticizing the production and lyrics as well as Swindell's vocals, saying that "Unfortunately, the genuineness that they’re going for with this one falls pretty flat. Along with having a very conventional, generic country/pop sound (like ‘Lonely’) that I find it very difficult to get remotely excited about, it sits in a cheery major key complete with perfect cadences and a feel-good vibe, meaning that any sadness or heartache that might have been conveyed through the lyrics gets completely overthrown."[2]

Taste of Country reviewed it positively which stated that "Ultimately, ’Ain’t Worth the Whiskey’ is a strong choice for Swindell’s third single off his self-titled debut album. It’s fun to listen to and everything we love about country music. And who doesn’t love a classic tune about moving on … with a good shot of whiskey, of course."[3]

Music video

The music video was directed by Michael Monaco and premiered in March 2015.[4]

Commercial performance

The song first entered the Hot Country Songs chart at No. 27 on the album release in February 2014, as well as Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart at No. 2, and No. 6 on the Country Digital Songs, selling 34,000 copies for the week.[5] In anticipation of the song release as a single, the song entered the Country Airplay chart on at No. 59 for chart dated October 25, 2014. With increasing airplay, the song eventually debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 for chart dated January 17, 2015. It peaked at Country Airplay at No. 1 and on the Hot 100 at No. 43 on the chart date of April 4, 2015.[6]

The single was certified Gold by the RIAA on March, 24, 2015, making it Swindell's third consecutive single to at least reach Gold status.[7] As of June 2015, "Ain't Worth the Whiskey" has sold 688,000 copies in the United States.[8]

Chart performance

Chart (2014–15) Peak
position
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[9] 62
Canada Country (Billboard)[10] 10
US Billboard Hot 100[11] 43
US Country Airplay (Billboard)[12] 1
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[13] 3

Year-end charts

Chart (2015) Position
US Country Airplay (Billboard)[14] 41
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[15] 34
Preceded by
"Mean to Me"
by Brett Eldredge		 Billboard Country Airplay
number-one single
April 4, 2015 		Succeeded by
"Homegrown"
by Zac Brown Band

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/Sales
Canada (Music Canada)[16] Gold 40,000^
United States (RIAA)[17] Platinum 688,000[8]

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

References

  1. ↑ Schott, Josh (January 8, 2015). "Review – Cole Swindell Tries (and fails) to Add Depth with "Ain't Worth The Whiskey"". Country Perspective. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  2. ↑ "Cole Swindell 'Ain't Worth The Whiskey' – Single Review : For The Country Record". For The Country Record. 24 October 2014. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
  3. ↑ "Cole Swindell, 'Ain't Worth the Whiskey' [Listen]". Taste of Country. 17 November 2014. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
  4. ↑ "CMT: Videos : Cole Swindell : Ain't Worth the Whiskey". Country Music Television. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
  5. ↑ Matt Bjorke (February 12, 2014). "Country Chart News – The Top 30 Digital Singles – Feb 12, 2014: Cole Swindell Dominates; Scotty McCreery Hits Gold". Roughstock.
  6. ↑ "Cole Swindell Tops The Charts Again". CBS Local. March 31, 2015.
  7. ↑ "American singles certifications – Cole Swindell – Ain't Worth the Whiskey". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select ', then click SEARCH
  8. 1 2 Matt Bjorke (June 3, 2015). "Country Music's Top 30 Digital Singles: Week of June 3, 2015". Roughstock. Sales figure given here
  9. ↑ "Cole Swindell – Chart history" Canadian Hot 100 for Cole Swindell.
  10. ↑ "Cole Swindell – Chart history" Billboard Canada Country for Cole Swindell.
  11. ↑ "Cole Swindell – Chart history" Billboard Hot 100 for Cole Swindell. Retrieved March 26, 2015.
  12. ↑ "Cole Swindell – Chart history" Billboard Country Airplay for Cole Swindell.
  13. ↑ "Cole Swindell – Chart history" Billboard Hot Country Songs for Cole Swindell.
  14. ↑ "Best of 2015: Country Airplay". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2015. Retrieved December 9, 2015.
  15. ↑ "Best of 2015: Hot Country Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2015. Retrieved December 9, 2015.
  16. ↑ "Canadian single certifications – Cole Swindell – Ain't Worth the Whiskey". Music Canada. Retrieved March 31, 2016.
  17. ↑ "American single certifications – Cole Swindell – Ain't Worth the Whiskey". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/6/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.