"Day Drinking" is a song recorded by American
country music
Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...
group
Little Big Town
Little Big Town is an American country music vocal group from Homewood, Alabama. Founded in 1998, the group has comprised the same four members since its founding: Karen Fairchild, Kimberly Schlapman (née Roads), Phillip Sweet, and Jimi Westbro ...
. It was released in June 2014 as the lead single from their sixth studio album, ''
Pain Killer
An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic (American English), analgaesic (British English), pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used to achieve relief from pain (that is, analgesia or pain management). It ...
''. Little Big Town debuted the song on the
CMT Music Awards
The CMT Music Awards is a fan-voted awards show for country music videos and television performances. The awards ceremony is held every year in Nashville, Tennessee, and broadcast live on the CMT (Country Music Television) channel. Voting takes p ...
on June 4, 2014.
Content
"Day Drinking" is a mid-tempo song about not wanting to wait until later or needing a reason to have some drinks, so the song's narrator suggests they do a little "day drinking." The song was written by three members of the band (Karen Fairchild, Phillip Sweet, and Jimi Westbrook) with
Barry Dean and
Troy Verges
Troy Verges is an American songwriter of country and pop music from Louisiana.
Career
His first cut as a songwriter was a track on Faith Hill's '' Breathe''.
His credits include the singles " Wanted", recorded by Hunter Hayes; "Beer Money", r ...
. Of the song's inception, Fairchild said: "We didn't know it really, but with 'Day Drinking,' we had a blast that day because we were drinking and writing songs. We left it alone, then a couple of weeks later, Barry Dean and Troy Verges sent us a souped up work tape of what we had done. Then, we thought this is very fun and very cool."
Composition
The song is set in the key of E Mixolydian.
Critical reception
Matt Bjorke of ''Roughstock'' complimented the song's production, saying that it "benefit
from Joyce's strong guitar solo and percussive production tendencies which only enhance the summery good time vibes of the lyrics of 'Day Drinking.'" Bob Paxman of ''Country Weekly'' highlighted the song's "first-rate production" and vocals. He awarded the song a B+ rating, saying that while "
twill hardly be remembered for its depth, but like a vacation cruise, it’s the perfect summer getaway."
Music video
The music video for "Day Drinking" made its premiere on June 25, 2014, courtesy of
People.com
''People'' is an American weekly magazine that specializes in celebrity news and human-interest stories. It is published by Dotdash Meredith, a subsidiary of IAC. With a readership of 46.6 million adults in 2009, ''People'' had the l ...
.
It opens with the band members stuck in a traffic jam, before they get out of their vehicle, a red Cadillac convertible, and proceed to walk down the highway. Others follow suit and they all end up at a beach where fun festivities commence while alcohol beverages are consumed. Scenes for the video were shot in the
Miami Beach, Florida
Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. It was incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on natural and artificial island, man-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the ...
area.
Chart performance
"Day Drinking" debuted at number 32 on the U.S. ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''
Country Airplay
Country Airplay is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States since January 20, 1990.
This chart lists the 60 most-listened-to records played on 150 mainstream country radio stations across the country as monitored ...
chart and at number 22 on the U.S. ''Billboard''
Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States.
This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...
chart for the week of June 21, 2014. It also debuted at number 87 on the U.S. ''Billboard''
Hot 100
The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...
chart. As of April 2015, the song has sold 671,000 copies in the United States.
Year-end charts
Certifications
Beverage Line
The song’s popularity led to the band creating & marketing a line of canned wine spritzers under the brand DAY DRINKING BY LITTLE BIG TOWN. The beverage comes in five flavors: Watermelon Rosé, Rosé Bubbles, Southern Peach, Black Cherry and Pontoon Punch.
Official Website for DAY DRINKING BY LITTLE BIG TOWN Canned Wine Spritzers
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References
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2014 songs
2014 singles
Little Big Town songs
Capitol Records Nashville singles
Song recordings produced by Jay Joyce
Songs written by Karen Fairchild
Songs written by Phillip Sweet
Songs written by Jimi Westbrook
Songs written by Troy Verges
Songs written by Barry Dean (songwriter)