"Head to Toe" is a song written by

Bobby Braddock Robert Valentine Braddock (born August 5, 1940) is an American country songwriter and record producer. A member of the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, Braddock has contributed numerous hit songs during more ...

. It was first recorded by American

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

singer-songwriter Bill Anderson. It was released as a single in 1977 via

MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc., which later became part of Universal Music Group. Pre-history MCA Inc., a powerful talent agency and a television production company, entered the recorded music business in 1962 wit ...

and became a major hit the following year.

Background and release

"Head to Toe" was recorded on December 6, 1976 at

Bradley's Barn ''Bradley's Barn'' is the fifth studio album by American rock group The Beau Brummels. Released in October 1968, it contains the singles "Long Walking Down to Misery" and "Cherokee Girl." The album has received critical acclaim as an early examp ...

, located in

Mount Juliet, Tennessee Mt. Juliet (also referred to as Mount Juliet) is a city located in western Wilson County, Tennessee. A suburb of Nashville, it is approximately east of downtown Nashville. Mt. Juliet is located mostly between two major national east-west routes, ...

. The session was produced by

Buddy Killen William Doyce “Buddy” Killen (November 13, 1932 – November 1, 2006) was an American record producer and music publisher, and a former owner of Trinity Broadcasting Network and Tree International Publishing, the largest country music p ...

, who had recently become Anderson's producer after many years of working with

Owen Bradley William Owen Bradley (October 21, 1915 – January 7, 1998) was an American musician and record producer who, along with Chet Atkins, Bob Ferguson, Bill Porter, and Don Law, was one of the chief architects of the 1950s and 1960s Nashville sou ...

. Killen would continue producing Anderson until his departure from MCA Records. Four additional songs were recorded during the same December studio session. "Head to Toe" was released as a single by MCA Records in March 1977. The song spent 13 weeks on the ''

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 ...

Hot Country Singles 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 ...

before reaching number six in June 1977. In Canada, the single reached number four on the RPM Country Songs chart in 1977. It was first released on his 1977 studio album, '' Scorpio''.

Track listings

7" vinyl single * "Head to Toe" – 2:30 * "Love Song for Jackie" – 2:57

Chart performance

References

{{authority control 1977 singles 1977 songs Bill Anderson (singer) songs MCA Records singles Songs written by Bobby Braddock