"Rub It In" is a song written and originally recorded by

Layng Martine Jr. James Layng Martine Jr. (born March, 1942) is an American songwriter whose compositions have appeared on the country and pop music charts over a four-decade span beginning in the late 1960s. His songs, "Way Down" and "Rub it In", have each been re ...

, and credited as Layng Martine. His version, released on the

Barnaby Records Barnaby Records was an American record company founded by singer Andy Williams in 1963 with his purchase of soon-to-be-liquidated Cadence Records. It held the rights to work by a number of popular music performers including Williams work before ...

label, was produced by

Ray Stevens Harold Ray Ragsdale (born January 24, 1939), known professionally as Ray Stevens, is an American country and pop singer-songwriter and comedian, known for his Grammy-winning recordings "Everything Is Beautiful" and "Misty", as well as novelty ...

and was a U.S. chart single in the fall of 1971, reaching number 65.

Billy "Crash" Craddock Billy Wayne "Crash" Craddock (born June 16, 1939) is an American country and rockabilly singer. He first gained popularity in Australia in the 1950s with a string of rockabilly hits, including the Australian number one hits " Boom Boom Baby" an ...

recorded the song three years later on the album ''

Rub It In "Rub It In" is a song written and originally recorded by Layng Martine Jr., and credited as Layng Martine. His version, released on the Barnaby Records label, was produced by Ray Stevens and was a U.S. chart single in the fall of 1971, reaching n ...

'', taking it to Number One on the country music charts and Top 20 on the pop charts in 1974. He told Tom Roland in ''The Billboard Book of Number One Country Hits'' that many stations refused to play it at first because they thought it was risque. "I said, 'We're talking about suntan lotion, and if you still think it's risque, then don't play it,'" Craddock said. "Evidently, they all went back and listened to it, and it was the biggest record we ever had."Roland, Tom, "The Billboard Book of Number One Country Hits" (Billboard Books, Watson-Guptill Publications, New York, 1991 (), pp. 118-119. Craddock also made live recordings of the song on 1977's ''

Live! Live may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Live!'' (2007 film), 2007 American film * ''Live'' (2014 film), a 2014 Japanese film *'' ''Live'' (Apocalyptica DVD) Music *Live (band), American alternative rock band * List of albums ...

'' and 2009's '' Live -N- Kickin'''. Craddock eventually recorded a sequel to the song, “ You Rubbed It In All Wrong,” which borrows heavily from the original song's melody but instead replaces the lotion with sand, as the man's lover is discovered to be cheating on him. The sequel was also a top-5 hit on both the country charts. A third version, in 1999 by country singer

Matt King Matthew or Matt King may refer to: Matthew * Matthew King (composer) (born 1967), British composer and pianist * Matthew King (cricketer) (born 1977), Australian cricketer * Matthew Yang King (born 1974), American actor, voice actor, director, prod ...

also charted on the country charts, from his album ''Hard Country''. The song's melody was adapted by

Glade Glade may refer to: Computing *Glade Interface Designer, a GUI designer for GTK+ and GNOME Geography *Glade (geography), open area in woodland, synonym for "clearing" **Glade skiing, skiing amongst trees ;Places in the United States *Glade, Kansa ...

to advertise their plug-in air fresheners ("plug it in, plug it in").

Chart performance

Layng Martine

Billy "Crash" Craddock

Matt King

Other cover versions

* Dave Clark & Friends (1972) *

Mel Street King Malachi "Mel" Street (October 21, 1935 – October 21, 1978) was an American country music singer who had 13 top-20 hits on the Billboard charts, Billboard country charts. Biography Street was born near Grundy, Virginia, United States.Nel ...

(1974) * Mike Walker (2001), on the album ''Mike Walker'' *

Jeff Bates Jeffery Wayne Bates (born September 19, 1963) is an American country music artist. Signed to RCA Nashville in late 2002, Bates released his debut album ''Rainbow Man'' in May 2003. In 2005 he released his second album, ''Leave the Light On'', ...

(2006), on the album '' Leave the Light On''. *

Jack Jersey Jack (Willem) de Nijs, artist name Jack Jersey (18 July 1941 — 26 May 1997), was a Dutch singer, composer, arranger, lyricist and record producer of light music (popular music) who worked for national and international artists. He had his own ...

(1975), on the album "I Wonder"

References

{{Authority control 1974 songs Billy "Crash" Craddock songs Matt King (singer) songs Layng Martine Jr. songs Jeff Bates songs Songs written by Layng Martine Jr. Atlantic Records singles Song recordings produced by Ron Chancey 1971 songs ABC Records singles