"She Got the Goldmine (I Got the Shaft)" is a song written by

Tim DuBois James Timothy DuBois (born May 4, 1948 is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and a Nashville-based songwriter and recording industry executive who has headed both Arista Records (Nashville Division) and Universal South Records. As a songwrit ...

and recorded by American country music singer

Jerry Reed Jerry Reed Hubbard (March 20, 1937 – September 1, 2008) was an American singer, guitarist, composer, and songwriter as well as an actor who appeared in more than a dozen films. His signature songs included " Guitar Man", " U.S. Male", "A Thi ...

. It was released in June 1982 as the third and final single from the album, ''The Man with the Golden Thumb''. A satire on

divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...

, the song was Reed's third and final No. 1 country hit in the late summer of 1982, and one of his signature tunes.

Content

The song is a tongue-in-cheek reflection on the recent divorce of a blue-collar worker who, back in 1963, asked his girlfriend to marry him simply because he couldn't stand his own cooking. In hindsight, the man now realizes that he wouldn't have married her if he had known it was going to screw up the rest of his life. Though the first few years were good, the "lust" died down after they had their children. With this in mind, the man is not too surprised when he comes home one day to find the locks have all been changed and his suitcase is sitting on the porch with an attached note saying, "Goodbye, turkey! My attorney will be in touch." When his day in court comes, the man is willing to give his soon-to-be-ex "her fair share," but it turns out to be far more than expected; the judge essentially throws the book at the man, garnishing everything of value he owns, awarding the woman the house, both cars, the TV and full custody of the kids, and then ordering the man to pay alimony, child support ''and'' court fees, which "adds up to more than this cowboy makes". While his ex is now "living like a queen", the man is forced to live on

bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nat ...

and work two jobs just to cover the expenses, all the while asking himself, "Why didn't you just learn how to cook??" The song ends with a spoken-word epilogue, in which the man declares to the judge that he no longer needs his billfold; because of all the rulings against him, his net income is now so low that he qualifies for

food stamps In the United States, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the Food Stamp Program, is a federal program that provides food-purchasing assistance for low- and no-income people. It is a federal aid program, ad ...

. The judge immediately finds him in

contempt of court Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the cour ...

at this revelation. (This is a callback to Reed's 1971 hit song "

When You're Hot, You're Hot "When You're Hot, You're Hot" is a 1971 crossover single written and recorded by Jerry Reed. The song was his most successful on the country chart, peaking at number one for five weeks. "When You're Hot, You're Hot" was also Jerry Reed's second s ...

", which ended similarly when Reed threatened the judge.)

Charts

"She Got the Goldmine" spent two weeks at No. 1 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 ...

chart in September 1982, and spent a total of twelve weeks on that chart's Top 40.

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Use in media

"She Got The Goldmine" was used in the 2010 film '' The Bounty Hunter'', during the scene where Milo searches Nicole's apartment. In 1987, Reed, guest-starring on

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman, known primarily for her work in country music. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton made her album d ...

's TV show ''

Dolly! ''Dolly'' is an American variety show starring Dolly Parton broadcast in first-run syndication from September 13, 1976 to March 7, 1977. Background In the mid-1970s, Parton was approached by Bill Graham, president of Show Biz, Inc., the same co ...

,'' performed a duet version of "She Got the Goldmine" with Parton, with an additional verse written for Parton from the ex-wife's perspective: the house, television and cars are all broken-down, the alimony checks bounce and the kids all look just like the ex-husband.

References

{{reflist 1982 singles Jerry Reed songs Novelty songs Songs written by Tim DuBois 1982 songs RCA Records singles Songs about divorce