"Thank God I'm a Country Boy", also known as "Country Boy", is a song written by John Martin Sommers and recorded by American singer/songwriter

John Denver Henry John Deutschendorf Jr. (December 31, 1943 – October 12, 1997), known professionally as John Denver, was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, actor, activist, and humanitarian whose greatest commercial success was as a solo singe ...

. The song was originally included on Denver's 1974 album '' Back Home Again''. A version recorded live on August 26, 1974, at the

Universal Amphitheatre Universal Amphitheatre (later known as Gibson Amphitheatre) was an indoor amphitheatre located in Los Angeles, California within Universal City, California, Universal City. It was built as an outdoor venue, opening in the summer of 1972 with a p ...

in Los Angeles was included on his 1975 album '' An Evening with John Denver''. The live version was released as a single and went to No. 1 on both the ''

Billboard magazine ''Billboard'' (stylized as ''billboard'') is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style related to the music ...

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 sa ...

and ''Billboard'' Hot 100 charts. The song topped both charts for one week each, first the country chart (on May 31), and the Hot 100 chart a week later. ''Thank God I'm a Country Boy'' also became the name of a variety special show hosted by Denver in 1977. "Thank God I'm a Country Boy" was one of six songs released in 1975 that topped both the Billboard Hot 100 and ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles charts. Denver's two-sided hit " I'm Sorry"/" Calypso" also received that distinction.

Background

The song was written by John Martin Sommers, a guitar/banjo/fiddle/mandolin player in Denver's backup band, on December 31, 1973 (coincidentally Denver's thirtieth birthday) when he was driving from his home in

Aspen, Colorado Aspen is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 7,004 at the 2020 United States Census. Aspen is in a remote area of the Rocky Mo ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

Content

Sommers recalls that at the time he was feeling “peaceful, happy and content” with his lot in life, and started scribbling some notes about his blissful state along the way. They served as the inspiration for the song.

Structure

The song is in cut (2/2) time that is typical of two-step. Both the verse and chorus comprise eight measures with 3/2 added between the first four measures and last three measures. Emotionally, this creates an intended slight stall. The instrumental breaks in the song incorporate a violin playing the old fiddle tune Sally Goodin, which is also referenced in the song's lyrics: "I'd play Sally Goodin all day if I could...."

Chart performance

John Denver version

Year-end charts

Billy Dean version

Cover versions

*A cover version was released by country music artist

Billy Dean William Harold Dean Jr. (born April 2, 1962) is an American country music singer and songwriter. He first gained national attention after appearing on the television talent competition ''Star Search''. Active as a recording artist since 1990, h ...

in 2004; Dean's cover peaked at No. 27 on the ''Billboard'' U.S.

Hot Country Singles & Tracks 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 sa ...

charts. *A Western version was recorded by

Alvin and the Chipmunks Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks or simply The Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band and media franchise first created by Ross Bagdasarian for novelty records in 1958. The group consists of three ...

for their 1981 album ''

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''. *Canadian country music artist Brad Johner did a cover on his 2003 album '' Free''. *Canadian Country rock group The Road Hammers recorded a version for their 2009 album '' The Road Hammers II''. * Hampton the Hampster performed a cover of the song on '' Hampsterdance Hits'' in 2001. It became Hampton's second top-20 hit in Australia, where it peaked at number 12 on the

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for two weeks in May and June 2001. It was Australia's 81st-most-successful single of 2001. *Christian group

Point of Grace Point of Grace is an all-female contemporary Christian music vocal group. The current trio consists of Shelley Breen, Denise Jones, and Leigh Cappillino. The group started out as a quartet in 1991, with original members Breen and Jones, as we ...

has been performing a cover of the song in recent concerts, calling it "Thank God I'm a Country Girl." *Australian

Lee Kernaghan Lee Kernaghan OAM (born 15 April 1964) is an Australian 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 deri ...

performs a cover of the song. *Swedish eurodance/pop band

Rednex Rednex is a Swedish musical group whose style is a mix of American country music and modern Eurodance, with their appearance and stage names taking inspiration from the American redneck stereotypes. The band originally consisted of the lead sin ...

recorded cover as B-side song for their 2008 single "

Football Is Our Religion "Football Is Our Religion" is a country-dance song by the Swedish band Rednex, released in 2008 via Universal Records, as the fifth single of their independently released third studio album ''The Cotton Eye Joe Show''. The song serves as the uno ...

" *Finnish folk/country band Finntrio recorded a Finnish language translation ''Kyllä maalla on mukavaa'' of the song. *

Branson, Missouri Branson is a city in the U.S. state of Missouri. Most of the city is situated in Taney County, Missouri, Taney County, with a small portion in the west extending into Stone County, Missouri, Stone County. Branson is in the Ozarks, Ozark Mountains. ...

-based band The Haygoods covered the song *

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 ...

has occasionally performed a bluegrass arrangement of the song in her concerts; she also performed the song on an episode of her mid-70s variety show '' Dolly!'' *The German cover band Village Girls covered it under the title "Thank God I'm a Country Girl." *The a cappella group Home Free released a cover of the song in 2016.

In popular culture

* The song has been played during the

seventh inning stretch In baseball in the United States and Canada, the seventh-inning stretch is a long-standing tradition that takes place between the halves of the seventh inning of a game. Fans generally stand up and stretch out their arms and legs and sometimes wa ...

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

home games beginning in the summer of 1975 and without interruption since 1994. Denver performed it in person atop the Orioles dugout in Game 1 of the

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and again fourteen years later during a 12–8 victory over the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

on September 20, 1997, just 22 days prior to his death.Cowherd, Kevin. "7th-inning stretch belonged to Denver Orioles: Time after time, 'Thank God I'm a Country Boy' got the stadium rocking. And when the man himself joined in, it was magic," ''The Baltimore Sun'', Tuesday, October 14, 1997
Retrieved October 19, 2017 The song is also played during the seventh-inning stretch at

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in B ...

Buffalo Bisons The Buffalo Bisons (known colloquially as the Herd) are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. Located in Buffalo, New York, the team plays their home games at Sahlen ...

, and

Vanderbilt Commodores The Vanderbilt Commodores are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Vanderbilt University, located in Nashville, Tennessee. Vanderbilt fields 16 varsity teams (6 men's teams and 10 women's teams), 14 of which compete at the National ...

games. It is also played regularly at

Montana Grizzlies The Montana Grizzlies and Lady Griz are the nicknames given to the athletic teams of the University of Montana, located in Missoula. The university is a member of the Big Sky Conference and competes in NCAA Division I, fielding six men's tea ...

, Washington Glory,

Calgary Flames The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary. The Flames compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference, and are the third major professional ice hockey tea ...

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (french: Sénateurs d'Ottawa), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member ...

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Divi ...

Colorado Avalanche The Colorado Avalanche (colloquially known as the Avs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (N ...

St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the ...

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, and

Spokane Indians The Spokane Indians are a Minor League Baseball team located in Spokane Valley, the city immediately east of Spokane, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest. The Indians are members of the High-A Northwest League (NWL) as an affiliate of the Col ...

home games. * The American version '' Country Bear Vacation Hoedown'' has used the song "Thank God I'm a Country Bear" as the show's finale. * In

Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, and fantasy novels. Described as the "King of Horror", a play on his surname and a reference to his high ...

's novel ''

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'', "Thank God I'm a Country Boy" is played at a televised rally for rising politician and antagonist Greg Stillson. *

Jim Nabors James Thurston Nabors (June 12, 1930 – November 30, 2017) was an American actor, singer, and comedian, widely known for his signature character, Gomer Pyle. Nabors was discovered by Andy Griffith while working at a Santa Monica nightclub, and ...

performed "Thank God I'm a Country Boy" when he appeared on ''

The Muppet Show ''The Muppet Show'' is a sketch comedy television series created by Jim Henson and featuring the Muppets. The series originated as two television pilot, pilot episodes produced by Henson for American Broadcasting Company, ABC in 1974 and 1975. ...

'' in 1976. * Ann B. Davis performed "Thank God I'm a Country Boy" as "Thank God I'm a Country Girl" on ''

The Brady Bunch Hour ''The Brady Bunch Hour'' is an American variety show featuring skits and songs produced by Sid & Marty Krofft Productions in association with Paramount Television. It ran on ABC from November 28, 1976, to May 25, 1977. The series starred the o ...

'' Episode 8, released on April 25, 1977. *

Loretta Lynn Loretta Lynn (; April 14, 1932 – October 4, 2022) was an American country music singer and songwriter. In a career spanning six decades, Lynn released multiple gold albums. She had numerous hits such as "You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My Ma ...

performed "Thank God I'm a Country Boy" as "Thank God I'm a Country Girl" on

Fantasy Island ''Fantasy Island'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by Gene Levitt. It aired on ABC from 1977 to 1984. The series starred Ricardo Montalbán as the mysterious Mr. Roarke and Hervé Villechaize as his assistant, Tattoo ...

Season 6 Episode 8, released on December 11, 1982. * Featured in the stage musical, ''

Priscilla Queen of the Desert – the Musical ''Priscilla, Queen of the Desert'' is a jukebox musical with book by Australian film director-writer Stephan Elliott and Allan Scott, using well-known pop songs as its score. Adapted from Elliott's 1994 film '' The Adventures of Priscilla, ...

'' * The song was parodied by the

Capitol Steps The Capitol Steps was an American political-satire group that performed from 1981 to 2020. Most of the Capitol Steps' material parodied well-known contemporary songs, usually introduced with a short skit. The songs were interspersed with other ro ...

during the Iran-Contra Scandal as "Thank God I'm A Contra Boy" featuring

Oliver North Oliver Laurence North (born October 7, 1943) is an American political commentator, television host, military historian, author, and retired United States Marine Corps lieutenant colonel. A veteran of the Vietnam War, North was a National Sec ...

. * The song was used during a scene in ''

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'' when

Pauly Shore Paul Montgomery Shore (born February 1, 1968) is an American actor, comedian and filmmaker best known for his roles in 1990s comedy films. Shore began as a stand-up comedian at the age of 17, before becoming an MTV VJ in 1989. This led to a st ...

's character, "Crawl", has a

combine Combine may refer to: Machinery * Combine harvester, or combine, a machine to harvest grain crops * Combine seeder, or combine, a machine to plant seeds Company structure * Corporate group, an industrial business group in Western democracie ...

go out of control and spell his name on the farmland while singing along to the 8-track tape playing in the cab. * The song appears in a

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after t ...

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for

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References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Thank God I'm A Country Boy 1975 singles 2004 singles Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles John Denver songs Billy Dean songs Baltimore Orioles RPM Top Singles number-one singles RPM Country Tracks number-one singles of the year Live singles RCA Records singles Curb Records singles Song recordings produced by Milt Okun 1974 songs