Lady Down on Love
Encyclopedia
"Lady Down on Love" is a song made famous by the country music
band Alabama
. Originally released in 1983
, the song was the third single to Alabama's fourth album, The Closer You Get...
.
- told first from her side and, in the second verse, his side.
Songwriter Randy Owen
recalled to country music journalist Tom Roland that the idea for the song came about when, during a performance at a nightclub in Bowling Green, Kentucky
, he learned that a group of women were celebrating a friend's divorce with a night out on the town. However, the divorcée
was not having a good time, because she was mourning the end of her marriage and thinking about what should have been - that she should be at home with her husband.
The second verse, told from the first-person point-of-view of the husband, reflects on how the marriage used to have love and that he offered "that special touch." However, work commitments keep him away from home for days at a time, the two grow lonely for each other ... then he makes the mistake of falling for another woman. In the end, the husband admits "she just couldn't live with a man she couldn't trust."
The refrain recalls Owen's interaction with the woman in the nightclub ("She's got her freedom, but she'd rather be bound/To a man that would love her and never let her down").
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
band Alabama
Alabama (band)
Alabama is a country music and southern rock band from Fort Payne, Alabama, United States. The band was founded in 1969 by Randy Owen and his cousin Teddy Gentry , soon joined by Jeff Cook...
. Originally released in 1983
1983 in country music
This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1983.-Events:* March — In a span of two days, two major cable networks signed on the air. Country Music Television went on-the-air March 5, while The Nashville Network came on two days later on March 7...
, the song was the third single to Alabama's fourth album, The Closer You Get...
The Closer You Get...
The Closer You Get... is the fourth album of country music band Alabama. It was released in 1983. All three singles from this album — "The Closer You Get", "Lady Down on Love" and "Dixieland Delight" — reached Number One on the Hot Country Songs charts in 1983...
.
About the song
"Lady Down on Love" is a song about divorceDivorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
- told first from her side and, in the second verse, his side.
Songwriter Randy Owen
Randy Owen
Randy Owen is an American country music artist. He is known primarily for his role as the lead singer of Alabama, a country rock band which saw considerable mainstream success throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Although Alabama only records new albums on occasion, Owen himself has maintained a career...
recalled to country music journalist Tom Roland that the idea for the song came about when, during a performance at a nightclub in Bowling Green, Kentucky
Bowling Green, Kentucky
Bowling Green is the third-most populous city in the state of Kentucky after Louisville and Lexington, with a population of 58,067 as of the 2010 Census. It is the county seat of Warren County and the principal city of the Bowling Green, Kentucky Metropolitan Statistical Area with an estimated 2009...
, he learned that a group of women were celebrating a friend's divorce with a night out on the town. However, the divorcée
Divorcee
Divorcee, refers to a person whose marriage has ended in divorce, a legal dissolution of marriage before death by either spouse. The feminine form is "divorcée", and the masculine "divorcé". At one time the term had negative cultural and religious associations...
was not having a good time, because she was mourning the end of her marriage and thinking about what should have been - that she should be at home with her husband.
Story
In the song's first verse, the unnamed woman is just divorced and is observing her first night on the town since her marriage at age 18. She is resigned to having lost time to achieve her hopes and dreams, and now with her long-lived marital ties now broken, she doesn't know how to act, much less achieve her goals. She reflects on the night her now ex-husband asked her to marry ... and now older and wiser is stunned to realize that the love in her marriage had died so soon.The second verse, told from the first-person point-of-view of the husband, reflects on how the marriage used to have love and that he offered "that special touch." However, work commitments keep him away from home for days at a time, the two grow lonely for each other ... then he makes the mistake of falling for another woman. In the end, the husband admits "she just couldn't live with a man she couldn't trust."
The refrain recalls Owen's interaction with the woman in the nightclub ("She's got her freedom, but she'd rather be bound/To a man that would love her and never let her down").
Chart performance
| Chart (1983) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 76 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks | 18 |
| Canadian RPM Country Tracks | 1 |
| Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary Tracks | 10 |
See also
- Morris, Edward, "Alabama," Contemporary Books Inc., Chicago, 1985 (ISBN 0809253062)
- Whitburn, Joel, "Top Country Songs: 1944-2005," 2006.