Country Music Memories: Toby Keith Hits No. 1 With ‘Whiskey Girl’

Seventeen years ago today (July 10, 2004), Toby Keith stormed to the top of the charts with his song “Whiskey Girl.” The tune was the third and final single from Keith’s multi-platinum 2003 album Shock’n Y’all.

Keith co-wrote “Whiskey Girl” with his good friend and frequent collaborator, Scotty Emerick. The song features lines such as “She ain’t into wine and roses / Beer just makes her turn up her nose / And she can’t stand the thought of sippin’ champagne / No Cuervo Gold Margaritas / Just ain’t enough good burn in tequila / She needs somethin’ with a little more edge and a little more pain / She’s my little whiskey girl.”

“She’s just the epitome of a redneck girl who ain’t into wine and beer or tequila. It’s not strong enough for her,” Emerick recalls to Country Weekly of his and Keith’s inspiration for the song. “She didn’t do anything but sip on whiskey … We wanted to make her sound like a really good-looking gal who’s also kind of rough — but not some slobbering binge drinker!”

The music video for “Whiskey Girl” was, appropriately, shot in a bar. WWE star Amy Weber makes a guest appearance.

Keith included “Whiskey Girl” on his double-disc 35 Biggest Hits album, which was released in 2008. It remains one of his favorite songs to perform live during his concerts.

This story was originally written by Gayle Thompson, and revised by Annie Zaleski.

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