Tammy Wynette had a little trouble with ‘Run Woman Run’
Very few song titles are hard to repeat but according to Tammy Wynette, her 1970 hit “Run Woman Run” was one that was.
According to Wynette, “I liked that song the first time I heard it. It was different from what I had been doing but it’s a very pretty song. The song was saying about the same things I had been singing about, but in a different way. But the title was hard to say. I’d get on stage and tell the audience that I was going to do my new record, “One Woman One” because “Run Woman Run” was just a tongue twister for me.”
Epic Records was concerned that “Run Woman Run” might trigger another backlash from feminist groups, since the content was so close to “Stand By Your Man.” So the label bought a full page ad in Billboard Magazine which included an apology to the women’s liberation movement.
Wynette added, “I had no idea that what I was singing in those songs was controversial because that was the way I was raised. And when a man said something, well that was the way it was. That was the way of life.”
“Run Woman Run” entered the country music charts Sept. 12, 1970 and was in the No. 1 spot the week of Oct. 24th and stayed there for two weeks.
The song was written by Dan Hoffman, Ann Booth and Duke Goff and was produced by Billy Sherrill.
It was Wynette’s 13th charted song and her 9th No. 1.
Wynette (born Virginia Wynette Pugh) placed 73 songs on the country music charts between 1966 and 1998—including duets with David Houston, George Jones, Mark Gray, Wayne Newton, Randy Travis, Dolly Parton and Loretta Lynn. Twenty of those 73 songs went to No. 1.
Wynette was inducted into The Country Music Hall Of Fame in 1998. She died that same year.
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