"The Shot Gun Boogie," 'Tennessee' Ernie Ford (1951)
A song about hunting that's also about... you know.
Peak: #1 on the country chart
Streams: 2.8 million
There’s a lot of darkness in the lives of golden age country music stars. Red Foley sank into depression after his career waned. Faron Young was so distraught over his faded glory that it eventually drove him to suicide. And like so many others, “Tennessee” Ernie Ford drank himself to death, dying of liver failure in 1991. But when you listen to a honky tonk hopper like Ford’s “The Shot Gun Boogie,” there’s not a trace of sadness to be heard. Instead, there’s a blast of wit that reminds you country music can be fun as hell.