Old Violin
1986 single by Johnny Paycheck
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Old Violin" is a song by American country music singer Johnny Paycheck. It is a single from his 1986 album Modern Times.
| "Old Violin" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Johnny Paycheck | ||||
| from the album Modern Times | ||||
| B-side | "Come to Me"[1] | |||
| Released | 1986 | |||
| Recorded | February 1986 | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 3:42 | |||
| Label | Mercury | |||
| Songwriter | Johnny Paycheck | |||
| Producer | Stan Cornelius | |||
| Johnny Paycheck singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Content
"Old Violin" was recorded in the mid-1980s during Paycheck's tenure with Mercury Records. The song was among his first recordings after Paycheck had been imprisoned for aggravated assault at a bar in Hillsboro, Ohio.[2][1][3]
Kurt Wolff, in Country Music: The Rough Guide, describes "Old Violin" as a song in which Paycheck "faces old age with genuine trepidation".[4] The lyric features the narrator comparing himself to an "old violin, soon to be put away and never played again".[5]
Other versions
In 2002, Daryle Singletary covered "Old Violin" for his covers album That's Why I Sing This Way. Singletary wanted to include Paycheck on his recording, and had a then-ill Paycheck deliver the song's closing recitation from his hospital bed. This recording was Paycheck's last before his death in early 2003.[5][6] George Strait covered the song on his 2019 album Honky Tonk Time Machine.[7]
Charts
| Chart (1986) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada RPM Country Tracks[8] | 36 |
| US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[9] | 21 |