Twenty-seven years ago today, Brooks & Dunn released, “Hard Workin’ Man.” The song spent 99 weeks on the Billboard charts.
Written by Ronnie Dunn, “Hard Workin’ Man” is a song about anyone who puts in the work, day after day. Lyrics include, “I can’t get ahead no matter how hard I try. I’m gettin’ really good at barely gettin’ by.”
During an interview, Dunn reveals that he’s no stranger to feeling like you just can’t catch a break. After moving to Nashville to become a songwriter, Dunn quickly realized that achieving his goals was going to take “discipline.”
“I realized early into the game that I [wasn’t going to be able] to call a publisher or whoever in Nashville and get a song, much less get a top drawer song,” said Dunn. “…One day, I committed to sitting down for 10 days straight and really took a stab at seriously writing songs, just adding discipline to the concept,” he continued.
During those ten days Dunn wrote, “Blue Neon Moon,” “Boot Scootin’ Boogie,” “She Used to Be Mine,” and “Hard Workin’ Man.” Each of those songs became hits, proving that it really does pay to be a hard-working man.
Recorded by Brooks & Dunn, “Hard Workin’ Man,” was released in February 1993 along with their second album of the same name. The song peaked at number four on the U.S. Hot Country charts and held the number one slot on Canada Country Tracks. Additionally, the duo won the Best Country Performance for the song in 1994.
What Are Brooks & Dunn Doing Now?
Almost 30 years after releasing their first single, “Brand New Man,” Brooks & Dunn are still producing new music. Most recently, the duo released their album, Reboot. The album consists of the band’s hit songs, re-recorded with today’s top country musicians. Additionally, in 2019, Brooks & Dunn were inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
