Grandpa (Tell Me 'Bout the Good Old Days)
{{Refimprove|date=January 2021}}
{{Infobox song
| name = Grandpa (Tell Me 'Bout the Good Old Days)
| cover =
| alt =
| type = single
| artist = The Judds
| album = Rockin' with the Rhythm
| released = January 1986
| recorded = 1985
| studio = Creative Workshop (Berry Hill, Tennessee)
| venue =
| genre = Country
| length = 4:15
| writer = Jamie O'Hara
| producer = Brent Maher
| prev_title = Have Mercy
| prev_year = 1985
| next_title = Rockin' with the Rhythm of the Rain
| next_year = 1986
}}
"Grandpa (Tell Me 'Bout the Good Old Days)" is a song written by Jamie O'Hara, and recorded by the American country music duo, The Judds. It was released in January 1986 as the second single from the album Rockin' with the Rhythm. The song was their sixth No. 1 song on the Billboard magazine Hot Country Singles chart.{{cite book |title= The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition|last=Whitburn |first=Joel |author-link=Joel Whitburn |year=2004 |publisher=Record Research |page=184}} Members of the Western Writers of America chose it as one of the Top 100 Western songs of all time.{{Cite web |title=The Top 100 Western Songs |author=Western Writers of America |year=2010 |author-link=Western Writers of America |publisher=American Cowboy |url=http://www.americancowboy.com/culture/top-100-western-songs |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101019002745/http://americancowboy.com/culture/top-100-western-songs |archivedate=19 October 2010 |url-status=dead }}
Content
"Grandpa" is a nostalgic country song in which the singer feels overwhelmed by the rapid changes of modern life ("It feels like this world's gone crazy") and wonders if things were really better in her grandfather's time. She asks him:
- if lovers really stayed together for life
- if people really always kept promises
- if families really prayed together
- if fathers really never abandoned their families
Poignantly, the song does not mention how her grandfather responds.
Chart performance
class="wikitable sortable"
!align="left"|Chart (1986) !align="center"|Peak |
{{singlechart|Billboardcountrysongs|1|artist=The Judds}} |
align="left"|Canadian RPM Country Tracks
|align="center"|1 |
class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
!scope="col"| Chart (2022) !scope="col"| Peak |
scope="row"|Canada Digital Song Sales (Billboard){{Cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/the-judds/chart-history/cns/|title=The Judds Chart History (Canadian Digital Song Sales)|magazine=Billboard|access-date=July 16, 2022}}
| 31 |
---|
scope="row"|US Digital Song Sales (Billboard){{Cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/the-judds/chart-history/HDS/|title=The Judds Chart History (Digital Song Sales)|magazine=Billboard|access-date=July 16, 2022}}
| 10 |
class="wikitable sortable"
!align="left"|Year End (1986) !align="center"|Position |
align="left"|Billboard Top Country Singles
|align="center"| 33 |
align="left"|Canadian RPM Country Tracks
|align="center"|11 |
Certifications
{{Certification Table Top}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|artist=The Judds|title=Grandpa (Tell Me 'Bout the Good Old Days)|relyear=1986|certyear=2023|award=Platinum|type=single|access-date=February 8, 2023}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true|streaming=true|noshipments=true}}
Awards
The song won Grammy Awards for the Judds in the Country Duo/Vocal Group category and for O'Hara in the Country Songwriting Category for 1987.
References
{{reflist}}
{{The Judds singles}}
{{Navboxes
|title = Awards for "Grandpa (Tell Me 'Bout the Good Old Days)"
|titlestyle = background: lightblue
|list =
{{American Music Award for Favorite Country Song}}
{{Grammy Award for Best Country Song}}
}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grandpa Tell Me 'Bout The Good Old Days}}
Category:Songs written by Jamie O'Hara (singer)
Category:RCA Records Nashville singles
Category:Song recordings produced by Brent Maher