Chris Stapleton - Tennessee Whiskey

"Tennessee Whiskey" is a country song written by Dean Dillon and Linda Hargrove. It was originally recorded by American country music artist David Allan Coe for his album of the same name Tennessee Whiskey, whose version peaked at number 77 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart in 1981. George Jones' 1983 version of the song was included on his album Shine On, and reached number 2 on the Hot Country Singles chart. American singer-songwriter Chris Stapleton recorded an R&B-influenced cover of the song for his debut studio album Traveller released in 2015. Stapleton first sang his version on the spur of the moment while the band were playing during a soundcheck before a show in Charlottesville, Virginia. Stapleton and the band enjoyed playing the song, and he decided to sing the song every show. The song's melody is an almost note for note rendition of Etta James's song "I'd Rather Go Blind." His producer Dave Cobb heard the song and suggested that he should record the song for his album. His cover was never officially released to radio as a single, but it was released as a promotional CD single. On November 4, 2015, Stapleton performed it at the Country Music Association (CMA) Awards as a duet with Justin Timberlake. The performance was described as the best moment of the night by music writers. Based solely on two days sales after the broadcast, it reached number one on the Hot Country Songs chart, and number 23 on Billboard Hot 100, selling 131,000 copies. It peaked at number 20 on the Hot 100 the following week, selling a further 118,000 copies. It was certified Platinum by the RIAA on May 4, 2016, and reached over a million in sales in the US by January 2017. It was certified Platinum on July 31, 2019 for 6 million units in combined streams and sales. It has sold 1.98 million copies in the US as of March 2020.