When I Think About Cheatin'

Album: Here For The Party (2004)
Charted: 39
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • A very empathetic song, "When I Think About Cheatin'" finds Gretchen Wilson resisting the urge to stray by imagining how she would feel if her man did that to her. The answer: she would fall to pieces, just like in the Patsy Cline song.
  • The song was the third single from Gretchen Wilson's debut album, Here For The Party, following "Redneck Woman" and the title track. Those songs are both rowdy and fun; "When I Think About Cheatin'" is a ballad in the style of classic country, with plenty of twang. It showed Wilson as a multifarious artist, but she remained best known for her "Redneck Woman" persona. When she made a comeback by winning The Masked Singer in 2025, casual fans were surprised to find out she could belt out ballads like "Saving All My Love For You" and "I'll Stand By You."
  • Wilson wrote the song with John Rich of Big & Rich along with his writing partner Vicky McGehee. Rich and McGehee's other collaborations include "Johnny Cash" by Jason Aldean and "California" by Tim McGraw. Rich also wrote "Redneck Woman" with Wilson.
  • The music video starts with Wilson, John Rich and friends outside the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. Rick pulls on the door, and when it opens, they enter and Wilson sings the song on stage as ghosts from various musicians appear to accompany her.

    According to Wilson, it's based on a real event when she and Rich entered the venue surreptitiously and she went on stage to sing. "We did feel like there were ghosts in the room," Wilson said.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Ian Astbury of The Cult

Ian Astbury of The CultSongwriter Interviews

The Cult frontman tells who the "Fire Woman" is, and talks about performing with the new version of The Doors.

Jimmy Webb

Jimmy WebbSongwriter Interviews

Webb talks about his classic songs "By the Time I Get to Phoenix," "Wichita Lineman" and "MacArthur Park."

Vince Clarke

Vince ClarkeSongwriter Interviews

An original member of Depeche Mode, Vince went on to form Erasure and Yaz.

Julian Lennon

Julian LennonSongwriter Interviews

Julian tells the stories behind his hits "Valotte" and "Too Late for Goodbyes," and fills us in on his many non-musical pursuits. Also: what MTV meant to his career.

Rush: Album by Album - A Conversation With Martin Popoff

Rush: Album by Album - A Conversation With Martin PopoffSong Writing

A talk with Martin Popoff about his latest book on Rush and how he assessed the thousands of albums he reviewed.

Justin Hayward of The Moody Blues

Justin Hayward of The Moody BluesSongwriter Interviews

Justin wrote the classic "Nights In White Satin," but his fondest musical memories are from a different decade.