Beer For My Horses

Album: Unleashed (2002)
Charted: 22
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • "When I was a kid I worked for a rodeo company," says Toby on his website. "The old timers who worked the stock and stuff in the back would carry a pint of whiskey in their pocket - they were just old cowboys. They would pull it out and say, 'Here's to me, here's to you, we got screwed, so screw you, here's to me.' They always had some little toast. One was to hold up the bottle for a drink and say, 'Whiskey for my men, beer for my horses.' I kept that in my head a long time thinking I'd write it some day. We did finally, trying to say that maybe it's time that justice gets back into the judicial system. The big posse goes out and catches the bad guys and everybody comes back to lick their wounds, remember the ones they lost and celebrate with the ones that made it back. You raise your glass and say, 'Whiskey for my men, beer for my horses, bartender.' One of those conceptual deals. Soon as we got done writing it I thought man, it'd be cool if we could talk Willie Nelson into singing the Texas verse on that. Obviously he went for it and I think it's the biggest multi-week #1 either of us ever had.

    I had this title forever, and when Scott Emerick came up with a neat little melody lick, the two just went hand-in-hand. The song was written prior to September 11th. It's about justice, but more so about the law of the Old West. It truly depicts how I feel about our justice system today."
  • Yet another #1 Country hit for Toby Keith and Scotty Emerick, this song packed another surprise with the addition of Willie Nelson to the voice track, which was all Toby's idea, Scotty says. "After we got finished writing it, he said, 'Man, you know who'd be perfect to do a duet with? Willie Nelson.' I said, 'Man, don't even say that, that'd be way too cool.' And then Toby got it done. It happened really easy, too."

    It was the first time Toby and Willie had done a duet together, and Scotty tells this story about their first meeting: "We got on his bus and played him 'Beer For My Horses.' That's the first time we ever met him. And we told him we had an idea, we had a song we wanted to do a duet with him. So we just met him on his bus and hung out all night, and played him songs. And he's so nice, he said, 'Sure.' Then it just all fell into place. They recorded it, and it's great. I wrote 'I'll Never Smoke Weed With Willie Again' after that first experience, too." (From a Songfacts interview with Scotty Emerick.)
  • In 2008, Toby Keith and Rodney Carrington starred in the movie Beer For My Horses. The film has lots of guns, trucks and Willie Nelson.

Comments: 8

  • Mac from Wheeling, WvI have mixed feelings about Toby Keith’s politics, but this was a great song.
  • Barry from Sauquoit, NyHere's some obscure trivia:
    On January 24th 1935, the Krueger Brewing Company in Richmond, Virginia put the first canned beer on sale...
    Sixty eight and a half years later on June 8th, 2003 Toby Keith's "Beer For My Horses"* would peak at #1 {for 6 weeks} on Billboard's Hot Country Singles chart; it reached #22 on the Hot Top 100 chart...
    The music video would win the Academy of Country Music Award for 'Video of the Year'...
    Was track five from his seventh studio album, 'Unleashed', and the album reached #1 on both Billboard's Top Country Albums chart and Top 200 Albums chart...
    Three other tracks from the album also made the Hot Country Singles chart; "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American)" {#1}, "Who's Your Daddy?" {#1}, and "Rock You Baby" {#13}...
    * In the 1975 movie 'Bite the Bullet', the cowpoke Carbo, played by Jan Michael Vincent, utter the phrase 'Whiskey for me, beer for my horse'.
  • Stormy from Northport, MiThe movie wasn't too bad either.
    = )
  • Christopher from Greenfield Center, NyCorin Nemec also played Parker Lewis in the TV show "Parker Lewis Can't Lose".
  • Tom from Alma, GaHis name is Corin Nemec (the actor in the video). He played as the nerd in the original tv miniseris of Stephen King's "The Stand", and several crappy movies and other made for tv stuff. Great song and video, btw.
  • Andrew from Portsmouth, Vathe guy dressed as a girl is Jonas Quin From StarGate SG-1 i dont know if you have ever seen that but thats were its from
  • Ginger from Pekin, Il Great video, and an great song. But,who portrays the guy dressed as the woman, it is driving me crazy. He looks familiar, but I can't place him. Thaks
  • Elbert from Houston, TxIn the video, Toby Keith is a Homicide Detective and needs help from his Dad(Willie Nelson), an old time Lawman. They are looking for a serial killer patterned after Jack the Ripper. Willie saves the day with an old Peacemaker and a Posse of Police Officers.
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