Drinks After Work (song)

"Drinks After Work"
Single by Toby Keith
from the album Drinks After Work
ReleasedJune 25, 2013 (2013-06-25)
GenreCountry
Length3:32
LabelShow Dog-Universal Music
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Toby Keith
Toby Keith singles chronology
"Hope on the Rocks"
(2012) 		"Drinks After Work"
(2013) 		"Shut Up and Hold On"
(2013)

"Drinks After Work" is a song written by Barry Dean, Natalie Hemby, and Luke Laird, and recorded by American country music artist Toby Keith. It was released in June 2013 as the first single from his album of the same name. It is the only track from the album that Keith did not have a hand in writing.

Critical reception

Billy Dukes of Taste of Country gave the song two stars out of five, writing that "‘Drinks After Work’ is so far removed from what fans expect from Keith that it’s jarring."[1] Matt Bjorke of Roughstock gave the song a favorable review, saying "Drinks After Work" is the most relevant Toby Keith's sounded at Country Radio in quite some time. He might've scored hits here or there but he understands the 'game' that an artist must be able to play at Country radio from time to time and this one truly feels like his own "Pontoon" of sorts (as well it should since it was written by the same writing team) and there's no way "Drinks After Work" isn't a massive hit this summer for Toby Keith. It's a can't-miss single."[2] Giving it a "B", Tammy Ragusa of Country Weekly thought that the "arrangement is unexpected and seems a bit electronic for what we expect from Toby", and said that its lyrics fit his style even though he did not write it.[3]

Chart performance

"Drinks After Work" debuted at number 26 on the U.S. Billboard Country Airplay chart for the week of June 29, 2013. It also debuted at number 36 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart for the week of July 13, 2013. It also debuted at number 19 on the U.S. Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart for the week of July 13, 2013. It also debuted at number 98 on the Canadian Hot 100 chart for the week of August 10, 2013. This was Keith’s final top 20 hit before his death in 2024.

Chart (2013) Peak
position
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[4] 95
Canada Country (Billboard)[5] 30
US Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (Billboard)[6] 2
US Country Airplay (Billboard)[7] 17
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[8] 28

Year-end charts

Chart (2013) Position
US Country Airplay (Billboard)[9] 72
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[10] 71

References

  1. ^ Dukes, Billy (June 19, 2013). "Toby Keith, 'Drinks After Work' – Song Review". Taste of Country. Retrieved July 3, 2013.
  2. ^ Bjorke, Matt (June 11, 2013). "Single Review: Toby Keith - Drinks After Work". Roughstock. Archived from the original on June 29, 2013. Retrieved July 3, 2013.
  3. ^ Ragusa, Tammy (22 July 2013). "Reviews: 'Drinks After Work'". Country Weekly. 20 (29): 50. ISSN 1074-3235.
  4. ^ "Toby Keith Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard.
  5. ^ "Toby Keith Chart History (Canada Country)". Billboard.
  6. ^ "Toby Keith Chart History (Bubbling Under Hot 100)". Billboard.
  7. ^ "Toby Keith Chart History (Country Airplay)". Billboard.
  8. ^ "Toby Keith Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
  9. ^ "Billboard Country Update for December 16, 2013" (PDF). Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. December 16, 2013. p. 21. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 17, 2013. Retrieved December 17, 2013.
  10. ^ "Best of 2013: Hot Country Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2013. Retrieved December 13, 2013.