About The Song
“Take This Job and Shove It” is a country song written by David Allan Coe and recorded by Johnny Paycheck. It was released as a single in October 1977 on Epic Records (catalog number 50469). The B-side was “Colorado Kool-Aid.” The track was recorded on August 24, 1977, at CBS Recording Studios in Nashville, Tennessee, and produced by Billy Sherrill. It runs 2 minutes and 35 seconds and serves as the title track of Paycheck’s 1977 album Take This Job and Shove It, released in November 1977.
David Allan Coe wrote the song. Accounts indicate that producer Billy Sherrill had suggested Coe write material with broader commercial appeal. Coe composed the song quickly. It was initially offered to George Jones, who did not attend the scheduled session. Sherrill then recorded it with Johnny Paycheck. Paycheck contacted Coe for permission to cut the track. Coe later recorded his own version, released in 1978 on the album Family Album. Coe also recorded a follow-up variation titled “Take This Job and Shove It Too” on his 1980 album I’ve Got Something to Say.
Paycheck’s single was issued in October 1977 (some sources list November 5, 1977, as the official release). It reached number one on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart for two weeks beginning January 7, 1978, and spent a total of 18 weeks on the chart. It was Paycheck’s only number-one single on the Billboard country survey. The recording also reached number one on the Canadian RPM Country Tracks chart. The B-side, “Colorado Kool-Aid,” peaked at number 50 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and spent ten weeks on that survey.
The parent album, Take This Job and Shove It, was released in November 1977 on Epic Records. It peaked at number two on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart and number 72 on the Billboard 200. The album received platinum certification from the RIAA for sales exceeding one million units in the United States. Additional singles from the album included “Colorado Kool-Aid” (January 1978) and “Georgia in a Jug” (April 1978), the latter reaching number 17 on the country chart.
Prior to this release Paycheck had achieved multiple top-ten country hits, including “She’s All I Got” (number two in 1971) and “Mr. Lovemaker” (number two in 1973), but had not previously reached number one. The song became his signature recording and the commercial peak of his Epic Records period under producer Billy Sherrill. Session details place the tracking at CBS Recording Studios in Nashville. The arrangement features standard mid-1970s Nashville country production.
The song later inspired a 1981 feature film of the same title directed by Gus Trikonis and starring Robert Hays, Barbara Hershey, and Art Carney. The film included on-screen appearances by Johnny Paycheck, David Allan Coe, and others. A soundtrack album was released in conjunction with the movie. Cover versions include a 1986 recording by the Dead Kennedys on the album Bedtime for Democracy and a later adaptation used in the 1999 film Office Space.
Chart documentation from Billboard confirms the October/November 1977 single release, the two-week run at number one on the Hot Country Songs chart in early January 1978, the 18-week total chart life, and the number-one Canadian RPM country peak. Album chart positions and the RIAA platinum certification are verified through Epic Records catalog data and Billboard archives. Songwriting is credited to David Allan Coe on the original single and album. Production is credited to Billy Sherrill. Recording date and studio are documented in session logs and contemporary discography sources.
These details align with Epic Records release information, Billboard chart archives, RPM Canadian data, and standard reference entries covering Paycheck’s mid-to-late 1970s recordings. The track remains Paycheck’s highest-charting and best-known single.
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Lyric
Take this job and shove it I ain't workin' here no more My woman done left and took all the reasons I was workin' for You better not try to stand in my way As I'm walkin' out the door Take this job and shove it I ain't workin' here no more I been workin' in this factory For now on fifteen years All this time I watched my woman Drownin' in a pool of tears And I've seen a lot of good folk die That had a lot of bills to pay I'd give the shirt right off of my back If I had the guts to say Take this job and shove it I ain't workin' here no more My woman done left and took all the reasons I was workin' for You better not try to stand in my way As I'm walkin' out the door Take this job and shove it I ain't workin' here no more Well that foreman, he's a regular dog The line boss, he's a fool Got a brand new flattop haircut Lord, he thinks he's cool One of these days I'm gonna blow my top And that sucker, he's gonna pay Lord, I can't wait to see their faces When I get the nerve to say Take this job and shove it I ain't workin' here no more My woman done left and took all the reasons I was workin' for You better not try to stand in my way As I'm walkin' out the door Take this job and shove it I ain't workin' here no more