Gretchen was born in Pocahontas, Illinois to a 16-year-old mother. Her father left before she was two years old, and she and her mother lived in trailer parks and relative poverty. Gretchen's mother worked as a waitress, and Gretchen herself dropped out of the 8th grade at age 15 to work as a cook and bartender in rural Illinois.
After a failed marriage to former Baywolfe bandmate Larry Rolens, Gretchen moved to Nashville and began dating Mike Penner. They have a daughter, Grace Frances Penner, who was born November 9, 2000.
Gretchen, who had sung for Kmart as a child, sang in two bar bands by the age of 20. In 1996 she moved to Nashville to sing back-up and record sample songs. In 2000, she met John Rich, a former member of Lonestar, who invited her to become his song-writing partner. Wilson signed with Epic Records in 2003 and recorded Here for the Party within the year.
Her first single, "Redneck Woman", was released in early 2004 and reached the top of the Hot Country Songs charts and #22 on the Billboard Hot 100. The success of "Redneck Woman" prompted an earlier-than-planned release for Here for the Party -- May 11, 2004 -- and it debuted at #1 on the Billboard country chart. It also reached #2 on the Billboard 200 and Billboard Internet album sales charts. She performed as a support artist for Brooks & Dunn and Montgomery Gentry.
She released the title track Here For The Party as the second single. It peaked at #3 on the Billboard country chart. Two other songs were released as singles, and both reached the top 10. Released in markets outside the U.S., the album hit #2 on the Australian country charts (behind Kasey Chambers) and the top 50 of the Australian charts. As of July 5, 2004, "Redneck Woman" was #1 on a world composite country chart (based on the U.S., UK, and Australia charts). The album went on sell more than 4 million copies in the U.S. and 5 million worldwide and was certified four times platinum.
On September 27, 2005, Gretchen released her second album, All Jacked Up, which peaked at #1 on both the Top 200 and Country album charts, but, after initial decent sales, the album quickly fell off the charts. It was certified Platinum and sold 1 million copies. The title track, All Jacked Up, peaked at a disappointing #8 on the Country singles chart and was the only song from the album to reach the top 10. The second single, I Don't Feel Like Loving You Today, peaked at #22. The third and the fourth singles were Politically Uncorrect and California Girls, which peaked respectively at #23 and #25 on the Country chart. Kid Rock appeared on "The Other Side of Me," an exclusive track that Target released with the album.
On February 28, 2006, Gretchen appeared on Kid Rock and The Twisted Brown Trucker Band's "Live" Trucker, as she performed "Picture" recorded at Detroit's Cobo Hall, 3/26/04. On November 2006, she released a new single called Come To Bed, a song produced by her friend John Rich, who also sings the background vocals. The song's suggestive video received a TV-14 S rating when aired on CMT.
Gretchen's "I Don't Feel Like Loving You Today" was nominated for two Grammy Awards: Best Female Country Vocal Performance, and Best Country Song. In 2006, Wilson contributed a well-received cover of Kris Kristofferson's Sunday Mornin' Coming Down on the tribute CD The Pilgrim: A Celebration of Kris Kristofferson. In 2007, Wilson displayed her rock and roll vocals on the cable TV special VH1 Rock Honors, singing Heart's hit Barracuda, along with Alice in Chains and Heart member Nancy Wilson on guitars.,
On May 15, 2007, Gretchen released her third album, One of the Boys. The album debuted at #5 on the Top 200 and at #1 on the Country album chart. After 11 weeks, it exited the Billboard Top 200, having sold just 178,220 copies at that point. "Come To Bed" and "One Of The Boys", the first two singles released, both failed to enter the top 30 and missed the Hot 100 completely. The third single, "You Don't Have to Go Home", was even less successful, peaking at #53.
Love On the Line
Gretchen Wilson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Lyin' next to the thing that you don't know I did
I could tell on myself but I don't think that
I have the nerve
If I lose you I know that It's what I deserve
In a way I'm glad that my guilt keeps
Fallin' on me like rain
I can't help but wonderin' why
I put your love on the line
I could stop but the truth is
I don't think I can
It's not somethin' I wanted
Or somethin' I planned
Boy I love you I need you
I want you to stay
I keep my secrets to keep you from walkin' away
In a way I'm glad that my guilt keeps
Fallin' on me like rain
At the same time
I can't help but wonderin' why
I put your love on the line
In a way I'm glad that my guilt keeps
Fallin' on me like rain
At the same time
I can't help but wonderin' why
I put your love on the line
Put your love on the line
put your love on the
Put your love on the
Put your love on the line
The song "Love On the Line" by Gretchen Wilson talks about the guilt and remorse of a person who has done something wrong and lied about it to their partner. The singer describes waking up crying with pictures of the person they love in their head, lying next to the thing they did wrong, but not having the nerve to tell them the truth. The guilt of keeping a secret is a heavy burden that falls on the singer like rain, making them wonder why they put their love on the line.
In the chorus, the singer admits they might not be able to stop what they're doing because it's not something they planned or wanted. They love, need and want their partner to stay but keep their secrets to avoid losing them. The last line of the chorus repeats the phrase "put your love on the line," emphasizing the importance of honesty and vulnerability in a relationship. Overall, the song conveys a sense of regret and longing for the singer's mistake to be forgiven, while also acknowledging the pain they have caused.
Line by Line Meaning
Woke up cryin' with pictures of you in my head
I woke up crying because I had pictures of you in my head and I can't help but feel guilty about what I did.
Lyin' next to the thing that you don't know I did
I'm lying next to you, but I know that you have no idea about what I've done and it's eating me up inside.
I could tell on myself but I don't think that I have the nerve
I know I should tell you what I've done, but I'm scared that you'll leave me if I do.
If I lose you I know that It's what I deserve
I know that I don't deserve your love, and if you find out what I've done and leave me, I'll have no one to blame but myself.
In a way I'm glad that my guilt keeps fallin' on me like rain
While it hurts to feel guilty, in a way, I'm glad that my guilt is constantly reminding me of the mistake I made.
And at the same time I can't help but wonderin' why I put your love on the line
Despite feeling guilty, I can't help but question why I would risk losing your love by doing something so foolish.
I could stop but the truth is I don't think I can
I know I should stop lying and come clean, but I don't know if I have the strength to do so.
It's not somethin' I wanted or somethin' I planned
I didn't plan or want to do what I did, but I still did it, and now I have to deal with the consequences.
Boy I love you I need you I want you to stay
I love you and need you in my life, and I hope that you choose to stay with me despite my mistake.
I keep my secrets to keep you from walkin' away
I'm keeping my secret to try and prevent you from leaving me, but I know that it's not a healthy way to sustain our relationship.
Put your love on the line
I'm begging you to trust me again and for us to work through this together.
put your love on the
Put your love on the
Put your love on the line
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: AL ANDERSON, CHRISTOPHER STAPLETON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind