Born Donald Eugene Lytle in Greenfield, Ohio, he began playing guitar by age 6 and made his first record at age 15. After a time served in the United States Navy (which included a court-martial for assault), he began performing under the name Donny Young. The singer took a job with country music star George Jones, for whom he played bass and steel guitar for several years, co-writing Jones' hit song, "Once You've Had the Best." By the 1960s, he had changed his name to Johnny Paycheck, a name similar to Johnny Cash, which has sometimes caused confusion.
A member of the Grand Ole Opry, PayCheck is best remembered for his 1977 cover of, "Take This Job and Shove It" (written by David Allan Coe) which sold over 2 million copies and inspired a motion picture of the same name. Colorado Kool-Aid is another of his most famous songs. In his career, PayCheck recorded eleven songs that made it into country music's top ten chart plus he co-wrote several successful songs for other country singers including "Apartment #9," a hit for Tammy Wynette.
His life was often filled with turmoil and in 1985, PayCheck was convicted of shooting a man in Hillsboro, Ohio and spent two years in prison. His tax problems with the IRS led to his filing for bankruptcy in 1990. Later in the 1990s, he began capitalizing the fourth letter of his name in a style later dubbed CamelCase, preferring to be known as Johnny PayCheck.
PayCheck suffered from drug and alcohol addiction during his career, although he was said to have "put his life in order" [1] after his prison stay. Suffering from emphysema and asthma, after a lengthy illness, Johnny PayCheck died at Nashville's Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
He was interred in Woodlawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Nashville.
He is survived by his wife Sharon PayCheck and son Jonathan PayCheck.
Colorado Cool-Aid
Johnny Paycheck Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Was drinkin' Colorado Cool-Aid and talkin' to some Mexicans
An' we was, what's that you say?
What's Colorado Cool-Aid?
Well, it's a can of Coors brewed from a mountain stream
It'll set you head on fire an' make your kidneys scream
Oh, it sure is fine
But you know every beer joint that you've ever been in
Some big, mean drunk who just ain't got no friend
Sure enough, he wants to fight
Yeah, he's gonna whip everything in sight
Well, he took him a big cold swallow of beer
And he walked over and spit in my Mexican friends ear
And sure enough that made my buddy real mad
That's somethin' like he ain't never had
Well, Sir, he pulled out a big, long switch blade knife
Quick as a whistle he began to slice
That big mean drunk stood back, his face full of tears
Lookin' down at the floor, an' one of his ears
Ha, he cut that thing off even with the sideburns
You might say the little Mexican fella, he just didn't give a darn
But he was a gentleman about it
An' bent over and with a half way grin
Picked it up and handed it back to him
He said, "Now big man, you get the urge to spit a little beer
"Just open up your hand there and spit it in your own ear
Won't be no trouble that way", that's what I heard him say
And I said, "Barmaid, set us up a round of that Colorado Cool-Aid
While you're up there, bring this big fella here, a box of Bandaids"
Now let me tell you if you're ever ridin' down in south of Texas
And decide to stop an' drink some Colorado Cool-Aid
An' maybe talk to some Mexicans
An' you get the urge to get a little tough
Better make damn sure you got your knife proof ear-muff
Hey, ain't that right, big man? I said ain't that right big man?
Ah, hell he can't hear, not on this side anyway, he ain't got no ear
Hey barmaid, bring us all a big, tall glass of that Colorado Cool-Aid
How about it?
How you doin', big man? Still got your ear there in your hand?
In the song Colorado Cool-Aid by Johnny Paycheck, the singer finds himself in a beer joint in Houston, Texas, drinking Colorado Cool-Aid with some Mexican friends. The song explains that Colorado Cool-Aid is a can of Coors brewed from a mountain stream, but it has the power to make your head spin and your kidneys scream. As they were enjoying their drinks, a big mean drunk enters the bar and starts a fight. The drunk takes a sip of his beer and spits it on one of the Mexican's ears, which makes the Mexican very angry.
What follows is a hilarious altercation that involves a switchblade, the drunk's ear, and some witty comebacks. The intoxicated Mexican pulls out a big, long switchblade knife and slices off the drunk's ear, which he picks up and hands back to him with a grin. The Mexican then tells the drunk to be careful and spit in his own ear if he ever feels the urge to spit beer again. The singer joins in and orders another round of Colorado Cool-Aid and a box of Bandaids for the big man.
Line by Line Meaning
Well, I was sittin' in this beer joint down in Houston, Texas
The singer describes the location where the incident took place.
Was drinkin' Colorado Cool-Aid and talkin' to some Mexicans
The singer was drinking a type of beer called Colorado Cool-Aid and conversing with some Mexican people.
Well, it's a can of Coors brewed from a mountain stream
Colorado Cool-Aid is a type of beer made by Coors that's brewed from a mountain stream.
It'll set you head on fire an' make your kidneys scream
The beer is strong and will have an intense effect on your body.
Oh, it sure is fine
The singer likes the beer he's drinking.
But you know every beer joint that you've ever been in
The singer speaks about the common problems around beer joints.
Some big, mean drunk who just ain't got no friend
There's always a big drunk person who's hostile and confrontational in beer joints.
Sure enough, he wants to fight
The drunk person is looking for a physical altercation.
Well, he took him a big cold swallow of beer
The drunk person took a gulp of beer.
And he walked over and spit in my Mexican friends ear
The drunk person spat in the ear of one of the Mexican persons the singer was conversing with.
And sure enough, that made my buddy real mad
The act of spitting made the Mexican person angry.
That's somethin' like he ain't never had
The Mexican person had never experienced an insult like that before.
Well, Sir, he pulled out a big, long switch blade knife
The Mexican person took out a big switch blade knife.
Quick as a whistle he began to slice
The Mexican person started to use his knife very quickly.
That big mean drunk stood back, his face full of tears
The drunk person was scared and crying due to the Mexican person's reaction.
Lookin' down at the floor, an' one of his ears
The drunk person's ear was cut off.
Ha, he cut that thing off even with the sideburns
The Mexican person cut the drunk person's ear exactly as he intended.
You might say the little Mexican fella, he just didn't give a darn
The Mexican person was calm and didn't care about the incident.
An' he was a gentleman about it
The Mexican person handled the incident in a civilized manner.
An' bent over and with a halfway grin
The Mexican person bent over with a gentle smile on his face.
Picked it up and handed it back to him
The Mexican person returned the ear to the drunk person.
He said, "Now big man, you get the urge to spit a little beer
The Mexican person offered some advice to the drunk person.
"Just open up your hand there and spit it in your own ear
Instead of attacking others, the drunk person should spit in his own ear if he felt like it.
Won't be no trouble that way", that's what I heard him say
The Mexican person said the drunk person would avoid trouble if he followed his advice.
Now let me tell you if you're ever ridin' down in south of Texas
The singer is now offering advice to the listeners.
And decide to stop an' drink some Colorado Cool-Aid
If you decide to stop and drink Colorado Cool-Aid beer.
An' maybe talk to some Mexicans
If you converse with some Mexican people.
An' you get the urge to get a little tough
If you feel the need to become confrontational and aggressive.
Better make damn sure you got your knife-proof ear-muff
You must make sure to be protected if you're going to be violent so that you don't get hurt.
Hey, ain't that right, big man? I said ain't that right big man?
The singer is trying to get a response from the drunk person, who is now missing an ear.
Ah, hell he can't hear, not on this side anyway, he ain't got no ear
The drunk person cannot hear the singer's question because he is deaf on that side due to losing his ear.
Hey barmaid, bring us all a big, tall glass of that Colorado Cool-Aid
The singer wants more of the beer he was drinking earlier.
How about it?
The singer asks the barmaid if she agrees.
How you doin', big man? Still got your ear there in your hand?
The singer asks the drunk person how he's doing and if he's still holding the ear.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: PHIL S. THOMAS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind