Ships That Don't Come In

Last updated
"Ships That Don't Come In"
Single by Joe Diffie
from the album Regular Joe
B-side "Startin' Over Blues"
ReleasedApril 14, 1992
Genre Country
Length3:39
Label Epic
Songwriter(s) Paul Nelson, Dave Gibson
Producer(s) Johnny Slate, Bob Montgomery
Joe Diffie singles chronology
"Is It Cold in Here"
(1991)
"Ships That Don't Come In"
(1992)
"Next Thing Smokin'"
(1992)

"Ships That Don't Come In" is a song recorded by American country music singer Joe Diffie that reached the Top 5 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) chart in 1992. It was released in April 1992 as the second single from his album Regular Joe . The song was written by Paul Nelson and Dave Gibson the latter of whom was also recording for Epic as a member of the Gibson/Miller Band at the time.

Contents

Content

The song features two men philosophizing about the nature of life while having a conversation at a bar. [1]

Music video

The music video was directed by Jack Cole and premiered in mid-1992.

Chart performance

The song debuted at number 68 on the Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart dated April 18, 1992. It charted for 20 weeks on that chart, reaching its peak of number 5 on the chart [2] dated July 11, 1992.

Chart (1992)Peak
position
Canada Country Tracks ( RPM ) [3] 3
US Hot Country Songs ( Billboard ) [4] 5

Year-end charts

Chart (1992)Position
Canada Country Tracks ( RPM ) [5] 55
US Country Songs ( Billboard ) [6] 46

Other versions

Toby Keith and Luke Combs covered the song on Hardy's 2024 mixtape, Hixtape: Vol. 3: Difftape. This recording was Keith's final studio recording before his death on February 5, 2024. [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Diffie</span> American country singer (1958–2020)

Joe Logan Diffie was an American country music singer and songwriter. After working as a demo singer in the mid 1980s, he signed with Epic Records' Nashville division in 1990. Between then and 2004, Diffie charted 35 singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, five of which peaked at number one: his debut release "Home", "If the Devil Danced ", "Third Rock from the Sun", "Pickup Man" and "Bigger Than the Beatles". In addition to these singles, he had 12 others reach the top 10 and ten more reach the top 40 on the same chart. He also co-wrote singles for Holly Dunn, Tim McGraw, and Jo Dee Messina, and recorded with Mary Chapin Carpenter, George Jones, and Marty Stuart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pickup Man</span>

"Pickup Man" is a song written by Howard Perdew and Kerry Kurt Phillips, and recorded by American country music artist Joe Diffie. It was released in October 1994 as the second single from the album Third Rock from the Sun. The song was his longest-lasting number-one hit, having spent four weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart between December 1994 and January 1995.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">How Do You Like Me Now?! (song)</span> 1999 single by Toby Keith

"How Do You Like Me Now?!" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Toby Keith. It was released in November 1999 as the second single and title track from his album of the same name. Keith wrote it with Chuck Cannon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Should've Been a Cowboy</span> 1993 single by Toby Keith

"Should've Been a Cowboy" is a song written and recorded by American country music artist Toby Keith. It was released on February 12, 1993, as his debut single and the first from his self-titled debut album. On June 5, 1993, the song reached number one on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs and the Canadian RPM Country Tracks charts. It also peaked at number 93 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it a minor crossover hit.

Joe Diffie was an American country music artist. His discography comprises 12 studio albums, six compilation albums and 38 singles. Among his albums, 1993's Honky Tonk Attitude and 1994's Third Rock from the Sun are his best-selling, having been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of one million copies. His singles include five Number Ones on the Hot Country Songs charts: "Home", as well as "If the Devil Danced ", "Third Rock from the Sun", "Pickup Man" and "Bigger Than the Beatles".

<i>Third Rock from the Sun</i> 1994 studio album by Joe Diffie

Third Rock from the Sun is the fourth studio album by American country music artist Joe Diffie. Diffie's breakthrough album, the first five tracks were all released as singles, and all charted on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts. Of these five singles, "Pickup Man" and the title track were both Number One hits, "So Help Me Girl" reached #2, "I'm in Love with a Capital 'U'" reached #21, and "That Road Not Taken" peaked at #40. "Pickup Man" was also Diffie's longest-lasting number one, having held that position for four weeks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toby Keith discography</span>

American country music singer Toby Keith released 21 studio albums and seven compilation albums. He released 69 singles, with 65 of them charting on the Billboard country chart; 54 reached the Top 40, 40 made the top 10, and 20 went to number one.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prop Me Up Beside the Jukebox (If I Die)</span> 1993 single by Joe Diffie

"Prop Me Up Beside the Jukebox " is a song written by Kerry Kurt Phillips, Howard Perdew and Rick Blaylock, and recorded by American country music singer Joe Diffie. It was released in July 1993 as the second single from his CD Honky Tonk Attitude. It peaked at number 3 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart.

"If You Want Me To" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music singer Joe Diffie. It was released in December 1990 as the second single from his debut album A Thousand Winding Roads. The song reached the Top 5 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart. The song was written by Diffie and Larry Williams.

"If the Devil Danced " is a song written by Ken Spooner and Kim Williams, and recorded by American country music singer Joe Diffie. The song reached the top of the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart. It was released in April 1991 as the third single from his debut album, A Thousand Winding Roads.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Is It Cold in Here</span> 1991 single by Joe Diffie

"Is It Cold In Here" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music singer Joe Diffie that reached the Top Five on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart. It was released in December 1991 as the first single from his album Regular Joe. The song was written by Diffie, Kerry Kurt Phillips and Danny Morrison.

"Next Thing Smokin'" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Joe Diffie. It was released in August 1992 as the third single from the album Regular Joe. The song reached #16 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart. The song was written by Diffie, Danny Morrison and Johnny Slate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A Night to Remember (Joe Diffie song)</span> 1999 single by Joe Diffie

"A Night to Remember" is a song written by Max T. Barnes and T.W. Hale, and recorded by American country music singer Joe Diffie. It was released in March 1999 as the first single and title track from his album A Night to Remember. The single peaked at number 6 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart. The song also crossed over to the Top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100, where it peaked at number 38.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">He Ain't Worth Missing</span> 1993 single by Toby Keith

"He Ain't Worth Missing" is a song written and recorded by American country music singer Toby Keith. It was released in June 1993 as the second single from his self-titled debut album. The song peaked at number 5 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and at number 11 on the Canadian RPM country tracks. It also peaked at number 7 on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100, making it a minor crossover hit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A Little Less Talk and a Lot More Action</span> 1993 single by Toby Keith

"A Little Less Talk And A Lot More Action" is a song written by Keith Hinton and Jimmy Alan Stewart. Originally recorded by American country music singer Hank Williams Jr. on his 1992 album Maverick, the song was also recorded by Toby Keith one year later on his self-titled debut album. Keith's version was released in November 1993 as that album's third single. Also, it reached number 2 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart and peaked at number 25 on the Canadian RPM charts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wish I Didn't Know Now</span> 1994 single by Toby Keith

"Wish I Didn't Know Now" is a song written and recorded by American country music singer Toby Keith. It was released in February 1994 as the fourth and final single from his self-titled debut album. The song peaked at number 2 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, and at number 17 on the Canadian RPM Country Tracks chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Who's That Man</span> 1994 single by Toby Keith

"Who's That Man" is a song written and recorded by American country music singer Toby Keith. It was released in July 1994 as the first single from his 1994 album Boomtown. The song became Keith's second number one hit on the US Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart.

"John Deere Green" is a song written by Dennis Linde, and recorded by American country music artist Joe Diffie. It was released in November 1993 as the third single from his album Honky Tonk Attitude. The song peaked at number 5 on the country charts.

"I'm No Stranger to the Rain" is a song recorded by American country music artist Keith Whitley. It was released in January 1989 as the fifth and final single from his album Don't Close Your Eyes, and was the last single released during Whitley's lifetime. It peaked at number-one in both the United States and Canada. Joe Diffie covered the song on Whitley's 1995 tribute album. It was written by Sonny Curtis and Ron Hellard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye</span> Song written by John D. Loudermilk

"Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye" is a song written by John D. Loudermilk. It was first released in 1962 by Don Cherry, as a country song and again as a doo-wop in 1967 by the group The Casinos on its album of the same name, and was a number 6 pop hit that year. The song has since been covered by Eddy Arnold, whose version was a number 1 country hit in 1968, and by Neal McCoy, whose version became a Top 5 country hit in 1996.

References

  1. Tom Roland (July 19, 1994). "Joe Diffie's 'ditties' don't fly artistically". The Tennessean . pp. 1D. Retrieved March 23, 2019.
  2. Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 106.
  3. "Top RPM Country Tracks: Issue 1983." RPM . Library and Archives Canada. August 8, 1992. Retrieved August 15, 2013.
  4. "Joe Diffie Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
  5. "RPM Top 100 Country Tracks of 1992". RPM . December 19, 1992. Retrieved August 15, 2013.
  6. "Best of 1992: Country Songs". Billboard . Prometheus Global Media. 1992. Retrieved August 15, 2013.
  7. Hudak, Joseph (March 29, 2024). "Hear Toby Keith's Final Studio Recording, a Cover of a Joe Diffie Classic". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 6, 2024.