In 1968, Tammy Wynette released one of the most hotly debated country songs of the 20th century. “Stand by Your Man,” despite being her signature song and one of the most iconic vocal performances in country history, would also be a thorn in Wynette’s side for the rest of her career. Wynette’s publicist and friend Evelyn Shriver would later recall that “a song that took [her] 20 minutes to write, [she] spent 20 or 30 years defending.” In the decades since the song’s release, there’s been no shortage of naysayers who claim the song encourages letting a man walk all over you — a notion that Wynette vehemently denied. Nevertheless, nearly 60 years after the song’s release, the tune, and its opening line “Sometimes it’s hard to be a woman,” hits as hard as ever. That’s because true Tammy-heads know that no one captured the complexities of womanhood with more conviction than the First Lady of Country Music. One look at the lineup for the upcoming Tammy Wynette tribute concert at the Ryman Auditorium is proof of Wynette’s enduring legacy. Wynonna, Lucinda Williams, Patty Griffin, The War and Treaty, Lorrie Morgan, Brittney Spencer, Carter Faith, Katie Pruitt, Valerie June, Heart’s Ann Wilson and many more will take the stage to pay tribute to the country queen.
7:30 p.m. at the Ryman
116 Rep. John Lewis Way N.
