| "Hard Hat and a Hammer" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Alan Jackson | ||||
| from the album Freight Train | ||||
| Released | May 3, 2010 | |||
| Format | Airplay Music download |
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| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 2:50 | |||
| Label | Arista Nashville | |||
| Writer(s) | Alan Jackson | |||
| Producer | Keith Stegall | |||
| Alan Jackson singles chronology | ||||
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"Hard Hat and a Hammer" is the title of a song written and recorded by American country artist Alan Jackson. It is the second single to his sixteenth studio album, Freight Train, which was released on March 30, 2010.
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"Hard Hat and a Hammer" is a song which praises blue collar workers in general for their hard work.[1]
Kyle Ward of Roughstock gave the song three-and-a-half stars out of five, comparing its theme to Zac Brown Band's "Chicken Fried" and Alabama's "40 Hour Week (For a Livin')," but saying that it " ultimately falls short of the down-home charm of the former and the narrative connection of the latter. Still, Jackson makes this an easy, enjoyable listen[.]"[2] Wade Jessen of Billboard, in his review of the album, referred to the song as a "blue-collar tribute[…]which could be a giant radio hit, given the current economic woes in the heartland."[3] The 9513 reviewer Karlie Justus gave the single a thumbs-up, saying that "Jackson routinely succeeds with spot-on renderings of those aforementioned demographics without succumbing to simply sucking up."[1] Kevin John Coyne, reviewing the song for Country Universe, gave it a B+ rating. He said that it features "a delightful fiddle, rhythmic hammer sounds and typical Keith Stegall production" Coyne also adds that "while it sits precariously on the edge of simply being ear candy, it still works as an unpretentious tribute that is fun and always topically relevant." [4]
The music video was directed by Theresa Wingert. The video features miners from Stilhouse mining in Benham, Kentucky, workers from the Bayou La Batre, Alabama shipyard, and railroad workers from TRR Railroad in Mobile, Alabama. It was also filmed at paper mills, foundries, taxi stands, Nashville’s Fire Station #16 and Bar-B-Cutie and more than a dozen other locations. It premiered on June 18, 2010.[5]
"Hard Hat and a Hammer" debuted at number 57 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart for the week of May 1, 2010.
| Chart (2010) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs [6] | 17 |
| U.S. Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 [7] | 7 |
| Canadian Hot 100 [6] | 99 |