"My Life (Throw it Away If I Want To)" is an American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

song written and recorded by

Bill Anderson James William Anderson III (born November 1, 1937) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and television host. His soft-spoken singing voice earned him the nickname "Whispering Bill" from music critics and writers. As a songwriter, hi ...

Release and reception

Upon its release, Billboard noted that the song was a "compelling, original rhythm ballad" and a "strong entry."

Chart performance

Originally released in February

1969 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1969th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 969th year of the 2nd millennium, the 69th year of the 20th century, and the ...

, "My Life" became Anderson's fourth solo No. 1 song on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

Hot Country Singles Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data along with digital sales and streaming. ...

chart on May 17, 1969. It spent two weeks atop that chart and charted for 19 weeks total, and was ultimately named ''Billboard'''s No. 1 country song of 1969.
“Top Country Singles — 1969.” ''

'', vol. 81, no. 52, Dec. 27, 1969, p. 16.

Sources

1969 singles 1969 songs Bill Anderson (singer) songs Billboard Hot Country Songs number-one singles of the year Songs written by Bill Anderson (singer) Decca Records singles {{1960s-single-stub