"She Only Smokes When She Drinks" is a song written by Connie Harrington,

Tim Nichols Tim Nichols (born in Portsmouth, Virginia) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Active since the late 1980s, Nichols has written for several country music singers including Keith Whitley, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Jo Dee Messina, ...

, and Tony Martin and recorded by 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 ...

singer

Joe Nichols Joseph Edward Nichols (born November 26, 1976) is an American country music artist. Between 1996 and 2001, he held recording contracts with the Intersound and Giant Records (Warner), Giant labels. In 2002, he signed with Universal South Records, ...

. It was released in April 2003 as the third single from his 2002 album ''

Man with a Memory ''Man with a Memory'' is the second studio album by American country music artist Joe Nichols. It was released on July 23, 2002 by Universal South Records. It produced four singles on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs chart: "The Impossible", ...

''. The song peaked at number 17 on the U.S. ''

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 & Tracks 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. ...

(now

Hot Country Songs 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 and also reached number 72 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100.

Content

The protagonist is a bartender. A young man asks him for advice, having been asked to light a cigarette by a woman he wishes to approach. The protagonist replies that the gesture means little because knowing the woman as a regular patron, she only comes to the bar to take her mind off men who have done her wrong.

Critical reception

Deborah Evans Price of ''

'' magazine reviewed the song favorably, saying Rowan's production is "simple and understated, letting Nichols' smokey baritone paint the portrait of a 'complicated girl...who ain't that hard to figure out."''

'', May 3, 2003

Music video

The music video was directed by Morgan Lawley and premiered in early 2003.

Chart performance

"She Only Smokes When She Drinks" debuted at number 58 on the U.S. ''Billboard''

chart for the week of May 3, 2003.

References

Songs about tobacco 2003 singles Joe Nichols songs Songs written by Tim Nichols Songs written by Tony Martin (songwriter) Show Dog-Universal Music singles Song recordings produced by Brent Rowan Songs written by Connie Harrington Songs about alcohol 2002 songs Music videos directed by Morgan Lawley {{2000s-country-song-stub