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Little Big Town Pontoon (Music Video and Lyrics)

by steve ‐ September 13, 2023

photo: YouTube

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The Little Big Town Pontoon song was released in April 2012 as the first single from their fifth studio album,  Tornado .   This song became the first Little Big Town tune to reach #1 on the Billboard Country Music chart starting September 15, 2012.   Watch the music video and check out the lyrics to the song below.

Little Big Town Pontoon Music Video

The lyrics to Pontoon were written by  Natalie Hemby ,  Luke Laird  and  Barry Dean .

Little Big Town Pontoon Lyrics

Back this hitch up into the water Untie all the cables and rope Step onto the astro turf Get yourself a coozie Let’s go

Who said anything about skiin’? Floatin’ is all I wanna do You can climb the ladder Just don’t rock the boat while I barbeque

On the pontoon Makin’ waves and catchin’ rays up on the roof Jumpin’ out the back, don’t act like you don’t want to Party in slow motion Out here in the open Mmmmmmm…motorboatin’ (Hoo hoo hoo) Reach your hand down into the cooler Don’t drink it if the mountains aren’t blue Try to keep it steady as you recline on your black inner tube Pontoon Makin’ waves and catchin’ rays up on the roof Jumpin’ out the back, don’t act like you don’t want to Party in slow motion Out here in the open Mmmmmm…motorboatin’ (Hoo hoo hoo) (Hoo hoo hoo) 5 mile an hour with aluminum side Wood panelin’ with a water slide Can’t beat the heat, so let’s take a ride On the pontoon Makin’ waves and catchin’ rays up on the roof Jumpin’ out the back, don’t act like you don’t want to Party in slow motion I’m out here in the open Mmmmmmm…motorboatin’ On the pontoon (Hoo hoo hoo) On the pontoon (Hoo hoo hoo) Back this hitch out into the water On the pontoon (Hoo hoo hoo) (Hoo hoo hoo)

The music video and lyrics should put you in a great mood for summer!

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Little Big Town’s ‘Pontoon’ Shows No Sign of Sinking

Little Big Town talks about the success of "Pontoon," their latest top 10 single. "Who would have thought a song about motor boating at this point in our career would cause such a ruckus?"

By Annie Reuter

Annie Reuter

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“Who would have thought a song about motor boating at this point in our career would cause such a ruckus?” Little Big Town ‘s Karen Fairchild said backstage after a recent performance in New York.

Hailed by many as the “song of the summer,” just last week “Pontoon” jumped from No. 13 to No. 9 on the Hot Country Songs Chart, making it their first Top 10 since “Little White Church” in 2010. The quartet expressed their excitement to Billboard upon learning of their latest Top 10 single.

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Karen Fairchild

Natalie hemby.

“We knew it was special when we cut it,” Kimberly Schlapman said. “The timing of it has been so great. We’re on the road with Rascal Flatts so everybody’s really beginning to hear it now because it’s getting played more and more. Every show is more fun because of it.”

Bandmate Phillip Sweet agreed.

Trending on Billboard

“I think the more people hear it, the more momentum it grows and builds,” Sweet said. “It’s one of those things you can’t write it out and say, ‘This is going to be a big ol’ smash.’ You just hope and we do our best at making a fun record that we are moved by and enjoy.”

Little Big Town shared their appreciation to the fans for initially showing an interest in the song.

“People want to have fun,” Fairchild said. “That’s the main thing: people want to have a good time. So if you’re making a playlist and you’re going out to the lake for the weekend or the beach, I think it just fits people’s lives right now.”

The band admits they initially gravitated to the song that Natalie Hemby, Luke Laird and Barry Dean wrote but never dreamed of its steady rise up the charts.

“Natalie sang the demo and we thought, ‘Man, that’s a song that you’ve never heard.’ First of all, who’s ever written a song about a pontoon? Never heard that. But having a chick sing it? I don’t know,” Fairchild confessed. “There’s something weird about the delivery when we heard Natalie sing it. And so we thought, ‘This song is cool. It sounds like something country fans will really love if they could get a chance to hear it.'”

A song they could relate to themselves having spent many hot summer days on pontoons, Little Big Town’s busy schedule keeps them off the water and on the road. In fact, the last time they were on a pontoon was at the CMT Awards in June.

“CMT let us have that pontoon and we couldn’t fit it into the storage space that we keep so we had to cut it into four pieces,” Fairchild confessed.

The group planned a trip to the lake on their day off in Detroit to rent pontoons but time slipped away from them.

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Story Behind the Song: Little Big Town, ‘Pontoon’

In 2012, Little Big Town earned their very first No. 1 single with "Pontoon," the first single from their fifth studio album, Tornado . Written by Natalie Hemby, Luke Laird and Barry Dean, the song has been certified double platinum and took home Best Country Duo / Group Performance at the Grammy Awards in 2013. Below, Hemby tells The Boot about the day the song was written.

Luke Laird and I wrote a song called "Fine Tune" that Miranda Lambert cut on her  Four the Record album, and someone heard that song and though we said "pontoon." I thought that was hilarious, and I was like, "We should write this really obnoxious song called "Pontoon,"" and Luke was like, "Oh my gosh, we totally should do that."

So, some time went by, and Luke was like, "Have you met my friend Barry Dean?" and I was like, "No, I've never met Barry Dean." Literally, the first song I wrote with Barry Dean and Luke Laird, the two of them -- which, we've written several since this -- was "Pontoon" ...  Our first line originally was " Back this b---h up into the water,"  and obviously you can't say that on country radio, so eventually it was changed to "hitch."

So, we pitched this around to some people -- I know Dierks Bentley had put it on hold -- but the funniest response was from Kix Brooks : He said, "Hahaha! 'Back this b---h up into the water.'  I love it. I won't cut it, but I love it."

You know, ["Pontoon" producer] Jay [Joyce] is a friend of mine, and so is Little Big Town. I love all of them so, so much; they're the nicest people. They made the song so freaking cool, and then I got to go be out there [when they were shooting the music video]; we actually had a boat, and we pulled our boat near theirs when they were shooting "Pontoon" that day, so it was fun to get to watch that as well ...

I never knew it would get the reaction that it did. What was funny is, we'd be out on our boat, and I'd hear the song playing on all these different pontoon boats out on Percy Priest Lake, [located slightly east of Nashville]. It was so awesome to see the thing take off. Sometimes I find that it's a little surreal that that was actually the first No. 1 they ever had; the only reason I'm baffled by that is because I love so many of their other songs ...

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Story Behind the Song: 'Pontoon'

What if someone heard Elton John's "Tiny Dancer," misheard the lyrics and wrote a hit song called "Hold Me Closer, Tony Danza?"

That's essentially what happened with Little Big Town's "Pontoon." Co-writers Natalie Hemby, Luke Laird and Barry Dean told the story behind the 2012 country hit to Bart Herbison of Nashville Songwriters Association International .

I get up this morning, and Little Big Town is on "Good Morning America." Of course they're doing that song. That song just keeps materializing; I hear it everywhere. It's already in some commercials, right?

Natalie Hemby: I don't know, but I hear it on the lake all the time, so that's a good sign.

This whole thing starts with the publisher confusing something that they thought you guys had written. Luke?

Luke Laird: Natalie and I had written a song that Miranda (Lambert) recorded called "Fine Tune." It was on her last album, and it's still one of my favorite songs the two of us have written. Somebody had overheard "Fine Tune" playing in an office at the publishing company or something, and another person came and asked Natalie, "What was that song of yours? 'Pontoon' or something?"

NH: It was kind of like that. It wasn't me. It was somebody else that they said it to. They called me and (said), "They thought that you were saying 'Pontoon.' " So I called Luke and said, "We should write this really obnoxious song called 'Pontoon,' to be funny.

LL: Of course Barry and I were like, "Yeah."

Barry Dean: For Natalie that probably is lyrically not the most meaty song, but she takes a special angle on the lyric, and we shaped it that way. And Luke had that groove, and the production of the record (by) Jay Joyce. It's hipper than you think it would be. It's kind of built like an old country song, and then produced like something a little fresher.

LL: It literally is one of those songs that we never could have imagined. It started in the room. We all reacted to it, and I feel like as a writer, you have to trust that.

Now, there's a story after the song. You (Natalie) went to buy a pontoon. This is priceless to me.

NH: Oh yeah. Well, if you're going to write a song about a pontoon, someone has to buy one. My husband loves boats, so we took the plunge. These two still haven't bought one, and now we're probably going to end up selling ours. We went to go buy a boat, and it's a nice new boat a guy was selling. He had to sell it because his wife was pregnant and they just moved here. We took a ride on the boat, and we loved it. We had my in-laws on there, and just as we were about to leave ... we came back to the dock, and I have to leave because my daughter is getting a little fussy. She sings, "Motorboatin' " as we're getting off the boat, and the guy was like, "Oh my God, that song is so awful." (laughs) ... Not everybody likes your song, and that's OK.

— Compiled by Dave Paulson, [email protected]

About the series

In partnership with Nashville Songwriters Association International , each week we will release a video interview with a songwriter about his or her work. See the full interview with Natalie Hemby, Luke Laird and Barry Dean at www.tennessean.com/music along with past installments.

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Little Big Town Tell How They Motorboated Past the Competition: ‘Pontoons Are Sexy, People!’

Country fans do like their outdoor leisure lifestyle anthems, and while there'd been (and still are) a million songs about trucks, watercraft songs have mysteriously been in non-existent supply. How is it no one got to this particular no-brainer any sooner than Little Big Town?

"Pontoons are sexy, people!" declares Karen Fairchild, making an assertion no chart-watcher should dispute, since "Pontoon" became the country anthem of the summer.

"I think people call it 'The Motorboatin' Song,' too," points out Jimi Westbrook. "I was doing some (radio) interviews and they were like 'Yeah, they were calling it for that motorboating song.' So maybe that helped it, too," he says, alluding to the song's slightly risqué connotations.

Adds Kimberly Schlapman, "It certainly didn't hurt." Enough said. Or enough, um, suggested.

"Pontoon" is one of seven songs Little Big Town played at an exclusive Ram Country gig at the Roxy, which is now up in its entirety at Yahoo! Music. On their bus before the show, the four members of the group told us about the making of their just-released fifth album, Tornado , and its ubiquitous lead single.

A lot of country music fans were shocked a few weeks ago by the news that the platinum-selling "Pontoon" had become Little Big Town's first No. 1 single. Not because anyone would have expected any lesser chart position for the song that became a summer phenomenon… but shocked because it was difficult to believe that their previous "signature song," "Boondocks," never reached the top when it came out in 2005, even though that classic's ongoing radio play would make anyone think that'd been a No. 1.

"It only went to No. 8 or 9 or something like that," points out Schlapman. She's right: "Boondocks" peaked at No. 9, shockingly. "But a lot of people think it was a No. 1, which is fine with us, because it was a big ole hit."

"We don't correct 'em," laughs Westbrook. "It's been the song that has taken us to the party..."

"And now with 'Pontoon,' it's given us another big song that people just light up about. When we start the first lick in the beginning of the song, the crowd just goes crazy. And that's a testament to them hearing it a lot ."

"I don't think we've ever been sure we would have a No. 1," Westbrook says, but "after we cut the track, our producer at one point kind of joked when he said, 'That sounds like a big hit just ready to pick off the hit tree!'"

Although "Pontoon" has an ever-so-racy feel to it, the most sensual track from their current crop is "Tornado," as you'll see from Fairchild's sexy reading of the track in the band's Roxy performance. That one may or may not be a future single, but there was a different reason they made it the title track.

"The album being titled Tornado I think is just reflective of the process we went through recording it," Westbrook says. "And, too, there was like a storm brewing—a good storm brewing—in our camp of positive changes. And we did the record so fast, really, that it felt like a storm that came and went and it was gone. It was such a really interesting process—new for us."

The album was done in "three weeks, top to bottom," says Fairchild, "but most of it in seven days." "Which for us is unheard of," adds Schlapman. "We rehearsed for four days really hard, then for the next three days we cut the record. At the end of seven days, we couldn't believe we might be done! Crazy." Says Schlapman, "We didn't plan on doing it that quick. We allowed a lot of time. But it was going so well that we decided that we shouldn't belabor things, and should just go with it when it felt right, and go with our gut and Jay (Joyce)'s gut, our producer. And it worked, so we were like, 'Hmm, we're done, I think!'"

Working with a producer other than their long-time helmer Wayne Kirkpatrick was one switch. Working fast was another. A third change: "Our live band played on this record with us," Philip West points out. "We've done that on a couple of songs before, but not the entire album. We all cut it at the same time, right there in the same room. For me personally, I feel like I feel that energy that we were experiencing as it was going down. It was just like playing a live show."

And a fourth big switch on Tornado : help from a plethora of big-name Music Row songwriters, including Natalie Hemby, Luke Laird, Liz Rose, and the Warren Brothers. The band members did co-wrote five of the 11 tracks on Tornado , but that's fewer than on any of their previous four albums. Obviously that approach has paid off, as "Pontoon," for one, was an outside pick.

Their approach going in to recording the new album was "just that we were gonna be wide open about songs, and we weren't gonna have ego or be too precious about anything," Fairchild says. "It didn't matter where the song was going to come from. It just had to feel right and then we were gonna cut it. We always try to write most of the material for a record, but we just let ourselves be open this time. And we started building the record from songs that we found—which is unusual."

Fairchild points out that "after we started writing with people that we'd never written with before, Natalie (Hemby) came in with this amazing idea of doing something that we had never done before, which is kind of duets within the band. So 'Night Owl' is the song that we wrote that day. That was her melodic idea, to have the guys sing and then Kimberly and I sing and never really join until we got to the bridge... We just got really inspired by the community and being so wide open ourselves, personally. I think you can hear that on our record. There's an energy there and some spontaneity there that's been good for us."

The most striking use of the duet form on Tornado is the bittersweet ballad "On Your Side of the Bed," which all four band members co-wrote with Americana fave Lori McKenna. It's sung as a back-and-forth by Fairchild and Westbrook.

"I love that moment on the record and in the live show," says Schlapman, "because Karen and Jimi are married, of course. That's not an autobiographical story of their lives, but I think everybody can identity with that point in a relationship where you're going 'Hey, here I am! I'm over here!' It's beautiful. And that chorus, which is just a cry out for help, when we get there every night, it's such an emotional thing."

Schlapman has previous described the band, which has been together for 13 years, as "like an old married couple." Don't they know that sounds a little bit mathematically improbable?

"It does," Schlapman laughs, "but we all know exactly what that means. We've been together so long, we're a family—that might be a better way of saying it."

"An old happily married couple," clarifies Fairchild.

"Yeah, we are a living, breathing country song, aren't we?" Westbrook wonders aloud.

"But we can read each other's minds, almost," Schlapman says. "We really don't have to speak a whole lot, especially Karen and I."

"The girls are scary," Westbrook says.

"We can literally talk to each other without saying a word at this point," Fairchild says. "One night when I got really hoarse on tour recently, I lost my voice, and I was trying to make it through the show for the fans. And I wanted her to help me go for this big note with me. So I just turned around, and she was up on this riser playing tambourine, and I thought 'Oh dear God, please help me,' and she did. We just did it together. I couldn't really tell her what I was wanting to verbalize, so I just looked at her like 'Are you understanding what's going on here,' and she gave me that 'I get it—I know what you're saying' look. So, yeah, that's the beautiful thing about having a longtime girlfriend."

"It's a little freaky," says Sweet.

"Even for the two of us, we're still outside of that," admits Westbrook. "I don't know how that works."

The band has been together for 13 years, but Fairchild and Schlapman have been friends for 25 years. Does that mean the two guys are still always perpetually 12 years behind, somehow?

"But isn't that always how guys are?" asks Schlapman.

"They pay attention if you say things like motorboatin' ," says Fairchild. "You know what I mean. All of a sudden they go, what?"

"Yeah, when those superpowers are used against us, we don't have a chance," Westbrook admits. "Bottom line."

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Little big town are motorboatin’ to the top (article).

“Who would have thought a song about motor boating at this point in our career would cause such a ruckus?” Little Big Town ‘s Karen Fairchild  said backstage after a recent performance in New York.

Hailed by many as the “song of the summer,” just last week “Pontoon” jumped from No. 13 to No. 9 on the Hot Country Songs Chart, making it their first Top 10 since “Little White Church” in 2010. The quartet expressed their excitement to Billboard upon learning of their latest Top 10 single.

“We knew it was special when we cut it,” Kimberly Schlapman said. “The timing of it has been so great. We’re on the road with Rascal Flatts so everybody’s really beginning to hear it now because it’s getting played more and more. Every show is more fun because of it.”

Bandmate Phillip Sweet agreed. “I think the more people hear it, the more momentum it grows and builds,” Sweet said. “It’s one of those things you can’t write it out and say, ‘This is going to be a big ol’ smash.’ You just hope and we do our best at making a fun record that we are moved by and enjoy.”

Little Big Town shared their appreciation to the fans for initially showing an interest in the song.

“People want to have fun,” Fairchild said. “That’s the main thing: people want to have a good time. So if you’re making a playlist and you’re going out to the lake for the weekend or the beach, I think it just fits people’s lives right now.”

The band admits they initially gravitated to the song that Natalie Hemby, Luke Laird and Barry Dean wrote but never dreamed of its steady rise up the charts.

“Natalie sang the demo and we thought, ‘Man, that’s a song that you’ve never heard.’ First of all, who’s ever written a song about a pontoon? Never heard that. But having a chick sing it? I don’t know,” Fairchild confessed. “There’s something weird about the delivery when we heard Natalie sing it. And so we thought, ‘This song is cool. It sounds like something country fans will really love if they could get a chance to hear it.'”

A song they could relate to themselves having spent many hot summer days on pontoons, Little Big Town’s busy schedule keeps them off the water and on the road. In fact, the last time they were on a pontoon was at the CMT Awards in June.

“CMT let us have that pontoon and we couldn’t fit it into the storage space that we keep so we had to cut it into four pieces,” Fairchild confessed.

The group planned a trip to the lake on their day off in Detroit to rent pontoons but time slipped away from them.

CREDIT: BILLBOARD

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Behind the Song: Little Big Town, “Pontoon”

Doug Waterman

Updated: 

Videos by American Songwriter

Written by: Barry Dean , Natalie Hemby, Luke Laird Recorded by: Little Big Town Peak Chart Position: No. 1 Billboard Country

What’s a typical day like in the life of Barry Dean? 

Dean : They’re probably like most people — busy, I have four kids. I write almost every day. Then you’re finishing songs up or you’re in the studio finishing and recording songs. You’re always trying to read and experiment with new sounds and grooves to create the next thing. It’s an “all in” sort of career.

When and where did you, Natalie and Luke write “Pontoon?”

It was started in a writing room at Universal Music, but we didn’t get very far. First verse, a few lines of chorus, but the music was clear. It was months later before the three of us got back together because our calendars were crazy. We met at Luke’s office and it was right around the time Natalie was going to have her baby. We got together for a few hours, finished the chorus first, then wrote the second verse and bridge. They were both fun days.

How much or how little did you edit it, during or afterward? Were there any phrases or words you can remember that were especially tough to make a final decision on?

There wasn’t a whole lot of editing afterward. The notable change was that the original first line was “back that bitch up into the water” which got changed to hitch. I don’t think we saw the motorboatin’ line as big a deal as it became. We just thought it was fun.

Could you tell us some of the back story of the song? Did you guys demo it or simply worktape it? How did it end up getting to Little Big Town, getting cut and becoming the single?

It was the first time the three of us had written together. We had each written with the other, but we were excited to get to write together. Natalie and Luke had a song recorded by Miranda Lambert called “Fine Tune.” Natalie was telling us a story about a guy who mistakenly referred to “Fine Tune” as “Pontoon.” When she said that, Luke and I looked at each other, then we all knew. Luke started playing the groove. I started playing bass on a synth. Pretty soon Natalie sang the first line of the song. When we got back together to finish it – which was really writing it — we used the same track we’d started. It was essentially a drum groove, electric guitars, and a bass line. Natalie who was quite pregnant sat on the couch, held an SM58 and sang it once, and that was the work tape.

Luke and I were both signed to Universal and they pitched it to a couple of artists. We both became a part of Creative Nation. Even though Universal owns the song, Beth Laird (co-owner of Creative Nation) thought it would be great for Little Big Town and she pitched it. As far as the cut and the single, you can’t overestimate how great Little Big Town actually is. They did that whole Tornado album in a couple of weeks. It’s incredible. Jay Joyce’s production is incredible. It sounded different and fresh. Also, the opening lick was played by Jedd Hughes on the mandolin and Jay Joyce doubled it with a mellotron mandolin sample. That lick is incredible.

What do you enjoy most about writing songs in general?

I love coming up with or finding that inspiration for the song. I love helping artists say what they want to say or find that fresh thing they’re looking for. I see myself as some sort of extension of or part of their team. I’m on their side. Hopefully I’m helping them answer “what could it be?” or get where they want to go. It’s a great blessing to have this job. I work mostly with friends, and we have a lot of fun. It’s a lot of hours, but it’s worth it. I like going out on the road and writing with artists in their world with their fans.

What was the overall experience like, collaborating with Natalie and Luke?

The three of us are a great team. We try to write together as much as possible. Luke is pretty well known for being a whole lot of fun, and if the three of us are together, there’s a lot of laughing going on. Our interactions are a lot like brothers and sisters in every good way. I think Natalie is known for having really strong concepts and she’s driven to write these very air-tight songs. And her vocals… she just brings groove and emotion (you should ask Luke and Natalie what I do). Really in that atmosphere you’re trying to do something interesting and different. Fresh. And we all kind of believe if there’s a way to do it we can figure it out.

Do you have any words of wisdom or advice for aspiring or newly professional songwriters? Is there a particular period or moment in your career when you were faced with adversity or doubt and had to dig deep to stay the course? 

My mentor used to say “creativity is an act of courage.” So the whole journey is about continuing to learn and push yourself and being open. I think it’s important to remember that this is supposed to be fun. I think in the race to learn the craft and study the business, I would just remind you to have fun. It’ll connect you more to the music and ideas. It’ll be fresher, and that will lead to good things.

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Pontoon by Little Big Town

Songfacts®:

• The first single from country quartet, Little Big Town's, fifth studio album was penned by Barry Dean, Natalie Hemby and Luke Laird. Hemby came up with the idea for the song after her publisher misheard the title of " Fine Tune ," a cut she and Laird wrote for Miranda Lambert. Speaking with Songfacts, Dean explained : "She was really frustrated with this person for not understanding. Their job was to really know our stuff, and they didn't. But Luke heard that, and at that point, we really wanted to write it. I started Googling: Is there a 'Pontoon' already? Because you'd think, with the '90s in country music it had already been done. But it wasn't. There weren't any pontoon songs. I was, like, 'Are you kidding me?' And I looked at Luke and said, 'We're clear.'"
• A pontoon boat is a flattish boat that relies on pontoons to float, which are used for both pleasure boating and fishing in the US. According to Sweet all four of the group's members had pontoon-boat experiences while growing up. At the 2013 ACM Awards, we asked Little Big Town if they were concerned about the title. Here's what they said: Kimberly Schlapman: We weren't really concerned until we went to London. We realized they really have no idea what a pontoon is. Jimi Westbrook: We thought everybody knew what a pontoon was. Karen Fairchild: Yeah, we grew up on pontoons and on the lake, and it's part of southern living. And I guess we just assumed everybody knew that. Motorboating is also very universal. [Laughing] If you didn't know what a pontoon was, you had another shot.
• Little Big Town's Phillip Sweet told The Boot the quartet on hearing the song, "fell in love with it instantly." He added. "We could hear ourselves singing it and we could feel the fun energy behind it. It's fun and sexy and summertime; it just feels right for right now."
• Karen Fairchild admitted to Billboard magazine that the band had some doubts when they first heard the song. "Natalie sang the demo and we thought, 'Man, that's a song that you've never heard.' First of all, who's ever written a song about a pontoon? Never heard that. But having a chick sing it? I don't know," she confessed. "There's something weird about the delivery when we heard Natalie sing it. And so we thought, 'This song is cool. It sounds like something country fans will really love if they could get a chance to hear it.'"
• This was the very first Country #1 for the Little Big Town quartet, who had been recording for 10 years. It was a huge breakthrough; their previous best placing had been "Bring it On Home," which peaked at #4 in 2006. LBT quickly rose to the top tier of country music, scoring a huge hit in 2014 with " Girl Crush ." For the writers of "Pontoon," who had a hard time finding an artist to take a chance on the song, it was a special feeling. "They'd been through three labels and maybe that many managers," Barry Dean told us. "It had been a ride. So there was a lot of pressure on that first single coming out, and they chose to bet on that. That was my first time feeling that: You're excited you got it cut and you're excited you got a single, but you care very deeply and you want to make sure that it helps them. That was the first time I kind of gulped and realized these artists are taking a risk. They're betting on me and our song. That was a real wake up call for me."
• In Nashville, getting a song to the right artist involves making a quality demo to show off the song. The songwriters are often talented singers and musicians, which was the case on "Pontoon." "For the demo, Natalie was pregnant and laying over on a couch with a handheld mic," Barry Dean explained in his Songfacts interview. "It had a weird electric guitar and a drum-machine beat, and it had a vocal. That went to Dierks [Bentley], and he hated it. Then it went to Kix Brooks, who sent us an email that said, 'This is hilarious, but there's no way I would cut it.' And at that time, Kix was about to do a solo album, but he was taking a break. If he wanted it, we would still be waiting. So Little Big Town heard it with their manager and they picked it up. They had a vision for it. Jay Joyce, the producer, he and [engineer] Jedd Hughes put on that 'uh-a-u-a-ow' - that signature riff was not on the demo. It was a mandolin Jedd Hughes was playing, and producer Jay Joyce is playing a mellotron mandolin keyboard thing with it. That's why it sounds so odd. So they put that on there and then did their Little Big Town thing. So the next thing you knew, it went from being kinda goofy, to being cool and sexy because of the way they are and the way Jay produced it."
• The song sparked a fashion craze, as fans sported T-shirts adorned with a phrase from the song, "Mmm....motorboatin'."
• The first line, "Back this bitch up into the water," is something Natalie Hemby came up with after Luke Laird goaded her into writing the song, which she thought was a stupid idea. "Luke has a way getting people to do things," Barry Dean told Songfacts. "He was like, 'Come on, what would you say?' And the first thing out of her mouth was, 'Back this bitch up into the water,' and we just fell out laughing."
• This was the first song that Barry Dean, Natalie Hemby and Luke Laird wrote together. "We had each written with the other, but we were excited to get to write together," Dean recalled to American Songwriter magazine. Once they came up with the title, they were off and running. "Luke started playing the groove," said Dean. "I started playing bass on a synth. Pretty soon Natalie sang the first line of the song. When we got back together to finish it – which was really writing it - we used the same track we'd started. It was essentially a drum groove, electric guitars, and a bass line. Natalie who was quite pregnant sat on the couch, held an SM58 and sang it once, and that was the work tape."
• This song, along with the rest of the Tornado album, was produced by Jay Joyce (Patty Griffin, Eric Church, Cage the Elephant). Speaking with Billboard magazine, Karen Fairchild gave due credit to the producer's contribution to the record. "Jay is a great moderator of what feels good," she said. "He lets his heart guide him. We really don't over think things. If we're in the studio tracking a song like 'Pontoon,' and we've done it a few times and it feels good, that's it. He says 'Let's move on.' There's no reason to keep going if the vibe is right. There's a lot of fun, and a lot of spontaneity, and I think our fans can hear it on the album."
• After coming up with the hook for the song and the first verse, the three songwriters put it aside. Seven months later, they reconvened. Before Natalie Hemby arrived, Luke Laird and Barry Dean started working on the song. She was prepared to start something new, but when the guys showed her what they were working on, she helped them finish the song.
• The song opens with a mandolin lick played by Australian Country musician Jedd Hughes doubled by Jay Joyce with a mellotron mandolin sample.
• Little Big Town had been nominated for at least one CMA Award at six consecutive ceremonies since their first nomination in 2006, but walked away empty-handed each time. They finally broke their duck in 2012, picking up Single of the Year for this song as well as Vocal Group of the Year. "We' re living proof that if you work really really hard and chase your dreams, all the good stuff happens and it follows you," said Karen Fairchild.
• The video was directed by Declan Whitebloom, who also did LBT's " Day Drinking " and some of Taylor Swift's videos, including " Mean " and " We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together ." The setting is Percy Priest Lake in Nashville, specifically a section known as "party cove," where many a pontoon party takes place.
• This won the 2013 Grammy Award for Best Country Duo/Group Performance. Karen Fairchild later told reporters backstage how they played around with the song in the studio. "We messed with taking the reverb off the vocal on 'Pontoon' and pulling it down a little bit and it didn't feel the same," she said. "We didn't know if anybody would play it because it was like that but the fans seem to dig it." Phillip Sweet added, "They like motor boating in reverb," which brought the room to laughter.
• The most surprising place that Barry Dean has heard this song was during his wife's high school reunion. He recalled to Billboard magazine: "They were doing karaoke, and somebody did 'Pontoon.' They didn't know I'd written it."
• More songs from Little Big Town
• More songs that won Grammys
• More songs about boats
• More songs with a mandolin
• More songs from 2012
• Lyrics to Pontoon
• Little Big Town Artistfacts

Comments: 2

• Cb from Ca Little Big Town's song Pontoon is a track mix disaster for the bass guitar track! It fades in and out of existence at the start of the song, blurps in real quick, then fades till a little bit later in the song.
• Camille from Toronto, Oh June, 2012. I just saw this video on TV today and can tell it's gonna be a BIG hit for a group that well deserves it. They have a fabulous sound and the video is perfection. Way to go!

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