About The Song
In July 1950, twenty-two-year-old Lefty Frizzell entered Jim Beck’s recording studio in Dallas, Texas, for his very first professional recording session. On July 25 he cut four songs, including a bright, swinging honky-tonk number titled “If You’ve Got the Money (I’ve Got the Time).” Co-written with Beck, the studio owner who had discovered him months earlier after a show at the Ace of Clubs in Big Spring, the track was paired with the ballad “I Love You a Thousand Ways” and released by Columbia Records in early September 1950 as a double-sided debut single.
The song’s famous opening line came from a real moment in a West Texas nightclub. After a show, one of Frizzell’s friends tried to talk him into staying out late. When Lefty hesitated, his friend pressed him. Smiling, Frizzell replied, “Well, if you’ve got the money, I’ve got the time.” The phrase stuck with him, and he built an entire playful song around it. The lyrics paint a picture of a man ready for a night of dancing, drinking, and honky-tonking — as long as his date is willing to cover the expenses.
Delivered in Frizzell’s unmistakable smooth drawl with its signature note-bending slides, the record crackled with carefree energy. The upbeat tempo and sharp steel guitar lines perfectly captured the lighthearted spirit of post-war Texas dance halls. Though he was new to the studio, Frizzell sounded completely at ease, turning what could have been a simple novelty idea into a genuine honky-tonk classic from the first take.
Within weeks of its release, “If You’ve Got the Money (I’ve Got the Time)” took off. It climbed the Billboard country charts, spending three weeks at number one on the Most Played C&W Jukebox chart and peaking at number two on the Best Sellers list. It remained on the charts for twenty-two weeks. Meanwhile, the B-side also reached number one, making Frizzell one of the rare artists to score two chart-toppers from the same record. The single reportedly sold more than 500,000 copies in just two months.
The success was immediate and life-changing. Overnight, the young singer from Texas went from playing small clubs to national stardom. His distinctive vocal style — relaxed yet expressive — influenced an entire generation of country singers, most notably George Jones and Merle Haggard. The song became a cornerstone of his live shows for the rest of his career.
Decades later the track continued to find new life. Willie Nelson took his own version to number one on the country chart in 1976. Other artists including George Jones and Merle Haggard also recorded memorable covers. In 1999 the original recording was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, cementing its place among country music’s most important recordings.
More than seventy-five years after its release, “If You’ve Got the Money (I’ve Got the Time)” still sounds as fresh and inviting as the night Lefty first spoke its title line in that Texas nightclub. It remains the perfect introduction to Lefty Frizzell’s art: clever, swinging, and full of the unpretentious charm that defined classic honky-tonk.
Video
Lyric
If you’ve got the money, I’ve got the time
We’ll go honky tonkin’ and we’ll have a time
We’ll make all the night spots, dance, drink beer and wine
If you’ve got the money, honey, I’ve got the time
There ain’t no use to tarry so let’s start out tonight
We’ll spread joy, oh boy, oh boy, and we’ll spread it right
We’ll have more fun, baby, all the way down the line
If you’ve got the money, honey, I’ve got the time
If you’ve got the money, I’ve got the time
We’ll go honky tonkin’ and we’ll have a time
Bring along your Cadillac, leave my old wreck behind
If you’ve got the money, honey, I’ve got the time
Yes, we’ll go honky tonkin’ make every club in town
We’ll go to the park where it’s dark, we won’t fool around
But if you run short of money, I’ll run short of time
‘Cause you with no more money, honey, I’ve no more time
If you’ve got the money, I’ve got the time
We’ll go honky tonkin’ and we’ll have a time
We’ll make all the nightspots, dance, drink beer and wine
If you’ve got the money, honey, I’ve got the time