Andy Griffith Turned Brad Paisley's 'Waitin' on a Woman' Video into a Sentimental Classic

Brad Paisley's "Waitin' on a Woman" wasn't new in 2008 when Andy Griffith appeared in its music video and a subsequent video mix sent out to country radio. A prior version of the Don Sampson and Wynn Varble composition appeared on Paisley's 2005 album Time Well Wasted and as a bonus track on a reissue of 2007's 5th Gear. However, it went from album cut to one of the best sentimental songs in recent country music history after the star of The Andy Griffith Show and Matlock assumed the role as its wise old man.

"Who's the perfect person to sit next to you on a bench and tell you, 'Here's some advice, son'? Andy Griffith," Paisley explained in his spotlight interview during the 2018 Country Radio Seminar in Nashville. "I wrote him a letter. I told him, 'I grew up watching [The Andy Griffith Show]. Your show helped me raise my son. I now know how to raise a boy because of watching that show. If you want to be in the video, that would be great, but if not, thank you for everything you've done.'"

In the music video, a newlywed played by Paisley waits as his young wife shops in the mall. An older married man reassures him that the right partner is literally worth the wait. The old man also figures his wife will outlive him, but waiting for her once again, this time in Heaven, will also justify his patience.

The song further established Paisley as a traditional-minded country star, willing and able to dispense the sort of earthy wisdom associated with the fictitious folks of Mayberry, North Carolina. It also reconnected Griffith, whose best-known program introduced The Dillards to the masses, with a country music audience.

The song became Paisley's eighth consecutive song to top Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart. Its music video won the 2008 CMA Award for Music Video of the Year.

"Waitin' on a Woman" Lyrics

Sittin on a bench at West Town Mall
He sat down in his overalls and asked me
You Waiting on a woman
I nodded yeah and said how 'bout you
He said son since nineteen fifty-two I've been
Waiting on a woman

When I picked her up for our first date
I told her I'd be there at eight
And she came down the stairs at eight-thirty
She said I'm sorry that I took so long
Didn't like a thing that I tried on
But let me tell you son she sure looked pretty
Yeah she'll take her time but I don't mind
Waiting on a woman

He said the wedding took a year to plan
You talk about an anxious man, I was nervous
Waiting on a woman
And then he nudged my arm like old men do
And said, I'll say this about the honeymoon, it was worth it
Waiting on a woman

And I don't guess we've been anywhere
She hasn't made us late I swear
Sometimes she does it just cause she can do it
Boy it's just a fact of life
It'll be the same with your young wife
Might as well go on and get used to it
She'll take her time because you don't mind
Waiting on a woman

I've read somewhere statistics show
The man's always the first to go
And that makes sense cause I know she won't be ready
So when it finally comes my time
And I get to the other side
I'll find myself a bench, if they've got any
I hope she takes her time, cause I don't mind
Waiting on a woman

Honey, take your time, cause I don't mind
Waiting on a woman