About Drinking Alone

"Drinking Alone" is a song co-written and recorded by American singer Carrie Underwood, and released as the fourth single from her sixth studio album, Cry Pretty (2018). The single had an official release day of November 4, 2019. The song was written by Underwood, co-producer David Garcia and Brett James. Written by Underwood, co-producer David Garcia, and Brett James, the song centers around a bar encounter between a woman and a man after each of their respective relationships have just ended. Because the song was written from the first person narrative, Underwood was adamant that the characters in the song not have a one-night stand, and instead drink at the bar. "It was important to me because we're singing this [in the] first person", Underwood said of the song. She explained, "I didn't want it to be like, 'Oh, we're going to get drunk and go home together', because that's not something that I would do."

"Drinking Alone" was met with mostly positive reviews. Taste of Country reviewed the song favorably, saying, "Underwood's new single brings with it a subtle maturity that's important for her music moving forward. This fourth single from her Cry Pretty album is her most believable, relatable tableau to date." They concluded the review by saying, "the Underwood, Brett James and David Garcia lyric isn't a bop, so it shouldn't sound like one. It's an arrangement as dynamic as the song and both stretch her creatively further than any single radio release has, since she introduced herself on television in 2005." Upon their review of the album, Consequence of Sound noted "Drinking Alone" as the best song on the album, saying "her voice carries pain, longing, and self-disgust," and mentioned it alongside "Love Wins" and "The Bullet" as the essential tracks on the album.