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Country Music Songs About Texas That Swell With State Pride

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Tony Maples Photography

 

Narratives and songs about Texas are never lacking in state pride and love – heaving on the pride. Country music, in particular, has been no slouch in hit songs that feature Texas, be it in their titles, their lyrics, or by the singers who are from the Lone Star State themselves. It may be hard to narrow down a list of “top” country music songs about Texas since the sheer multitude of them is quite overwhelming, but here is a comparable list of what we feel are songs that celebrate the state and our love for it, and they’re in no particular order, but they do rank highly in our charts!

‘Take Me to Texas’ – George Strait

Country Music Songs About Texas That Swell With State Pride

Photo: Facebook/George Strait

Written by Shane McAnally and Brandy Clark, “Take Me to Texas” was recorded by George Strait for the soundtrack of “Texas Rising,” a mini-series by The History Channel. In an interview posted by Songfacts, George was quoted as saying, “I’ve always said Texas is the greatest state, you know, bar none…I was born here and raised in Texas, and the only other time I ever lived anywhere else was when I was in the Army, and so I wouldn’t think of calling anyplace else home. This is my home,” he said. “When they asked me if I would think about doing this song for the soundtrack or wherever it’s gonna be in the Texas Rising – it’s a film for the History Channel, it’s a series, and it’s really cool… It’s about The Alamo and the history of how Texas came about and all of that, so…and the song is great. I love it. So, it didn’t take me long to decide, ‘Yeah, I want to do it.'”

‘Deep in the Heart of Texas’ – Gene Autry

Country Music Songs About Texas That Swell With State Pride

Photo: Wikimedia

The urge to clap four times is quite automatic when one hears the words, “…the stars at night are big and bright…” Thanks to the lyrics and delivery of “Deep in the Heart of Texas” by Gene Autry, the movie “Heart of the Rio Grande” and many a memory since its release in 1942 have been made all the better thanks to this tune. Although it was originally recorded by Perry Como, this vintage Texas classic is most often remembered as Autry’s version, and its western sound has been a part of the Lone Star State’s history and culture ever since.

‘Luckenbach, Texas (Back to the Basics of Love)’ – Waylon Jennings Ft. Willie Nelson

Country Music Songs About Texas That Swell With State Pride

Photo: Facebook/Outlaw Country Revival

This collaboration is a country music class and a tribute to the simple life. Telling the “high-toned” way of life in a story that reflects the limits that wealth can actually place on those that have it, Jennings noted the feeling of suffocation one can have together with the urge to just get away from it all. Lyrics such as, “So baby, let’s sell your diamond ring, buy some boots and faded jeans and go away…” appealed to lovers of the genre as well as the concept, and Nelson chimed in on the final verse to lend it that true country-style lamentation the two were often remembered together for. The song was released in 1977 and made it to number one on the Billboard U.S. Hot Country Singles chart as well as a top-25 hit on the Billboard Hot 100.

‘Waltz Across Texas’ – Ernest Tubb

Country Music Songs About Texas That Swell With State Pride

Photo: Wikimedia

A prevalent song topic for many a decade, the Lone Star State featured proudly in Ernest Tubb’s “Waltz Across Texas,” with its classic representation of country music, love, and dancing in three-quarter time. One of the “Texas Troubadour’s” most well-loved songs, it was written by his nephew, Quanah Talmadge Tubb (Billy Talmadge), and released in 1965. A love story set to a wonder tune and using Texas as its backdrop, the Country Music Hall of Fame inductee delivered it in true Texas fashion.

‘Texas (When I Die)’ – Tanya Tucker

Country Music Songs About Texas That Swell With State Pride

Photo: Facebook/Country Music Box

The pride that Texans take in their state is practically a religion, and as such, singer Tanya Tucker didn’t hesitate in comparing her home state to Heaven in this 1978 cover of an Ed Bruce song. Tucker, a native Texan, released the song as the lead single on her ninth album, entitled “TNT.” Quickly poo-pooing other U.S. cities that just don’t cut it, the song pays tribute to Texas as head and shoulders above the rest in similarity to Heaven, where the singer says, “…Texas is as close as I’ve been.” Through the 1980s, it was used as the Dallas Cowboys’ touchdown song, and it made it to number five on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.

Source:

Taste of Country