This lists needs to be prefaced with a bit of a backgrounder on its determination…
(a) Texans, Tex-Pats and those that wish they were from Texas all have one thing in common – a great amount of Texas pride.
(b) Country music has state roots; some “traditional”, some “outlaw”, all Texan! Yes, there many other genres that have produced wonderful Texas tunes, but this list is a compendium of country ranging from classic to current, qualified only by the audience from which it evoked a listening ear (and that’s “listening ear” not “crying in your beer”.)
(c) The number of country music songs about Texas (or at least a location here), like the state itself, are awe-inspiring, so the process of narrowing this list to just 10 is biased and hinky at best! But never let it be said that the musical history referring to this great state, spanning numerous decades, is dull or unoriginal. Full of swagger and sway, if a Texas song you love isn’t on this list, there’s guaranteed to be an equally great toe-tappin’, two-steppin’, honky-tonk song that is!
Beginning with the best, without further ado, here is the most current list of the Top 10 Country Songs About Texas:
1. Take Me to Texas – George Strait
Photo: www.rollingstone.com
From the ‘Texas Rising’ mini-series soundtrack and also released on his latest CD, ‘Take Me to Texas’ is the ultimate Texas tribute song, sung by true-blue, Texas-born son, George Strait. Penned by Shane McAnally and new Nashville rising star Brandy Clark, the song harkens back the history of Texas, its strong beginnings, and the pride of a person Texas-born and raised. It sits at number one on the chart for obvious reasons but mostly for its supporting role as a touchstone in the soundtrack to the brilliant 10-hr. mini-series on the Texas Revolution.
2. Deep in the Heart of Texas – Gene Autry
Singing the song in the movie ‘Heart of the Rio Grande’ in 1942, Gene Autry catapulted this title to the stardom it knows today from its previous levels of modest infamy gained in its recording by Perry Como and Ted Weems in December of ’41. Performed by numerous school bands at pre-game shows since, including a fan-led dirge during the Houston Astros baseball games, the song has become synonymous world-wide with the state it so fondly sings about.
3. If You’re Gonna Play in Texas (You Gotta Have a Fiddle in the Band) – Alabama
Photo: blogs.mcall.com
The truest form of irony is a song paying tribute to one state being sung by a band named after another state entirely, and yet here it is! Released in July 1984 as the third single from Alabama’s ‘Roll On’ album, by October of that same year, ‘If You’re Gonna Play in Texas’ was the group’s 14th consecutive number-one single on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart.
4. All My Exes Live in Texas – George Strait
The second appearance on this top 10 list by Texas native George Strait was released in 1987 and won a Grammy award for Best Country Song. A version of this ballad of broken hearts appears in the movie ‘Road House’ and the song has continued its popularity for Mr. Strait, being performed in each of his ‘The Cowboy Rides Away’ tour sets.
5. Waltz Across Texas – Ernest Tubb
The Texas Troubadour, Ernest Tubb, recorded ‘Waltz Across Texas’ in 1965. Written by his nephew, Quanah Talmadge Tubb (aka Billy Talmadge), the song became one of Tubb’s most requested and to this day is often used in dance halls throughout the state during waltz lessons.
6. Luckenback Texas (Back to the Basics of Love) – Waylon Jennings, ft. Willie Nelson
