GEORGE STRAIT - AMARILLO BY MORNING

AMARILLO BY MORNING

GEORGE STRAIT

SONGWRITERS: PAUL FRASER & TERRY STAFFORD

COUNTRY: U. S. A.

ALBUM: STRAIT FROM THE HEART

LABEL: MCA

GENRE: COUNTRY

YEAR: 1982

 

            George Harvey Strait Sr. (born May 18, 1952) is an American country music singer, songwriter, actor, and music producer. George Strait is known as the "King of Country" and is considered one of the most influential and popular recording artists of all time. He is known for his neotraditionalist country style, cowboy look, and being one of the first and most prominent country artists to bring country music back to its roots and away from the pop country era in the 1980s.

          Strait's success began when his first single "Unwound" was a hit in 1981. During the 1980s, seven of his albums reached number one on the country charts. In the 2000s, Strait was named Artist of the Decade by the Academy of Country Music, was elected into the Country Music Hall of Fame, and won his first Grammy award for the album Troubadour. Strait was named CMA Entertainer of the Year in 1989, 1990 and 2013, and ACM Entertainer of the Year in 1990 and 2014. He has been nominated for more CMA and ACM awards and has more wins in both categories than any other artist.

         By 2009, he broke Conway Twitty's previous record for the most number-one hits on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart when his 44 number one singles surpassed Twitty's 40. Counting all music charts, Strait has amassed a total of 60 number-one hits, breaking a record also previously set by Twitty, giving him more number one songs than any other artist in any genre of music.

         Strait is also known for his touring career when he designed a 360-degree configuration and introduced festival style tours. For example, the Strait Tours earned $99 million in three years. His concert at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, in June 2014 drew 104,793 people, marking a new record for largest indoor concert in North America.

           Strait has sold more than 100 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time. His certifications from the RIAA include 13 multi-platinum, 33 platinum, and 38 gold albums. His best-selling album is Pure Country (1992), which sold 6 million (6×platinum). His highest certified album is Strait Out of the Box (1995), which sold 2 million copies (8× Platinum due to being a box set with four CDs). According to the RIAA, Strait is the 12th best-selling album recording artist in the United States overall.

        Strait from the Heart is the second studio album by American country music artist George Strait, released on June 3, 1982 by MCA Records. The album includes Strait's first Nº. 1 single, "Fool Hearted Memory", as well as follow-up singles "Marina del Rey", "Amarillo by Morning" and "A Fire I Can't Put Out", reaching No. 6, No. 4, and No. 1 respectively on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. The album peaked at Nº. 18 on the US Billboard Top Country Albums chart. Strait from the Heart is certified platinum by the RIAA.

           There were three cover songs on the album: "Honky Tonk Crazy", which had been released a couple months earlier in 1982 by the duo of Gary Stewart and Dean Dillon on their Brotherly Love album; 2) the Guy Clark song, "Heartbroke", which was first recorded by Rodney Crowell on his 1980 album, But What Will the Neighbors Think; and 3) "Amarillo by Morning" which was first recorded by Terry Stafford in 1973. "The Only Thing I Have Left" was later recorded by Tim McGraw for his 1993 debut album Tim McGraw.

Amarillo by morning

Up from San Antone

Everything that I've got

Is just what I've got on

When that sun is high

In that Texas sky

I'll be bucking it to county fair

Amarillo by morning

Amarillo I'll be there

 

They took my saddle in Houston

Broke my leg in Sante Fe

Lost my wife and a girlfriend

Somewhere along the way

Well I'll be looking for eight

When they pull that gate

And I'm hoping that

Judge ain't blind

Amarillo by morning

Amarillo's on my mind

 

Amarillo by morning

Up from San Antone

Everything that I've got

Is just what I've got on

I ain't got a dime

But what I've got is mine

I ain't rich

But Lord I'm free

Amarillo by morning

Amarillo's where I'll be

 

Amarillo by morning

Amarillo's where I'll be.