George Strait was the unvarnished, unflinching country music icon for a considerable amount of time. George Strait has been around longer and has been more consistent in generating songs endorsed by the Country Music Association, even though Garth Brooks has more total sales. The 1981 release of Unwound was Strait’s breakthrough single on country radio. For more than three decades, he refused to turn around. People sometimes say that Strait saved country radio from the late 1970s pop country because of how influential his hat-act country was.
You may be wondering, “What is Hat-act country?” There you have it: that’s the music that plays on US country stations. It’s like a stripped-down version of Bob Wills’s in-your-pocket Western Swing or Merle Haggard’s (Strait’s) own brand of wild, idealistic country music. Joining me on this country slot of The Music Man is the legendary Honky Tonk Sinatra, Mr. George Strait, performing a duet with crossover sensation Sheryl Crow of his 1993 top-ten country single When Did You Stop Loving Me.
If you ask Marie Watson, “I still love this from when it came on the radio,” she’ll tell you. The King of Country Music, George Strait, will never be replaced. George Strait’s performance and the depth of emotion in his work are unparalleled, as Ann Bowers puts it: “No one is like George Strait!” “George Strait was at his best here,” Wanda Hacker chimes in. The two singers’ finest qualities are showcased in this wonderful duet. Impressive chemistry, quite alluring! TX “Wow!” MS Kid exclaims. By a wide margin, George Strait and Sheryl Crow dominated this. Elegance! ”
A pop star retires from the charts with each new generation. George Strait kept his devoted fans but fell out of favor on country radio after 2010 as older, more traditional hat stars like Toby Keith, Garth Brooks, and Alan Jackson gave way to newer, more modern acts like Eric Church and Luke Bryan. Kicked Outta Country, a song that Strait and Jamey Johnson co-wrote in 2018, is an incredibly honest release from Strait that considers this change. The two songwriters performed this live rendition in the year 2022.
