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sodascouts
08-18-2009, 06:44 PM
Over ten years ago now, my older sister gave me "Strait Out of the Box." I loved almost every song, which is saying something since it is four discs! My favorite George Strait song is "Baby Blue" - what a moving song.

I know we have several Strait fans here... have at it!

EagleLady
08-18-2009, 06:53 PM
I love I saw God Today, and Check Yes or No, but he has many really good songs, and he is easy on the eyes too

AzEaglesFan
08-19-2009, 02:17 AM
I've been able to George three times. The first time it was at the ASU coliseum and our seats were up in the rafters. My husband got to drool over Patty Lovelass and I got to admire George. My husband hates driving in traffic and sworn he would never go back. The second time was at the ASU football field. The only reason I got to go was we stayed at the hotel next door so no driving. The heat was terrible and the seat were back breaking. He had Asleep at the Wheel, Tim McGraw w/Faith Hill, the Dixie Chicks, JoDee Messina and I can't remember who else. George was great and we stayed until George was long gone but sworn never again because of the heat. The next show a year later he had Alan Jackson among other stars and we could not pass that up. The heat was terrible again but we got lawn seats so it wasn't so bad plus if it was someone we didn't like we went into the passage way where it was cooler. We finally got used to going and then George stopped doing the big out door concerts.

sodascouts
08-19-2009, 11:52 AM
AEF - sounds like you've "suffered for the love" as Stevie Nicks would say! But it's great you got to see George three times. I saw him at the Houston Rodeo one year but to my shame I can't remember which year it was. We went to the Houston Rodeo so many times and he played it so many times!

Some folks up north think "rodeo" and think "hickville" but it's not. It's concerts and ferris wheels and funnel cakes and cotton candy along with those bucking bulls, horses, and barrel racing (and you know what? Those are entertaining too! These are some talented people). It's a feeling that no matter how big Houston is, it can still feel like a community.

Since ABM's user name is a song about a rodeo man, I'm betting she knows all about it! So here it is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZlN9ZMgiR8

Brooke
08-19-2009, 01:20 PM
I really enjoy most all of George's songs, but I guess I'm not a big fan since I don't own one of his cds. I love to watch country videos, but do not like to listen to it on the radio. It seems that country radio picks out about 10 songs to play and run them in the ground and eventually make you hate them! :rolleyes:

One of my brothers is a huge fan and goes to see him every time he comes near. He is a roper and has even been to one of George's roping deals (lol-there is a certain name for that, but can't think of it!) that he puts on.

sodascouts
08-19-2009, 04:31 PM
Hey, and have you guys seen Pure Country? I loved him in that!

AmarilloByMorning
08-19-2009, 04:34 PM
Not to get all mushy here, but George Strait irrevocably altered my existence. As indicated by my tag, "Amarillo By Morning" is my Track of Choice (a genuine rodeo song scripted by a bronc rider in the late '70s and made famous by King George in the early '80s after he covered it in Texas bars for several years) but I could extol almost every album he has issued. I adore the Eagles, I enjoy The Band, I revere Neil Young, but George is the be-all and end-all.

Like Garth Brooks, I still vividly recall the first time I heard a track by him - the late July sun hovering over the lake as I rollerbladed, rounding one corner and attempting to avoid gravel while a dark green Jeep whizzed past. The nebulous entity "they" assert that the details of your surroundings crystallize permanently when your perception of the world fundamentally shifts, and such was the case wth my first ingestion of "Easy Come, Easy Go."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDclbFmm3uY

I'll never know why I stopped the radio on the country station, having been reared on pop - where I'm from, country is the exclusive jurisdiction of "hicks." But the song ensnared me completely, in a manner that none of the '90s MTV/VH1 crowd had ever managed. It personified the blase, "whatever-nevermind" attitude a fourteen-year-old so desperately craves in an earpiece companion. As the announcer neglected to identify the vocalist, I assiduously tuned into the country station at every opportunity, hoping to catch another track by him and match a name to the beloved honey vocals that reminded me so much of my father. In the process, of course, I discovered the glory of Lonestar, Toby Keith, Martina McBride and their ilk. Within six months I had converted completely to country radio and, with the exception of a few '60s/'70s artists, it comprises the vast majority of my audio diet. I owe my conversion all to one chance encounter with "Easy Come, Easy Go." It inspired the purchase of his Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 (which didn't even have the appurtenant song on it but captivated me nonetheless) and the album directly behind it, Strait from the Heart, simply because he looked really cute on the cover :blush: and I was desperate for new music that didn't sound like Nirvana. The latter album, of course, feaured both my namesake and what would prove another particular favorite, "Marina Del Rey."

Would that I could thwart my amorous seeping, but in my admittedly cloistered existence, the sun really does rise and set for George Strait. My Dad and I had the honor of experiencing him for the seventh time this summer and hell if the guy doesn't absolutely defy the space/time continuum - his voice seems exceedingly resplendent with the passage of time, and, while our ages differ by more than three decades, at 57 I still regard him as the single most gorgeous male on the planet. (Ducking to avoid the onslaught of tomatoes. :mrgreen:) Nobody else in the genre (and only a select few beyond it) even approach his capability to concurrently dazzle and captivate. He "just stands there and sings," but with such class and style that I'm constantly quelling the urge to leap up and down while squealing like a schoolgirl every time the twin fiddles or steel guitar herald the next stellar track. Troubadour, both the album and the title song (not to mention the video - :woah: am I drooling?) handily eclipsed anything else on the radio.

And I.... clearly need to clam it. But if you've never tried this guy, he's the Best of the Best. As someone who has contended with depression for almost a decade and a half, there are days when, absent hyperbole, only "Ocean Front Property" can coax a smile, and only "I Can Still Make Cheyenne" can soothe. His voice is like a cool glass of ice water on a blistering 90-degree day. Sorry for the lengthy approbation.

:heart:

AmarilloByMorning
08-19-2009, 04:49 PM
Hey, and have you guys seen Pure Country? I loved him in that!

http://pics.livejournal.com/adreamabove/pic/000157g5

...can't....formulate coherent sentences.... gah!

sodascouts
08-20-2009, 04:05 PM
That's a lovely story, ABM. I'm sure George would be very gratified if he heard it and knew he helped you through some rough times - and still can. You should write him a fan letter.

He's got this genuine air about him... like he's not only a good musician and singer, but a good man.

AmarilloByMorning
08-21-2009, 02:07 PM
He's got this genuine air about him... like he's not only a good musician and singer, but a good man.
Doesn't he, though? (Stupid, dreamy smile....) And he's a devout horse person, which serves as his AutoCool card in my book.

I kind of always wanted to be famous just to win an award, stand at the mike and thank George Strait. Then I could retreat to obscurity. The guy must receive hundreds of thousands of letters, you know? They're probably just sitting somewhere. But I appreciate your taking the time to read it; I went overboard, but it all just flowed out. On some level I empathize with all the Taylor Swift psychos, except I don't squeal...

Maidstone
08-21-2009, 02:24 PM
Hey - I just saw him a few weeks ago at the Reliant Stadium in Hotstown! (Houston)

It was my second time to see him. The crowd was HUGE. I mean over 50,000 peeps.

And when he came out - you could almost see him walking on water in some of the crowds eyes. They just adore him.

And then at the end of the show he started from one end of the stage and shook hands with all of his fans who managed to make it up to the stage until he finally got to the other end of the stage. About 10 minutes of shaking hands whilst the rest of the audience went nuts. :thumbsup:

Just amazing to see. I'd put him up there with the Boss and U2 for live performances. I love his older songs but mainly it's fun to see how the audience reacts to him.

Maid

AmarilloByMorning
08-21-2009, 02:30 PM
Isn't that great?!?!?! He closes every show with "The Cowboy Rides Away" and then shakes everyone's hand! My 22nd birthday present was first-row tickets to see him, so I had the pleasure. My father said I grinned like I'd just swallowed a rainbow.

I much prefer his older stuff, as well; but "Troubadour" sounds like Vintage '80s Strait. Glad you got to see him, and enjoyed it! Isn't it funny how the crowd spans every single age bracket?

AzEaglesFan
08-22-2009, 03:37 AM
Love his CD Troubadour. I like the video that he made for the song Troubadour, and all of the old pictures of him and his family that they included in it.

luvthelighthouse
08-28-2009, 10:05 AM
Hey, and have you guys seen Pure Country? I loved him in that!

Allow me to say, I've loved George for probably the past twenty plus years. I enjoy most everything I've heard from him. Starting back with Amarillo by Morning and Fool Hearted Memory. I adore You Look So Good In Love and I Hate Everything.... but that movie... a, yeah.... um... not so much. For whatever reason, my husband who HATES country music, finds this movie to be his guilty pleasure. He watches it whenever it's on and even quotes the movie!!! I make so much fun of him and "I" actually like George! I just don't think the movie is very good and his acting isn't too good either, IMO.

AmarilloByMorning
08-28-2009, 11:43 AM
Awwww, I love Pure Country and quote it copiously. "There are no answers.... only the search." (Not a single person has ever caught that one but I love Grandma Ivy.) And "I don't blame you for keeping your mouth shut. Can't get a word in edgewise with those three. Always yappin' about this or that when they should be eatin', workin' or sleepin'. And that to my mind is what's wrong with this whole country. I mean, it's goin' straight to hell!" George regards him for a moment, having just experienced a breakfast where nobody said a word, and then finally just nods, "Yes, sir." Boda-bing! Admittedly the acting isn't stellar, but it sure eclipsed the recent GI Joe blockbuster. And the sight of him roping and singing "King of Broken Hearts" on the front porch made the entire movie. So.... guess we all know what I'll be doing tonight.

I did get the greatest shirt from his concert - on the front it says "I hate everything!" and on the back "Thanks for Everything! George Strait Tour 2005"

sodascouts
08-28-2009, 12:29 PM
Not to mention his heartbreaking version of Last in Love from the soundtrack. I have always loved it. That way he sings, "Every now and then, voices on the wind call me back to the first time".... "When the night is clear, I can hear the teardrops..." and especially "I may love you always and always..." :sigh:

If I'm in the right mood and thinking about a certain someone that I haven't seen since 2002 when I moved to Indiana, but who has recently friended me on Facebook so I can enjoy the lovely photos he posts of his wife who happened to be the girl he dumped me for, I have actually gotten choked up by this song! This despite the fact that I am so glad it didn't work out with him because if it had, I would now be living in some small town in Texas with a bunch of kids, and that would have pretty much been my life (not that there's anything wrong with that, but at this point, it's not for me). ANYWAY...

I had no idea it was first recorded by JD Souther, or that it was co-written by Glenn Frey. I just didn't pay attention to that kind of thing. Even if I had, I wouldn't have then appreciated how awesome that was. ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxqM71i_dLk


I think this version rivals the original recorded by JD Souther. :ducks:

Still, when I went to see JD Souther's show in Chicago, I actually wrote him a mini-fan letter tell him how I loved this song and why, and I was able to hand it to him myself because he stays afterward to talk to fans and sign albums (yes, I now have a Longbranch Pennywhistle album signed by BOTH Glenn and JD, which even gave JD pause, lol).

All this to say... I love that song.

AmarilloByMorning
08-28-2009, 12:46 PM
Absolutely adore that song - had absolutely no idea it was a Souther/Frey composition, which only serves to increase its cool quotient exponentially. I... wow! Words fail!

They should've given Glenn a part in Pure Country... The drummer was great, but how hilarious would that have been for Glenn to play Dusty's drummer/best friend? Or he probably could have pulled off the punk songwriter boyfriend of his manager, too.


If I'm in the right mood and thinking about a certain someone that I haven't seen since 2002 when I moved to Indiana, but who has recently friended me on Facebook so i can enjoy the lovely photos he posts of his wife who happened to be the girl he dumped me for, I have actually gotten choked up by this song! This despite the fact that I am so glad it didn't work out with him because if it had, I would now be living in some small town in Texas with a bunch of kids which would completely define my existence...
1. That is absolutely horrific that he friend'ed you;
2. I second every other sentiment you expressed in that paragraph, except for the "not that there's anything wrong with that" portion;
3. Not that my opinion matters, but you're much better off without a houseful of mongrels defining your existence. I always hate when people say that, but sometimes it really is true;
4. One more time, the scenario you relayed is horrific. May I purchase you a virtual drink? Or here, let's virtually StevieSmack him::steviesmack:


(yes, I now have a Longbranch Pennywhistle album signed by BOTH Glenn and JD, which even gave JD pause, lol). THAT is awesome, and proof that the universe is inherently unfair. Why aren't people like you selected to be at things like the HFO live taping?!?! "No, I don't have an invitation, but here's my CoolCard; beat that!"

I absolutely guarantee this song will shoot into my Top 25 Most Played within three days. So heartwrenching.... Thank you! I mean, not for your misery, but for reigniting my interest in this song. Aw crap, this is why I'm not a therapist. Hopefully the shared sentiment emerged somewhere amidst the dribble.

sodascouts
08-28-2009, 01:01 PM
1. That is absolutely horrific that he friend'ed you;
2. I second every other sentiment you expressed in that paragraph, except for the "not that there's anything wrong with that" portion;
3. Not that my opinion matters, but you're much better off without a houseful of mongrels defining your existence. I always hate when people say that, but sometimes it really is true;
4. One more time, the scenario you relayed is horrific. May I purchase you a virtual drink? Or here, let's virtually StevieSmack him::steviesmack:


Thanks for the sympathy! But I actually edited what you quoted for no. 3, because I feel like it sounded like I was looking down on people who chose that life and really I'm not. As long as they're happy, I really do believe there's nothing wrong with it.

AmarilloByMorning
08-28-2009, 05:46 PM
I do apologize for the unintended implication. I'm just so sick of being ridiculed for my life choices that the venom keeps seeping through. I'd make a terrific Rolling Stone reviewer - "I'm completely impartial! Except for this giant chip I'm hauling around next to the monkey."