“Amarillo By Morning” is a country song that was originally released by Terry Stafford in 1973 as a B-Side for the single “Say, Has Anybody Seen My Sweet Gypsy Rose.” The song has been covered a multitude of times, by the likes of Chris LeDoux in 1975, Asleep at the Wheel in 2003, and Ronnie Dunn in 2020. However, one of the most popular versions of the song was the cover done by George Strait in 1982. George Strait recorded his version of the song for his second studio album, Strait from the Heart. He recorded at the Music City Music Hall studio in Nashville, Tennessee under the label MCA Records. Strait’s version of the song was a major hit and reached number 4 on the billboard chart for hot country singles.
The song is about a rodeo cowboy who is traveling to Amarillo, Texas from other cities in Texas. Cities like Houston and San Antonio, which are all over the map of Texas. While on his journey to Amarillo, he recalls different hardships that he has faced all throughout Texas. The hardships he talks about include how he has suffered in poverty, being a victim of theft, breaking a leg, and not only losing a girlfriend, but a wife as well.
The Texas identity of cowboys and bucking is a key idea of the song. This because that is what the singer does for a living and is singing about when they’ll be able to do it again. Language that is unfamiliar to someone that does not know much about bronc riding is when the singer says, “Well I’ll be looking for eight when they pull that gate.” What this means is when the gate opens, the rider is required to stay on the horse for 8 seconds without touching the horse and a free hand to register a score.
The idea of freedom is shown with the line “…I ain’t rich, but Lord I’m free.” While the cowboy singing is very poor and has had an incredibly challenging life, he doesn’t care about that because he loves where he lives and would not want to live anywhere else. This is the way a lot of other Texans feel about Texas. They would rather be poor or dead in Texas, then alive and well somewhere else.
The instrumentation of the song sounds like it comes from Texas. The instruments used include vocals, acoustic guitars, fiddle, keyboards, bass, and drum set. The fiddle is what emphasizes the “Texaness” of the song and differentiates itself from other genres that use the other instruments used.
After never diving deep into country music and hearing this song multiple times, I can understand why this song is very popular among country music fans. It is very simple, catchy and tells a story about someone living a life many Texans had lived.
Lyrics:
Amarillo by mornin’
Up from San Antone
Everything that I got
Is just what I’ve got on
When that Sun is high
In that Texas sky
I’ll be buckin’ at the county fair
Amarillo by mornin’
Amarillo I’ll be there
They took my saddle in Houston
Broke my leg in Santa Fe
Lost my wife and a girlfriend
Somewhere along the way
But I’ll be lookin’ for eight
When they pull that gate
And I hope that
Judge ain’t blind
Amarillo by mornin’
Amarillo’s on my mind
Amarillo by mornin’
Up from San Antone
Everything that I 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 mornin’
Amarillo’s where I’ll be
Amarillo by mornin’
Amarillo’s where I’ll be
“Amarillo by Morning.” YouTube, YouTube, 3 Nov. 2018, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbVISS-lEAc.
“Before George STRAIT, Meet the Man Behind ‘AMARILLO By Morning.’” Country Thang Daily, 5 July 2021, https://www.countrythangdaily.com/terry-stafford-amarillo-by-morning/.
Fraser, Paul, and Terry Stafford. “Amarillo by Morning.” Second Hand Songs – A Cover Songs Database, https://secondhandsongs.com/performance/941543.
GeorgeStraitVEVO. “George Strait – Amarillo by Morning.” YouTube, YouTube, 5 June 2013, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtVeDaZxAXo.
“Strait from the Heart.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 24 Feb. 2021, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strait_from_the_Heart.
“Well I’ll Be Looking for Eight When They Pull That Gate.” Genius, https://genius.com/4462381.
