George Strait Passed on “Friends in Low Places”

george strait friends in low places

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Although country legend George Strait boasts 60 No. 1 songs throughout his career, he missed out on another by passing up "Friends in Low Places." Read more here!

As country fans know so well, “Friends in Low Places” was made famous by country singer Garth Brooks, but did you know that George Strait had the first chance to record the song? This insider information was recently released in Brooks’ new book, Anthology Part 1. However, Garth did sing a demo of the track years before he signed his first record deal.

“The reason they asked me to do the demo was because I wanted to be George Strait for years, so I do a pretty good impersonation of him,” Brooks explains. “So the original demo of ‘Friends in Low Places’ I did my best George Strait on it before I ever had a record deal.”

So, why did the King of Country pass on the song? Quite frankly, nobody knows the real reason. In fact, the two country stars have never discussed the track with each other. Strangely, “Friends in Low Places” is not the only No. 1 song George Strait passed on. He admits he also passed on “Tennessee Whiskey,” a song Chris Stapleton recently covered and made a big hit.

Check out “Friends in Low Places” below…

“Friends in Low Places” Lyrics

Blame it all on my roots, I showed up in boots
And ruined your black tie affair
The last one to know, the last one to show
I was the last one you thought you’d see there
And I saw the surprise, and the fear in his eyes
When I took his glass of champagne
And I toasted you, said, “Honey, we may be through
But you’ll never hear me complain”

‘Cause I’ve got friends in low places
Where the whiskey drowns and the beer chases
My blues away
And I’ll be okay
I’m not big on social graces
Think I’ll slip on down to the Oasis
Oh, I’ve got friends
In low places

Well, I guess I was wrong, I just don’t belong
But then, I’ve been there before
Everything’s alright, I’ll just say goodnight
And I’ll show myself to the door
Hey, I didn’t mean, to cause a big scene
Just give me an hour and then
Well I’ll be as high as that ivory tower
That you’re livin’ in

Cause I’ve got friends in low places
Where the whiskey drowns and the beer chases
My blues away
And I’ll be okay
I’m not big on social graces
Think I’ll slip on down to the Oasis
Oh, I’ve got friends
In low places

I’ve got friends in low places
Where the whiskey drowns and the beer chases
My blues away
And I’ll be okay
I’m not big on social graces
Think I’ll slip on down to the Oasis
Oh, I’ve got friends
In low places

I guess I was wrong
I just don’t belong
But then, I’ve been there before
And everything is alright
I’ll just say goodnight
And I’ll show myself to the door
I didn’t mean to cause a big scene
Just wait ’til I finish this glass
Then sweet little lady
I’ll head back to the bar
And you can kiss my ass

‘Cause I’ve got friends in low places
Where the whiskey drowns and the beer chases
My blues away
And I’ll be okay
I’m not big on social graces
Think I’ll slip on down to the Oasis
Oh, I’ve got friends
In low places

Be sure to share this interesting history lesson with other country music fans!

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