George Strait Tips His Cowboy Hat To Waylon Jennings With Flawless Cover Of “Waymore’s Blues”

The KING. Today, George Strait released his 31st studio album Cowboys And Dreamers , which is full of honky tonk gold and that classic country sound we all know and love. But the song I've been waiting to hear since the album was announced is his official studio cover of Waylon Jennings' "Waymore's Blues," which he's done at shows for a long time and is obviously one of the best covers of the country classic you'll ever hear. Of course, the song was released on Waylon’s 1975 album Dreaming My Dreams (one of my personal favorites), right before he won Male Vocalist of the Year at the CMA Awards. I've always wanted The King to put out a studio recording of it I could listen to anytime I want to, and let me tell you, he did not disappoint. It's a rendition I think Waylon himself would approve of (and I don't say that lightly), but there's no other artist I know of who could pull that off, other than Strait. He kept it pretty similar to the original in terms of production, and his twangy, pure vocals are instantly recognizable and pitch perfect. At 72 years young, he's still making music that blows most everything else out of the water, and this album is proof of that and then some. He's always known whaat he does best, and doesn't stray too far from it, and gets better with age, quite honestly. George says the album is dedicated to his longtime manager Erv Woolsey, longtime fiddle player Gene Elders and longtime road manager Tom Foote, all of whom passed away this year and were close friends of his: "I’m dedicating this record to my longtime manager and friend Erv Woolsey and my longtime fiddle player and friend Gene Elders (a player on four of these tracks), who we lost on the same day, March 20, 2024, as well as my longtime friend and road manager Tom Foote, who we lost on April 29, 2024. I will never forget all of the good times we had together. May they rest in peace with our Lord Jesus Christ." I knew this would be a favorite of mine, and I was right... it will be on repeat for the foreseeable future. Long live the King: "Waymore's Blues" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhxEFtC6EAA The "Honky Tonk Hall Of Fame" collab with Chris Stapleton is great too: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UubivuLNB9c Cowboys And Dreamers Tracklist: 1. Three Drinks Behind (Benjamin Gaither, Jeff Silvey and Kim Williams) 2. Cowboys And Dreamers (Jessie Jo Dillon, Keith Gattis and Bubba Strait) 3. To The Moon (Marty Brown and Steve Clark) 4. MIA Down in MIA (Adam Craig and Dean Dillon) 5. Wish I Could Say (Keith Gattis) 6. Calling From The Car (Bobby Braddock) 7. People Get Hurt Sometimes (Jim Lauderdale, Kendell Marvel and Jimmy Ritchey) 8. Honky Tonk Hall Of Fame ft. Chris Stapleton (Chris Stapleton, Jameson Clark and Timothy James) 9. The Little Things (George Strait, Monty Criswell and Bubba Strait) 10. The Book (George Strait, Dean Dillon, Jessie Jo Dillon and Bubba Strait) 11. Rent (Guy Clark and Keith Gattis) 12. Waymore’s Blues (Curtis Buck and Waylon Jennings) 13. The Journey Of Your Life (Ronnie Bowman and Troy Jones)