3 Country Songs From the 80s and 90s That Almost Went to Other Artists

In Nashville, it’s common for songs to be passed around from one artist to another before ultimately being cut. The 80s and 90s brought us some of the most iconic country tunes to date, but some of them were actually written with other artists in mind.

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“Friends In Low Places” by Garth Brooks

It’s hard to imagine this tune being sung by anyone besides Garth Brooks, but at one point, it was almost a George Strait song. Brooks revealed in his book, The Anothology Part 1, that Strait ultimately passed on the song. However, Brooks did tell Taste of Country Nights that he tried to make his demo sound like George Strait. I guess the hope was that maybe he would cut it. “The reason they asked me to do the demo was because I wanted to be George Strait for years,” he admitted. “So I do a pretty good impersonation of him.”

“The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia” by Reba McEntire

This is easily one of Reba’s most famous cover songs ever, but it almost wasn’t sung by her. According to Songfacts, the song was offered to Cher first. Apparently though, she didn’t even know it was until years after it was released. Sonny Bono turned it down on her behalf without playing it for her, afraid it would offend her fanbase. Versions of this song were also done by Vicki Lawrence and Tanya Tucker, but no one does it like Reba.

“Much Too Young (To Feel This Damn Old)” by Garth Brooks

As it turns out, “Friends In Low Places” wasn’t the only Garth Brooks song that he wanted George Strait to sing. Brooks revealed that he’d actually written “Much Too Young” with George in mind. “I moved to this town to hear George Strait sing ‘Much Too Young (To Feel This Damn Old),’” he explained in The Anthology Part 1. Well, Brooks would go on to release the tune as his debut single, and when he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, per Wide Open Country, George Strait would finally play “Much Too Young” for him on stage.

Photo by: Erika Goldring/Getty Images for Strait To The Heart