3 Covers That Pay Respect to the Late Great Blaze Foley

Blaze Foley was one of those folk musicians who never sought out fame, fortune, accolades, and awards. Rather, the only thing he focused on was making great songs and making sure those songs touched the people who needed them most. He lived the art life to the fullest extent and expected nothing in return. Consequently, he is arguably one of the most admirable and selfless musicians of all time. If you haven’t heard of him, look him up!

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Given Foley’s character and music career, many artists in the country and folk world have paid homage to the man by covering his songs. As a matter of fact, those covers are what put Blaze Foley on the map. With all that in mind, here are three covers that pay respect to outlaw country icon Blaze Foley.

“Clay Pigeons” by John Prine

One of John Prine‘s most famous songs was also one of Blaze Foley’s most notable songs, and that song is “Clay Pigeons”. Released in 2005 by Prine on his album Fair & Square, the song is a near pitch-perfect rendition of Foley’s original tune.

It is unclear when Foley wrote the song, but he did originally release it in 1989. However, the song never hit it big until Prine covered the single in 2005. Consequently, it is the song that everybody knows Blaze Foley for.

“If I Could Only Fly” by Merle Haggard

The song that inspired Prine to cover a Foley song was Merle Haggard‘s rendition of “If I Could Only Fly”. Released in 1995 on Merle Haggard’s album Live, the musical arrangement sounds entirely different from Foley’s original tune. However, it carries the same weight and the same sentiment, as Haggard stays true to the poetry in the lyrics.

Foley originally released this song in 1984. Though, like “Clay Pigeons”, it didn’t hit it big until it was covered by a big-name artist. In this case, that artist was Merle Haggard, who also helped introduce the obscure singer to the masses.

“Election Day” by Lyle Lovett

Lyle Lovett is very much a product of the Texas songwriter community, so he knew and admired one of the greatest Texas songwriters of all time: Blaze Foley. The only Foley song Lovett has covered publically is Foley’s poignant tune “Election Day”.

Lovett released the cover in 2003 on his album My Baby Don’t Tolerate. Given the obscurity of the song, it is unclear when exactly Blaze Foley released his rendition. Regardless, Lovett shows just how important Foley was to the Texas songwriter community with this hidden gem.

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