On This Day in 1980, Merle Haggard “Dragged” a Hollywood Icon to the Top of the Country Chart With a Song That Almost Went to George Jones

On this day (July 26) in 1980, Merle Haggard and Clint Eastwood were at No. 1 with “Bar Room Buddies.” The single, taken from the soundtrack of Eastwood’s Bronco Billy, stayed at the top of the country chart for a week. Haggard did his best to distance himself from the song in the years after its release.

Initially, George Jones was planned to be the actor’s duet partner. However, scheduling conflicts stopped that pairing from happening. Unable to get the greatest country singer in history for the track, producer and co-writer Snuff Garrett went for Haggard, who is a very close second.

Haggard had launched a long string of hits in the 1970s. The decade saw him releasing classics like “Always Wanting You,” “The Roots of My Raising,” “Cherokee Maiden,” “Ramblin’ Fever,” and “Red Bandana.” He started 1980 with the No. 2 hit “The Way I Am.” In short, Haggard was still one of the most successful artists country music had to offer and had roughly two decades of hits under his belt.

Clint Eastwood and Merle Haggard Reflect on “Bar Room Buddies”

Clint Eastwood talked about “Bar Room Buddies” during a 1985 interview with Rolling Stone. “I think you can say that Merle Haggard had a hit and sort of dragged me along,” he told the publication. “I was never terribly knowledgeable about country music,” he added. “The first real good taste I got was when I was 18 or 19, working in a pulp mill in Springfield, Oregon… I really didn’t know anyone, and someone told me to go out to this place where there was a lot of country music. I wasn’t interested, but this guy told me there were a lot of girls there. So I went,” Eastwood recalled.

[RELATED: On This Day in 1968, Merle Haggard Recorded a Tribute to His Mother That Has Been Called One of His Best Songs]

In an interview with Newsweek, Haggard shared his thoughts on the song. “I almost prostituted myself in some ways,” he said. He added that he told Eastwood that he shouldn’t sell his camera. “I hope you’re a better singer than I am an actor,” Haggard told him before they went into the studio. “I believe I’m a better actor than he is a singer,” he added.

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