These 1980s Country Songs Still Give Us Chills, Decades After They Were First Released

Country music has always had a way of touching the listener’s heart. Every era of the genre has done this in a new and unique way. Today, let’s look back at some of the most chill-inducing country songs of the 1980s. These three tracks below can’t help but affect the audience viscerally.

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“Forever And Ever, Amen” by Randy Travis

Randy Travis’ “Forever And Ever, Amen” is a simple song that hits the listener hard every time it comes on. The opening guitar trill is iconic and instantly transports the audience to a particular time and place. Anyone who hears this song can’t help but feel a tinge of excitement when it comes on. It’s a chill-inducing country song that carries with it immense iconography.

Despite this song’s prestige, it’s actually a very unassuming hit. Travis makes love sound simple in this ballad, promising unending devotion to his love interest. “Oh, baby, I’m gonna love you forever /
Forever and ever amen / As long as old men sit and talk about the weather / As long as old women sit and talk about old men,” Travis sings in this 1980s country masterpiece.

“Whoever’s In New England” by Reba McEntire

Reba McEntire’s “Whoever’s In New England” is one of her most touching ballads to date. The country giant breaks the heart of anyone who listens to this song about an unfaithful spouse, whether they can relate to it or not. McEntire has always had a way of infusing her work with a lot of emotion. This stunning track is proof of that.

When whoever’s in New England’s through with you / And Boston finds better things to do / You know it’s not too late / ‘Cause you’ll always have a place to come back to, McEntire sings in this 1980s classic. Country has many breakup songs, but few are as downtrodden as this one. McEntire’s character doesn’t beg her husband to stay true; she only asks that he come home at the end of the day.

“When I Call Your Name” by Vince Gill

Vince Gill’s voice is always chill-inducing. The country legend can’t help but send shivers up his listeners’ spines. His vocals are just that good. Never has he sounded better than in the 1980s country classic, “When I Call Your Name.”

With the help of tight harmonies, Gill soothes his heartbreak and the listeners’ with “When I Call Your Name.” It’s a generational hit for a reason. Between Gill’s tender vocals and this song’s universal subject matter, there isn’t a country fan alive who doesn’t love this song once they are introduced to it.

(photo by Beth Gwinn/Getty Images)