“The Chair” is one of George Strait‘s most beloved songs and one of the greatest country songs ever written. It also has a Willie Nelson connection that almost nobody knows about, and the story behind it is as charming as the song itself.
By 1985, George Strait was already a major country star, and “The Chair,” co-written by songwriters Dean Dillon and Hank Cochran, became his seventh No. 1 hit. In 2003, Country Music Television (CMT) ranked the country hit No. 24 on their “100 Greatest Songs of Country Music” list.
Related: 1982 Country Hit Ranked ‘Best George Strait Anthem’ Was Inspired By a TV Commercial
On an episode of the Musical Miles Podcast, Dillon shared quite enthusiastically about how “The Chair” came together with Cochran. Not only was the country staple written in one night on a boat, he said, but the boat was also docked behind the West Palm Beach house of Peter Pulitzer (yes, those Pulitzers). Hank’s wife Suzi Cochran knew Pulitzer and had gone inside while the two guys opted to stay on the boat and write.
“I don’t think we ever wrote a first verse any faster than we ever did in that song,” Dillon said. “I mean, I couldn’t write it down on a yellow pad fast enough.”
What many fans don’t know is that “The Chair” and Willie Nelson’s “Crazy” share a melody—and here’s how Dillon said it happened.
Dillon explained that he typically handled all the melodies, which made it all the more frustrating when he couldn’t nail the final chorus for “The Chair.” Cochran stepped in to help and suggested the final melody, singing the memorable last line, “Oh, I like you too, and to tell you the truth. That wasn’t my chair after all.”
Dillon recalls saying, “Hank, we can’t do that,” explaining that was the same melody Nelson used in his iconic song “Crazy.” He told Cochran, “You know, we can’t do that.”
To which Cochran apparently said, “Well, why not? … Willie won’t mind.”
“The hell he won’t, man,” Dillon responded.
Cochran explained to Dillon that the melody was public domain and that Nelson had gotten it off an old, old song. Even so, Dillon says he always felt a little sheepish about using it and jokingly added that when the two of them toured with Nelson, “I’d always hide behind a curtain because I didn’t want, you know, I didn’t want to get caught.”
Strait recorded “The Chair” as the lead single from his fifth studio album Something Special, which was released on August 29, 1985. The song hit No 1 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart on December 21, 1985, and remained on the chart for 22 weeks.
Over 40 years later, “The Chair” ranks as one of the best country songs of all time on lists from both Billboard and Rolling Stone. In 2022, it received Platinum certification via the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and to date, the song has more than 87 million streams on Spotify.
The melody may have been public domain, but the song was a masterpiece—and Dean Dillon hid out behind a curtain anyway.
Watch Dean Dillon’s interview “The Man Behind George Strait’s Greatest Songs” on the Musical Miles Podcast:
Watch the offiicial video for “The Chair” by George Strait:
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