Brad Paisley turned to the King of Country Music for solace in his 2018 release "Bucked Off." Written by Paisley, Chris DuBois and Kelly Lovelace, the honky-tonker nods to George Strait and his classic 1985 hit "The Cowboy Rides Away."
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"Bucked Off" is about getting back up after getting knocked down by love and includes plenty of rodeo analogies for good measure.
"It feels like there's a number pinned onto the back of my shirt," Paisley sings on the twangy tune. "This is where the cowboy gets bucked off."
Paisley makes references to Strait throughout the track, nodding to the 1996 rodeo tune "I Can Still Make Cheyenne" and 1982's "Marina Del Ray." There's even a hint of "Amarillo By Morning" in that closing fiddle solo. Paisley co-produced the song with Dann Huff.
"I came of age during the golden era for us, which was the late '80s, early '90s, and that time period... you had so many different things on the radio, but one of the things that was kind of consistent was the rodeo songs - the metaphors and the analogies to that way of life," Paisley told Storme Warren on SiriusXM's The Highway channel, "and I realized as I was writing songs for this new record, I've never done one of those."
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"Bucked Off" was Paisley's first single since the prior year's "Heaven South." Despite its honky-tonk throwback quality, "Bucked Off" stalled at No. 24 on Billboard's Country Airplay Chart.
This story originally ran on Nov 14, 2018.
"Bucked Off' Lyrics
It's been a great ride but here we sit tonight
The look in her eyes says something's wrong
This ain't a wild bull, it's just a bar stool
But it's all I can do to just hang on
And George Strait's on the jukebox in the corner
Singing about cowboys riding away, but
This ain't my first rodeo
Someone's gonna get hurt
Whenever someone says we need to talk
It feels like there's a number
Pinned on to the back of my shirt
'Cause this is where the cowboy gets bucked off
Yeah, this is where the cowboy gets bucked off
You can go to Houston, Vegas or San Antonio
And watch a bull rider hit the dirt
Or head down to this bar for a little cover charge
You can watch me get thrown by her
George Strait's on the jukebox again
Says if I leave now I can still make Cheyenne, but
This ain't my first rodeo
Someone's gonna get hurt
So hey bartender, give me one more jug
It feels like there's a number
Pinned on to the back of my shirt
'Cause this is where the cowboy gets bucked off
Yeah, this is where the cowboy gets bucked off
I think about those nights in Marina Del Rey
As this beautiful cowgirl slips away
But the pain only lasts so long
And when you get bucked off you get back onIt feels like there's a number
Pinned on to the back of my shirt
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