1985 Songs: Lefty’s Gone

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Uh-oh. Quite unintentionally, it’s a two-for-one country music day! At least this guy you’ve heard of. One of the biggest success stories in country music of the last 50 years, and one of only three people to win “entertainer of the year” after being inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. One Hall of Famer, singing about another one, as we head back to 1985. Lefty’s Gone - George Strait If you’re wondering, the other two to win “entertainer of the year” as a Hall of Famer were Eddy Arnold and Garth Brooks. Even if you weren’t wondering. Yes, it’s King George, singing about another country music legend, William Orville “Lefty” Frizzell. You’ve probably heard the two songs mentioned in this song, just by someone else: “Always Late,” later done by Dwight Yoakam; and, “If You’ve Got the Money (I’ve Got the Time),” which Willie Nelson covered. This song is sad, pointing out that Frizzell “was sad and lived alone.” Another song about him, Shel Silverstein’s composition “Rough on the Living” (“Nashville is rough on the living, but she really speaks well of the dead”), pointed that out as well. Frizzell was an old man when he died at 48 of a massive stroke. He lived hard. He left a treasure trove of music for generations to love, and for people like fellow legend George Strait to honor in song. Lefty’s Gone Written by Sanger D. Sanger Recorded by George Strait From Something Special, 1985 In every song he sang I played a part: