Kris Kristofferson was just coming into his own as a Nashville songwriter, but this one as done by Johnny Cash on his TV show really put him on the map. It would be next week’s #1 country hit in 1970 and just missed the Top 40. Kris, a Rhodes Scholar, former Army captain and helicopter pilot, was offered a professor’s position at West Point but chucked it all to write songs. Cash was asked to change one line about “wishing, Lord that I was stoned” but refused; indeed, on the live recording he emphasized “stoned.” Who would’ve thought Ray Stevens recorded this first?
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