[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5SK8tQnTSE]
This is one of the prettiest songs ever written. I've heard it done in a lot of different styles and feels, but this slower bluesy version is my favorite. It's been recorded by several artists, and performed by even more, including Elvis Presley, Willie Nelson, John & June Carter Cash, and Norah Jones. I've posted Jones' version below, because I like it a lot, too.
The love that Coolidge and Kristofferson share is so obvious in the video; it just comes through in the way they smile and look at one another. Kristofferson wrote the song, claiming to be inspired by Frank Sinatra. In an interview with Esquire, Sinatra was asked what he believed in, and he responded with "Booze, broads, or the Bible...whatever helps me make it through the night." After reading the article, Kristofferson began to write.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocReUIHoI4s]
I really thought long and hard about adding this last version to this post, but then I figured, why not? The first time I ever heard this song was on an old Ray Stevens VHS my grandparents had when I was a kid. The Stevens version isn't quite the serious, heartfelt song that the other versions are, but if I could hear a full version in the same style he opens the video with, I'd listen to it with the same seriousness.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vYh6nh9yaI]
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