"Amarillo by Morning" has been a rodeo-circuit hit since 1973, when Terry Stafford wrote and recorded the original version following an all-night drive from one rodeo stop to another. But it took Strait to do the definitive version of this ode to the troubadour lifestyle, which recounts broken bones and loves lost by a journeyman cowboy who owns nothing but the clothes on his back.

During his college years, Strait joined the country band Stoney Ridge, answering a flyer the band posted around campus looking for a new vocalist. Strait renamed the group the Ace in the Hole Band and began to perform at different honky-tonks and bars. In 1981, after Strait signed with MCA Records, the band went on tour with him and played the instrumentals on his recordings.

Seven months after eloping to Mexico with Norma Voss, Strait remarried her in Texas to satisfy their parents.

In January 1981, MCA Records agreed to release one of Strait's songs as a single and provide the necessary promotion. If the single was successful, then an album would follow. "Unwound" was released on April 23, 1981 and soon made it to the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. Within days of reaching the top ten, MCA gave the go-ahead for Strait Country.

"Team roping is my passion," Strait has confessed. "It plays a huge role in my life. When I'm home, which is more and more these days, I try to rope every day and as long as I'm able." But it isn't just a personal passion. His son also shares the roping bug. "Bubba and I have been fortunate to win a couple of buckles together, and that, my friends, is the ultimate."

"Nickels and dimes
Memories and wines
She's on his mind once again
The same old stool
The same old fool
Played by the rules but didn't win"

"You'll Be There", a hit song for George in the mid 2000's, oftentimes makes the singer think of his daughter, Jennifer, who passed away in a car accident when she was just 13 years old. The Jenifer Strait Memorial foundation, set up in her honor, donates money to various children's charities in the San Antonio and Houston area.

Although he had formed a garage band in high school, Strait's first taste of country fame was with his U.S. Army-sponsored band, Rambling Country.

After Strait was honorably discharged from the Army in 1975, he enrolled at Southwest Texas State University (now Texas State University) in San Marcos, and graduated with a degree in agriculture.

In the 2003 episode "Livin' on Reds, Vitamin C and Propane", Strait plays Cornell, a character who tells Hank, "I hate to spoil your fun, sir, but you're not a trucker. You're just a guy with a truck."