Songfacts®:

• This duet with 1980s country star Steve Wariner is a tribute to their individual guitar teachers. Brad Paisley explained to AOL: "My verse of the song was written about my guitar teacher, Clarence 'Hank' Goddard. I got the flu in March and I had a 102 temperature, so I slept for three days, and in the midst of this fevered state, I came up with the words, 'I met this angel with callused hands.' I sang it into my computer and then went back to sleep. I found out later my teacher died the night I had the idea for the song. Steve, who is a huge influence on me, has a similar story to mine about his guitar teacher. You know my story - as a teenage boy I was taking guitar lessons and allowed into this band by a much older and wiser guitar hero. Steve has the same story, but the man who taught him was Chet Atkins."
• After writing the first verse and chorus Paisley went to Wariner to help him finish writing the song. The West Virginian planned to use Goddard's guitar on the recording while Wariner planned to play one of Atkins' guitars. Paisley told AOL that something unexpected happened when they got together to put this number onto tape. He explained: "On the day of the session, Steve brought in Chet's guitar and I brought in Hank's guitar and we sat them down in the room. As I was opening the case, I told Steve to check it out because Hank had this old Gibson. When I opened the case, the bulletin from his funeral service was laying on the top of the guitar. Steve opened the case with Chet's guitar and said, 'You are not going to believe this.' Steve was the music director for Chet's funeral, and on top of that guitar was the bulletin from Chet's service at the Ryman. So here we sit with the cases open and the bulletins for both funerals are on top of the guitars. It was really weird; you get chills all over you. It was one of those moments that just felt very poetic. I cried the first few times I heard the song because I thought about Hank and how he would have loved it."