If I Was A Cowboy

Album: Palomino (2021)
Charted: 53
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Songfacts®:

  • This song finds Miranda Lambert dreaming of being a cowboy in the Wild West. She wishes to be free to blaze her own path, rolling in and out of towns, "a legend at loving and leaving."
  • Lambert released the song as her first new solo material since her album Wildcard on October 1, 2019. She dropped the track quoting one of the lyrics, "If I was a cowboy, I'd be the queen."
  • Lambert co-penned "If I Was a Cowboy" with a new writing partner, Jesse Frasure (Thomas Rhett, Kane Brown, Little Big Town). They first met when he did a remix of her song "Tequila Does" under his DJ name, Telemitry. "Got together one day, one afternoon for a write and this is what came out of it," said Lambert. "It's funny, he's a Detroit boy and I'm an East Texan, but somehow we wrote a song about the Wild West together, so it's pretty cool."
  • The laid-back, organic production is courtesy of:

    Luke Dick, whose previous co-writes with Lambert include another song with a similar theme. "Highway Vagabond" is about a drifter with a restless spirit floating from city to city.

    Jon Randall, who recorded the Texas acoustic album The Marfa Tapes with Lambert and Jack Ingram. Released in May 2021, that record has a similar easy-going groove to this song.
  • The musicians are:

    Acoustic guitar: Jon Randall
    Steel guitar: Al Perkins
    Electric guitar: Rob McNelley
    Bass: Ian Fitchuk
    Organ: Ian Fitchuk
    Percussion and drums: Fred Eltringham
    Background vocals: Natalie Hemby
  • Director Trey Fanjoy filmed the Wild West-inspired video in small-town Texas, using real cowboys. A few of Lambert's favorite people make cameos, including her husband Brendan McLoughlin.
  • The song came late in the process of writing for Palomino. Speaking to Audacy, Lambert described it as "beginner's luck" because it was the first time she'd written with Jesse Frasure and their track fit the album's vibe. "It was kind of the cherry on top, I guess," Lambert added, "and it was something that I was missing feel-wise."

Comments: 3

  • Tex Debiossy from KansasThis song is country’s message about being woke and accepting if your kid grows up to be an alternate gender. This is disgusting wow Miranda Lambert.
  • Ann Baker from OntarioI don't understand the lyrics - what do you mean that you would be the queen if you were a cowboy?
  • Mad Mama from VirginiaThis song is not about being a cowboy because cowboys don't want to be a QUEEN! And mamas don't want their daughters to grow up and be cowboys, cowgirls, yes!
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