There was a moment when George Strait nearly gave it all up. Tired of rejection, he told his Ace In The Hole Band he was quitting music to take a full-time job designing cattle pens in Uvalde. Almost immediately, Norma saw the light go out in him. She urged him to give it one more year — a decision that changed everything. With her encouragement, George called off the job, reached out to Erv Woolsey, and landed a chance in Nashville. His first single, “Unwound,” released just before his 29th birthday in 1981, shocked him by climbing to No. 6. Suddenly, the ranch foreman from San Marcos was hearing himself on the radio. But George was stubborn. He refused to take off his cowboy hat, resisted pop polish, and fought to keep his sound true. By his fourth album, armed with hit singles and awards, he finally stood his ground in the studio. That turning point not only secured his legacy — it preserved the soul of traditional country at a time when it was at risk of fading.
“Scroll down to the end of the article to listen to music.” Introduction Every legend has a beginning, and for…