KHAZ Country Music News: George Strait Looks Back on His 1981 Debut Album as New Project, “Love Is Everything”, Hits Stores

George Strait‘s 40th album, Love Is Everything, is in stores and online this week, and George admits the sounds on this new project are much more polished than the tracks on his 1981 debut album, Strait Country. That album launched Strait’s career with the hits “Unwound” and “If You’re Thinking You Want a Stranger (There’s One Coming Home),” and George says, “I think there’s some great songs on there, but I think the, well, maybe it’s just the technology or maybe it’s just the feeling that I’ve gotten more comfortable in the studio nowadays.”

George and his son Bubba had a hand in writing a few songs on Love Is Everything, but George relied on outside songs while making Strait Country. A few of them, including “Blame It on Mexico,” were written by George’s friend Darrell Statler, who actually accompanied George on his first trip to Nashville in 1978.

George says of those songs from Darrell, “You know, when 1981 came around I was able to sign with MCA and had those songs, I’m figuring I gotta put these on the record.”

As for his current album, Love Is Everything features George’s latest hit, “Give It All We Got Tonight.”