47 Songs About Texas, from El Paso to Texas Hold 'Em

What is the most famous song about Texas?

"Deep in the Heart of Texas" is the most famous song about Texas, written in 1941 and still the clap-along anthem of the state. "The Yellow Rose of Texas" is the classic folk song, and "All My Ex's Live in Texas" by George Strait is the favorite country hit about the state.

Classic Texas songs

1. "The Yellow Rose of Texas", traditional: a 19th-century folk song that topped the charts for Mitch Miller in 1955.
2. "San Antonio Rose", Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys: the Western swing classic.
3. "Deep in the Heart of Texas", Bing Crosby: one of the 1942 hit versions of the clap-along anthem.
4. "Streets of Laredo", traditional: a cowboy ballad set in the border town.
5. "El Paso", Marty Robbins: a Grammy-winning gunfighter ballad.
6. "Waltz Across Texas", Ernest Tubb: a slow dance favorite in every Texas dance hall.

Country songs about Texas

7. "Is Anybody Goin' to San Antone", Charley Pride: a drifter looking for a ride.
8. "Luckenbach, Texas (Back to the Basics of Love)", Waylon Jennings: a tiny town made famous.
9. "Miles and Miles of Texas", Asleep at the Wheel: Western swing for the open road.
10. "Texas (When I Die)", Tanya Tucker: wanting to stay in Texas forever.
11. "Texas Women", Hank Williams Jr.: a tribute to Texas women.
12. "Amarillo by Morning", George Strait: a rodeo cowboy on the road.
13. "Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind", George Strait: a lost love in Fort Worth.
14. "All My Ex's Live in Texas", George Strait: a funny song about leaving the state.
15. "God Blessed Texas", Little Texas: a 90s anthem of Texas pride.
16. "Austin", Blake Shelton: his debut number one, about calling an old flame.
17. "Texas Tornado", Tracy Lawrence: a love song about a whirlwind of a woman.

Songs about Texas cities

18. "Galveston", Glen Campbell: a soldier dreaming of the Gulf Coast.
19. "Houston (Means I'm One Day Closer to You)", Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers: a road song about coming home.
20. "Dallas", Alan Jackson: a clever song about a love who left for Dallas.
21. "Corpus Christi Bay", Robert Earl Keen: a Texas songwriter favorite.
22. "Lubbock or Leave It", Dixie Chicks: Natalie Maines on her West Texas hometown.

Texas rock and blues songs

23. "La Grange", ZZ Top: a boogie about a famous spot in a small Texas town.
24. "Texas Flood", Stevie Ray Vaughan: the title track of his blazing debut album.
25. "London Homesick Blues (Home with the Armadillo)", Gary P. Nunn: the longtime theme of Austin City Limits.

More Texas city songs

26. "Houston", Dean Martin: a 1965 hit about a drifter heading home.
27. "Feleena (From El Paso)", Marty Robbins: an eight-minute sequel told from the heroine's side.
28. "El Paso City", Marty Robbins: a 1976 number one that returns to the border town.
29. "San Antonio Stroll", Tanya Tucker: a country number one from 1975.
30. "Texas in My Rear View Mirror", Mac Davis: a Lubbock native looking back on home.
31. "Big Ball's in Cowtown", Asleep at the Wheel and George Strait: a Western swing tribute to Fort Worth.

Songs by great Texas songwriters

32. "Desperados Waiting for a Train", Guy Clark: a portrait of an old friend in the West Texas oil fields.
33. "Texas Cookin'", Guy Clark: a homesick ode to Texas food.
34. "Amarillo Highway", Terry Allen: a Panhandle road song.
35. "West Texas Waltz", Butch Hancock: a dance hall favorite recorded by Joe Ely.
36. "Lone Star State of Mind", Nanci Griffith: a love song from the Austin folk scene.
37. "That's Right (You're Not from Texas)", Lyle Lovett: a playful love letter to Texans.
38. "Fort Worth Blues", Steve Earle: a tribute to his mentor Townes Van Zandt.
39. "Heard It on the X", ZZ Top: about the powerful border radio stations that played the blues.

The Texas state song and college songs

40. "Texas, Our Texas", William J. Marsh and Gladys Yoakum Wright: the official state song since 1929.
41. "Beautiful Texas", W. Lee O'Daniel: written by the radio star who later became governor.
42. "The Eyes of Texas", John Lang Sinclair: the alma mater of the University of Texas, written in 1903.
43. "Texas Fight", James E. King and Walter S. Hunnicutt: the Longhorns' fight song.
44. "The Aggie War Hymn", J.V. Wilson: the fight song of Texas A&M.

Modern songs about Texas

45. "Texas Sun", Khruangbin and Leon Bridges: a dreamy road song by Texans.
46. "Texas Hold 'Em", Beyoncé: the Houston star's country chart-topper.
47. "Texas", Chris Rea: a moody British take on the Texas landscape.

Why are there so many songs about Texas?

Texas is a state with a big identity: cowboys and cattle drives, oil fields and border towns, honky-tonks and wide-open skies. It was also the birthplace of Western swing, a home base for outlaw country and the heart of a thriving blues scene. Songwriters who grew up there, from Bob Wills to George Strait and Willie Nelson, kept writing about home, and fans everywhere fell in love with the myth of Texas.

A short history of Texas music

Texas has shaped American music for a century. In the 1930s and 40s, Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys mixed country fiddle with jazz and big band rhythms to create Western swing. Buddy Holly came out of Lubbock in the 1950s, and a generation of West Texas songwriters followed, including Joe Ely, Butch Hancock and Jimmie Dale Gilmore of The Flatlanders.

In the 1970s, Austin became the home of outlaw country, with Willie Nelson and friends playing to hippies and cowboys alike at venues like the Armadillo World Headquarters. Austin City Limits brought that sound to television, and the city now calls itself the Live Music Capital of the World and hosts the South by Southwest festival every spring. Houston gave the world blues, R&B and hip-hop stars from Lightnin' Hopkins to Beyoncé, and Tejano music, led by Selena of Corpus Christi, carried Texas Mexican sounds to a national audience.

The story behind El Paso

Marty Robbins wrote "El Paso" while driving through the city, and the four-and-a-half-minute story of a cowboy, a dancer named Feleena and a fatal gunfight was unusually long for radio in 1959. It went to number one anyway and won the Grammy for best country and western recording. Robbins liked the story so much that he returned to it twice, in "Feleena (From El Paso)" and "El Paso City".

The story behind Texas Hold 'Em

Beyoncé, who grew up in Houston, released "Texas Hold 'Em" in 2024 as part of her country album Cowboy Carter. It went to number one on the Billboard Hot 100, and she became the first Black woman to top the Hot Country Songs chart. The song introduced a new generation to line dancing and to the Texas roots of her music.

A road-trip playlist across Texas

Texas is big enough for a whole playlist. Start in the west with "El Paso" and "Feleena (From El Paso)", head north to the Panhandle with "Amarillo by Morning" and "Amarillo Highway", and cross the plains to Lubbock with "Texas in My Rear View Mirror". In the Hill Country, play "Luckenbach, Texas" and "London Homesick Blues" on the way into Austin, then "Is Anybody Goin' to San Antone" and "San Antonio Stroll" as you head south. Finish on the coast with "Houston", "Galveston" and "Corpus Christi Bay" as the Gulf comes into view.

Songs about East Texas and the Gulf Coast

East Texas, with its piney woods and small towns, has its own sound, closer to Louisiana swamp pop and blues than to West Texas honky-tonk. Along the Gulf, songs like "Galveston" and "Corpus Christi Bay" capture the salt air and the shrimp boats, and the coastal towns from Port Arthur to Brownsville gave the world blues, rock and Tejano artists who brought that warm, humid sound to the rest of the country.

Texas songs for a two-step

Dance halls like Gruene Hall and Billy Bob's Texas keep the two-step alive. For a night out, mix Western swing such as "San Antonio Rose" and "Big Ball's in Cowtown" with "Amarillo by Morning", "Waltz Across Texas" and "West Texas Waltz" for the slow numbers, and close with "God Blessed Texas" for the whole floor.

Texas songs for a graduation

For a Longhorn or Aggie graduate, "The Eyes of Texas" or "The Aggie War Hymn" is a must at the party. "Texas Sun" and "That's Right (You're Not from Texas)" add a modern, playful touch for a slideshow, and "Deep in the Heart of Texas" gets the whole family clapping. See our graduation songs for more.

Songs about Texas for a wedding

For a Texas wedding, "Waltz Across Texas" is a beautiful first dance or anniversary dance, "Deep in the Heart of Texas" gets everyone clapping and "Texas Hold 'Em" fills the floor. See our country wedding songs for more.

Songs for Texas Independence Day

Texas Independence Day falls on March 2, the anniversary of the 1836 declaration of independence from Mexico. A playlist of "Deep in the Heart of Texas", "The Yellow Rose of Texas", "God Blessed Texas" and "Miles and Miles of Texas" is perfect for a celebration.

Songs for moving to or from Texas

For someone heading to Texas, "Texas Sun" and "Miles and Miles of Texas" make a great road-trip send-off, and "All My Ex's Live in Texas" is a funny pick for someone leaving. See our songs about moving for more.

More songs about American places

For more road-trip songs, see our songs about California, songs about Florida and songs about Chicago, and for the decade that gave us many Texas hits, our 90s country songs.

A song about your Texas story

A personalized country song can celebrate a true Texan: their name, their hometown, their favorite dance hall and the memories they made under those big skies. It makes a great birthday, retirement or farewell gift.

How to create a personalized country song

1. Choose a style from 14 genres: country, folk, rock and more.
2. Add their name.
3. Share three places or memories from their Texas life.
4. Review the lyrics and edit or regenerate them for free before any music is made.
5. Listen to 4 free 45-second previews and choose your favorite.

The full 3 to 4 minute song costs $35.99, or $40.99 for Premium with four full versions and editable lyrics. You get the MP3, a gift page and the lyrics as a PDF.

Give your favorite Texan a song of their own: create a song and hear four previews for free.