Carly Pearce Soars on ‘Cowboy Take Me Away’ Cover [LISTEN]
Carly Pearce released an incredible cover of the Dixie Chicks 1999 classic, "Cowboy Take Me Away," on Amazon Music Friday (March 6). Pearce's version is quieter than the Dixie Chicks', but just as moving.
The way Pearce's full and powerful voice delicately moves from verse to chorus gives the song a feeling of introspection. Pearce's version feels like a song where a woman is quietly committing herself to love, in contrast to the Dixie Chicks' version, which is full of yearning. It's not until the last chorus where Pearce's version soars into the the crescendoed ache that runs though the entirety of the Dixie Chicks' original take on the tune.
Pearce made the song her own, through the overall pace and feeling she put behind the lyrics. The way Pearce sings "Cowboy take me away / Fly this girl as high as you can / Into the wild blue..." in the first chorus sounds like a quiet vow between long-time partners.
"Cowboy Take Me Away" is the second single off the Dixie Chicks' '99 album, Fly and was written by Dixie Chicks member Martie Maguire and singer-songwriter Marcus Hummon. It hit no. 1 on the Billboard country chart when it was released.
Hear Pearce's take on the track below:
Pearce's self-titled second album was released on Feb. 14, 2020. "The heartbeat of the record is the fact that I fell in love," Pearce told The Boot, "and that kind of snowballed everything." The heartbeat of her album is all over the heartbeat of this cover.
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