It’s already been established that Chris Stapleton can sing anything, right?
So, when I saw this video of Stapleton singing the Josh Turner classic “Your Man,” a song that he wrote alongside Chris DuBois and Jace Everett, I knew I was in for a treat.
Keep in mind that this performance was a whole 2 years before Traveller released in 2015, so Stapleton was most likely not well-known to your general country music listener.
Of course, he was a pretty well-known songwriter and wrote and co-wrote so many hits before venturing out on his own as a singer, including another Josh Turner hit, “Another Try,” which was recorded as a duet alongside Trisha Yearwood.
But after a short and sweet introduction from the Bing Lounge back in 2013, Stapleton readies his guitar, and freaking kills it.
I mean, imagine the average country fan’s surprise at hearing that voice.
Now, one the first things that I noticed about this cover is that since it is completely acoustic, just Stapleton and his guitar, the song feels more upbeat and peppy, rather than the sensual groove that has made so many people swoon.
Also, while Turner’s voice is smooth like butter, Stapleton’s voice has this grit and gruffness that really shines on this song. And each time he gets to the chorus, that grit is upped and upped until the growl that comes from Stapleton makes everyone in the video stop what they’re doing and look up.
I am absolutely no exception.
I had this video playing in the background while I was scrolling on Twitter or YouTube or something. All I know is that I was on a different tab, so when that last growl boomed out, I frantically clicked around until I found the right tab with the right video.
And then I promptly re-watched those few minutes over and over and, oh yeah… over again.
I gotta be honest, I adore Josh Turner’s version, and I can appreciate a smooth voice, but I’m a gravel girl through and through, so this Chris Stapleton version is something that just checks all my boxes.
Admittedly, I might prefer even more than the original.
Believe it or not, “Your Man” was Chris’ first career #1 single:
“This next song I wrote on Valentine’s Day, I was working on Valentine’s Day so I figured I’d write something nice and sweet.
It wound up bein’ my first #1 song… it bought me a house.”
Josh’s studio version:
