Introduction
“The Cowboy Rides Away” is one of George Strait’s most enduring songs — a wistful cowboy-ballad about the end of love, written by Sonny Throckmorton and Casey Kelly. Originally released in January 1985 as the second single from Strait’s album Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind, it climbed to No. 5 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles chart and became a signature closing song in Strait’s live performances.
Over the years, “The Cowboy Rides Away” took on more than a romantic lament: it became a symbolic farewell anthem. When, in 2012, Strait announced his intention to retire from touring, he named his farewell tour The Cowboy Rides Away Tour. That tour ran through 2013 and into mid-2014, spanning 48 concerts across the United States, with Strait and his long-time backing band, the Ace in the Hole Band, performing both his classic hits and deep cuts.
The climactic moment came on June 7, 2014, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas — the final show of the tour. That night, 104,793 fans were in attendance, setting a record for indoor concert attendance in the U.S., and Strait closed the show — and, symbolically, his touring career — with “The Cowboy Rides Away.” His performance was captured and released later that year as a live album and video, titled The Cowboy Rides Away: Live from AT&T Stadium.
Thus, the 2014 live version is not just a performance — it is a landmark moment in George Strait’s career. It represents both a nostalgic echo of a classic and a powerful farewell to the touring life, rendered before a record crowd and etched into his musical legacy.