Story Behind the Song: George Strait, ‘Wrapped’
Bruce Robison has written dozens of songs for both himself and other artists: the Tim McGraw and Faith Hill duet "Angry All the Time," "Travelin' Soldier" by the Dixie Chicks and more. But when asked which song is his favorite, Robinson says it's "Wrapped."
"Wrapped," the title track of Robison's 1998 album, was recorded by his wife, Kelly Willis, for her album What I Deserve, and became a No. 1 hit for George Strait, who included the song on his 2006 album It Just Comes Natural. Below, Robison recalls the story of heartache -- with a happy ending -- behind "Wrapped."
The girl I ended up marrying had completely destroyed me, broke my heart. Austin, [Texas] is a lot like Nashville now, where it’s so big, but at that point, it felt like a really small town, and everywhere I would go, I would see her little car outside.
I just couldn’t get over her. And so, I wrote that song completely in response to that, and [about] that feeling of, every time I thought I was over her, I’d see her again, and I’d realize that she had me wrapped around her finger. So, true story -- and I married her. Four kids later, yikes.
I love to play that [song], and Strait did such a great job on that. George Strait in Texas, golly -- he’s just so much a part of life down there. So when he did a couple of my songs, it was such an amazing thing. Your family feels like, "He must be doing all right if George Strait cut one of his songs." And then, when I play that live and everybody seems to know it, and they sing along with it, it’s just the best feeling.
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