It was a 70s country classic that moved listeners across the country. Originally written and composed by Kris Kristofferson and later covered by Sammi Smith, the ballad was incredibly successful. Kristofferson admitted that his inspiration for this song came from singer Frank Sinatra. During an interview, Sinatra was asked “what do you believe in?” the “Fly Me to the Moon” singer responded with,
“Booze, broads, or a bible… whatever helps me make it through the night.”
The rest was history. Since then, numerous other country stars have gone on to cover the tune as well. The list includes Loretta Lynn, Elvis Presley, and Willie Nelson.
One country star, in particular, saw a different potential for the classic tune. Country singer, songwriter, and comedian Ray Stevens took Kristofferson’s ballad to a whole different level. “The Streak” star took the rather slow love song and “put a little fire in it.”
The parody starts with Stevens gracefully playing the piano while singing the famous tune. Before he makes it to the chorus, “Western” Stevens cuts him off exclaiming that the song isn’t moving him and calls for a little twist! The rest of the video features Stevens dressed as hillbillies, a little girl, a butler, a lumberjack and several more characters! Parodying the song, the comedian hits every verse on point.
The hilarious parody brought plenty of attention to the song making it a win for all artists involved! No hard feelings between the singers as they had previously done songwriting together leading to the popular hit “Sunday Morning Coming Down.”
Get a laugh out of this throwback parody below!