Top 10 Lyle Lovett Songs

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Our Top 10 Lyle Lovett Songs list looks a great musician and songwriter born and raised in the Houston, Texas area. Lyle Lovett became a university graduate, receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in German and Journalism in 1980. At the same time frame of his graduation, Lovett was also performing solo acts as a singer and musician at a variety of small bars and clubs near the university he was attending. In 1986, he officially launched his music career to a new level after signing with MCA Records and releasing his debut album, which was named after him. For the most part, his genre of music was country, but Lovett has also been known to engage in jazz, pop, and rock as his music style sometimes became crossover hits. Lyle Lovett’s career has seen a total of eleven studio albums released, as well as two compilation albums, a live album, and twenty-seven singles.

Top 10 Lyle Lovett Songs

#10 – You Can’t Resist It

Originally, “You Can’t Resist It” was a song recorded on Lyle Lovett’s self-titled debut album, which was released in 1986. In 1991, it was included as a single in the soundtrack belonging to the motion picture, Switch, At the 1992 Grammy Awards ceremony, the song earned a nomination for Best Song Written for Visual Media. On the music charts in 1991, You Can’t Resist It peaked at number thirty-three on RPM Canada’s Adult Contemporary chart, and number seventy-seven on RPM Canada’s Top Singles chart. When the song was performed live in 1999 on the Live In Texas album, this version of the song reached number six on the US Billboard Alternative Adult Songs chart.

#9 – Private Conversation

The album, The Road to Ensenada, was released on June 18, 1996, which became the third out of four studio albums released by Lyle Lovett to become certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America. The lead single from that album was “Private Conversation,” which peaked at number twelve on the US Billboard Alternative Adult Contemporary Songs chart and at number seventy-two on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.

#8 – If I Were the Man You Wanted

Although Lyle Lovett’s self-titled debut album was released in 1986, the single, “If I Were the Man You Wanted,” would not realize chart success until 1989, which was at number forty-nine on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and at number fifty on RPM Canada’s Country Tracks chart. In 1984, Nanci Griffith, along with Lovett’s vocal performance of the song, had this recorded on her album, Once in a Very Blue Moon.

#7 – If I Had a Boat

“If I Had a Boat” was the lead track from Lyle Lovett’s second studio album, Pontiac, which was released in 1987 through the RCA Records label. According to Lovett, the song he wrote and performed was based on a true story when he attempted to ride a pony across a pond and realized at the time how much easier it would have been using a boat instead. The song was released as the final single from the album, which peaked at number sixty-six on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.

#6 – That’s Right (You’re Not from Texas)

In 1997, the single, “That’s Right (You’re Not from Texas),” was released as the fourth track from his album, The Road to Ensenada. While the song itself didn’t chart, it became one of the most popular songs Lyle Lovett ever recorded. The Texas tourism industry made good use of the song in their advertising campaigns. AllMusic issued a review the song was good, funny material without being silly. Both the song and Lyle Lovett received high acclaim from his home state of Texas as he was later named Texas State Artist Musician in 2011 by the Texas Commission of Arts and was inducted into the Austin City Limits hall of fame on October 24, 2019.

#5 – God Will

The shortest single from Lyle Lovett’s self-titled debut album is “God Will,” which was the third out of five singles from the album that would realize chart success. In 1987, on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, it peaked at number eighteen while on RPM Canada’s Country Tracks, at number twenty-three. At two minutes and thirteen seconds, it is the shortest track coming from the album. The song served as a solid example of the radical difference between God’s willingness to forgive and forget while such a feat doesn’t seem so simple among people once they feel betrayed by someone they loved.

#4 – Blues for Dixie (featuring Asleep at the Wheel)

In 1993, Lyle Lovett collaborated with swing band, Asleep at the Wheel, for the Grammy Award-winning single, “Blues for Dixie.” The album, Tribute to the Music of Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys, was recorded and released on October 25, 1993, where each track served as an homage to Asleep at the Wheel’s biggest influence that had them become musicians themselves. The song, Blues for Dixie, earned a 1994 Grammy Award for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.

#3 – Give Back My Heart

Lyle Lovett’s second album, Pontiac, brought forth five singles that would realize chart success for the country singer-songwriter. The single, “Give Back My Heart,” achieved the best charting success on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart when it peaked at number thirteen. On RPM Canada’s Country Tracks chart, it peaked at number eighteen.

#2 – Cowboy Man

Coming from Lyle Lovett’s self-titled debut album, which was released in 1986, the single, “Cowboy Man,” became his first top ten hit on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart by ranking tenth. It also peaked at number twenty-three on RPM Canada’s Country Tracks chart. The song was originally written by Lovett, along with four others, that were included in the demo tape he gave to Merlin Littlefield, a member of the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP).

#1 – She’s No Lady

Coming from Lyle Lovett’s second studio album, Pontiac, the single, “She’s No Lady,” peaked on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in 1988, and at number eight on RPM Canada’s Country Tracks. On the Dutch Charts, the song charted at number forty-eight. In 1989, the song was nominated for Best Country Song by the Grammy Awards, but lost out to K.T. Wilson and her single, “Hold Me.”