“Scroll down to the end of the article to listen to music.”
Introduction
There’s a quiet kind of honesty in “The Real Thing.” It’s not flashy, not loud — just steady, sincere, and full of heart. And that’s exactly what makes it pure George Strait.
The song feels like a conversation between old souls. It’s about love that’s not wrapped up in big gestures or fancy words, but in the small, unspoken things — the kind that lasts long after the spotlight fades. You can hear it in George’s voice: calm, grounded, but carrying that familiar spark of emotion that sneaks up on you halfway through the song.
When George sings, “They don’t make love like that no more,” it’s not nostalgia — it’s reverence. It’s him tipping his hat to a time when love was built on something solid, when people stuck around because they meant it. In a world that moves too fast, “The Real Thing” slows everything down. It lets you breathe, think, and maybe even remember someone who made you feel that way.
What’s beautiful about this song is how simple it is — no tricks, no overproduction, just a man, a melody, and the truth. That’s George Strait’s magic. He doesn’t have to convince you; he just reminds you.
“The Real Thing” isn’t just a song about love — it’s a reminder that some things don’t need to change. Because when it’s real, it never goes out of style.
Video
Lyrics
I was on a bus coming back to us
From Atlanta in ’53
And I picked up a Rhythm & Blues magazine
Laying underneath my seat
And I found out the stuff they’d been playing us
Wasn’t made from grits and bone
And it would take more than the Crew Cuts
And Pat Boone to take me home
I want the real thing
Give me the real thing
Make it loud I’ll make you proud
Or the songs they’d sing
I don’t want you under my roof with your 86 proof
Watered down till it tastes like tea
You’re gonna pull my string
Make it the real thing
I remember old Elvis when he forgot
To remember to forget
And when young Johnny Cash hadn’t seen this side of
Big River yet
And old Luther and Lewis and Perkins was picking
And playing them songs for me
I want the real thing
Give me the real thing
Make it loud I’ll make you proud
Or the songs they’d sing
I don’t want you under my roof with your 86 proof
Watered down till it tastes like tea
You’re gonna pull my string
Make it the real thing
