3 Songs to Celebrate the Late, Great Cowboy Copas on His Birthday

Today (July 15) country legend Cowboy Copas would have been 111 years old. Born Lloyd Estel Copas, the country singer found fame in the early ‘40s when he replaced Eddy Arnold as the singer in the Pee Wee King Band. Copas also performed alongside King in the Golden West Cowboys. However, the most successful years of his career came when he went solo starting with his debut single “Filipino Baby” in 1946.

Copas was riding a wave of fame when, in 1963, his life tragically ended. The 49-year-old country singer was on the same plane that killed Patsy Cline and Hawkshaw Hawkins when it went down in a forest outside of Camden, Tennessee, some 90 miles from Nashville.

[RELATED: A Look Behind the Death of Patsy Cline and Her Lasting Legacy Today]

To celebrate Copas’ birthday, we’ll look back at a few of the biggest hits from his solo career.

“Filipino Baby”—Cowboy Copas’ Debut Single

“Filipino Baby” has a fairly deep history. Bill Cox and Clarke Van Ness wrote it and Cox and Cliff Hobs released it as a single in 1938. Nearly a decade later Cowboy Copas recorded and released a rendition of the song in 1946 as his debut single. His version of the song became a No. 4 hit on the Billboard country chart. However, he wasn’t the only one to have a hit with this song. T. Texas Tyler and Ernest Tubb also scored hits with it in the same year.

“Signed Sealed and Delivered”—A Hit Twice-Over

Cowboy Copas co-wrote “Signed Sealed and Delivered” with Louis Mann and released it twice. First, he released the song with King Records in 1946 shortly after “Filipino Baby.” It went to the No. 2 spot on the Billboard country chart. Then, he re-recorded it in 1960 for Starday Records. The song went to No. 10 on the chart, giving Copas another hit. Hear the 1960 version below.

“Alabam”—Cowboy Copas’ Sole No. 1

Cowboy Copas was a popular performer in his day. However, he only sent one single to the top of the country chart. He wrote “Alabam” and released it as a single in June 1960. The song went to the top of the Billboard country chart and peaked at No. 63 on the all-genre Hot 100, giving Copas his sole No. 1 and only single on the Hot 100.

“Alabam” didn’t just go to the top of the country chart though. It went to the top and stayed there for a whopping 12 weeks.

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