Baby Blue (George Strait song)
{{Infobox song
| name = Baby Blue
| cover =
| alt =
| type = single
| artist = George Strait
| album = If You Ain't Lovin' You Ain't Livin'
| B-side = Back to Bein' Me
| released = April 25, 1988
| recorded = September 29, 1987
| studio =
| venue =
| genre = Countrypolitan{{cite web |last1=Liebig |first1=Lorie |title=Ranking All 60 of George Strait's |url=https://theboot.com/george-strait-no-1-songs/ |website=The Boot |access-date=September 19, 2024 |date=November 18, 2022}}
| length = 3:32
| label = MCA 53340
| writer = Aaron Barker
| producer = Jimmy Bowen, George Strait
| prev_title = Famous Last Words of a Fool
| prev_year = 1988
| next_title = If You Ain't Lovin' (You Ain't Livin')
| next_year = 1988
}}
"Baby Blue" is a song written by Aaron Barker, and recorded by American country music artist George Strait. It was released in April 1988 as the second single from his album If You Ain't Lovin' You Ain't Livin'. It was a number-one hit in the United States,{{cite book|title= The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944–2006, Second edition|last=Whitburn |first=Joel |author-link=Joel Whitburn |publisher=Record Research |year=2004 |page=336}} while it peaked at number 3 in Canada.
Critical reception
[https://www.countryuniverse.net/author/admin/ Kevin John Coyne] of Country Universe gave the song an A, calling it "another one of Strait’s smoothest pop performances, with just enough country touches in the production to keep his traditionalist credentials intact." Coyne states that "taken literally as a love gone wrong song, it’s a beautiful piece of work."[http://www.countryuniverse.net/2012/07/21/retro-single-review-george-strait-baby-blue/ CountryUniverse.net] Song review{{Cite web |last=Koyle |first=Kevin |title=Every #1 Country Single of the Eighties: George Strait, "Baby Blue" |url=https://www.countryuniverse.net/2024/07/22/every-1-country-single-of-the-eighties-george-strait-baby-blue/ |access-date=2024-09-05 |website=www.countryuniverse.net|date=22 July 2024 }}
Charts
{{col-start}}
{{col-2}}
=Weekly charts=
| class="wikitable sortable"
!align="left"|Chart (1988) !align="center"|Peak |
| align="left"|Canada Country Tracks (RPM)
|align="center"|3 |
| {{singlechart|Billboardcountrysongs|1|artist=George Strait}} |
{{col-2}}
=Year-end charts=
| class="wikitable"
!Chart (1988) !Position |
| align="left"|Canadian RPM Country Tracks{{cite web|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/CANADA/RPM/80s/1988/RPM-1988-12-24.pdf|title=Top 100 Country Singles of '88|work=RPM|page=15|date=December 24, 1988}}
|align="center"|58 |
| US Hot Country Songs (Billboard){{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/1988/hot-country-songs|title=Hot Country Songs – Year-End 1988|magazine=Billboard|accessdate=July 8, 2021}}
|align="center"|32 |
{{col-end}}
Certifications
{{Certification Table Top}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|award=Gold|certyear=2023|title=Baby Blue|artist=George Strait|type=single|accessdate=June 22, 2023|relyear=1988}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|streaming=true|nosales=true|noshipments=true}}
References
{{reflist}}
- [{{Allmusic|class=artist|id=p1829|pure_url=yes}} Allmusic]
{{George Strait 1980s singles}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baby Blue (George Strait Song)}}
Category:Song recordings produced by Jimmy Bowen
Category:Songs written by Aaron Barker
{{1988-country-song-stub}}