Crazy (song)

This article is about the song written by Willie Nelson and famously performed by Patsy Cline. For other songs with the same title, see this list

"Crazy" is a famous ballad composed by Willie Nelson and first recorded by Patsy Cline.

Nelson wrote the song in early 1961; at the time he was a journeyman singer-songwriter who had written several hits for other artists but had not yet had a significant recording of his own. Cline was already a country music superstar who was working to extend a string of hits. Nelson originally wrote the song for country singer Billy Walker, but Walker turned it down and Cline picked it as a followup to her previous big hit "I Fall to Pieces". The song was released in late 1961 and immediately became another huge hit for Cline, eventually becoming one of her signature tunes, and its success helped launch Nelson as a performer as well as a songwriter.

Musically the song is a jazz-pop ballad with country overtones. The complex melody suited Cline's vocal talent perfectly and widened the crossover audience she had established with her prior hits. The lyrics describe the singer's state of bemusement at the singer's own helpless love for the object of his affection.

Partly due to the genre-blending nature of the song, it has been covered by dozens of artists in several genres over the years. Notable versions include those performed by Julio Iglesias, Kenny Rogers, and LeAnn Rimes. Nelson himself has also recorded several versions of the song over the years; nevertheless the song remains inextricably linked with Cline.

The song was used as theme music for Ross Perot's presidential campaign in 1992.