Country traditionalist Craig Gerdes is debuting his cover of Johnny Paycheck’s “Slide Off of Your Satin Sheets” exclusively for readers of The Boot.
Gerdes’ take on the classic Paycheck ode to cheating keeps the original version's 1970s vibe intact, thanks in large part to some of Nashville’s finest session musicians, who play on the track. “Slide Off of Your Satin Sheets” also features the pedal steel playing of Jim Vest, who recorded the original track with Paycheck; Gerdes calls working with him "like going back through a time warp to 1977.”
“He relived every detail of recording the song, from Phil Baugh, to Pig Robbins, to legendary producer Billy Sherrill. Working with him in the studio was an incredible experience and a lesson in country music history,” Gerdes tells The Boot. “He took us all back through the paces of how the song originally came together and how it was nearly shelved before the two stumbled onto the signature lick that defined it forever. Wayne Carson and Donn Tankersly had written a great song, but it still needed that defining element. Paycheck and Jim Vest worked their magic, and rest is country music history."
According to Gerdes, the song’s pedal steel is, in fact, what originally drew him to perform this cover.
“It always captured my attention for some reason, even long before I ever met Jim in Nashville. I felt good singing it and at the time was unaware of it being covered commercially by anyone since Paycheck,” he says. “I later found that out that it had been covered in 2014 by Gene Watson. Nevertheless, having the opportunity to cover it and have Jim Vest on pedal steel was something that felt historic, true and an honor to have the (Read More)