Seven Spanish Angels

"Seven Spanish Angels" is a song written by Troy Seals and Eddie Setser, and recorded by American country music artist Willie Nelson as a duet with Ray Charles. It was released in November 1984 as the first single from the album Half Nelson. "Seven Spanish Angels" was the most successful of Ray Charles' eight hits on the country chart. The single spent one week at number one and a total of twelve weeks on the country chart.^[1]

Song story

The song is about a Mexican outlaw and his wife who are trying to outrun a posse trying to return them to Texas. When they are finally cornered and exhausted from running, they decide to fight the approaching lawmen with gunfire.

Before the final gunfight, the two embrace passionately, promising each other that God will spare them and they will eventually be in a better place. The gunfight then commences, with the outlaw firing upon the squadron. He is immediately shot and killed, prompting his distraught wife to pick up his rifle from his hand. She tearfully prays, "Father, please forgive me; I can't make it without my man." Even though she is well aware there is no ammunition in the chamber, she points it at the lawmen and is then shot dead.

After each fatal shooting, seven Spanish angels gather (presumably in Heaven) to pray for "the lovers in the Valley of the Gun." After the gunfights end and the smoke clears, "there was thunder from the throne" and the angels proceed to take "another angel home". ^[2]

(In the song, Charles sings the first verse, about the man's part of the battle. Nelson takes the second verse, where the woman decides to join her now-deceased husband.)

Chart performance

Cover versions

• Canadian country music artist George Canyon covered the song on his 2007 album, Classics.
• Both Norwegian-born Country music artist, Heidi Hauge, and Dutch-born Peter Naude have covered the song; the latter turning it in to a more modern pop version.
• Mati Nuude recorded an Estonian language version.
• Czech country group Greenhorns covered the song as Sedm španělských andělů (Seven Spanish Angels), with lyrics faithful to the spirit of the original.
• Czech country singer Pavel Bobek covered the song as Muž na konci světa (Man at the end of the world) in 2002, with completely different lyrics in Czech language.
• Croatian singer Mišo Kovač covered the song as Ti si pjesma moje duše (You Are the Song of My Soul) in 1986., with altered lyrics in Croatian language, and it became a big hit in Yugoslavia.
• Mid-west country singer Smokey Smith covered the song on his album "Songs of Life 2".
• Adam Harvey (Australian Country Singer) covers on his 2014 country classic songbook album
• Jamaican dancehall artist Beenie Man covered the song on his 1994 album Dis Unu Fi Hear.
• Kari Tapio recorded a Finnish language version, Enkeleitä seitsemän (Seven angels).
• Stoney LaRue covered the song as a duet with Cody Canada on his 2015 album Us Time.
• The Jamaican reggae artist Garnett Silk covered the song to his album Nothing Can Divide Us.

References