On 26 July 1980, Merle Haggard and Clint Eastwood topped the US country chart with "Bar Room Buddies", a duet from the soundtrack of Eastwood's film Bronco Billy, which held the No. 1 spot for a week. The pairing is notable because the song was originally intended for a duet between Eastwood and George Jones, widely regarded as country music's greatest vocalist, before scheduling conflicts forced producer and co-writer Snuff Garrett to turn to Haggard instead.

Haggard was already a well-established star by 1980, having built roughly two decades of hits, including "Ramblin' Fever" and "The Roots of My Raising", and had opened the year with the No. 2 single "The Way I Am". Both men later spoke candidly about the collaboration: Eastwood told Rolling Stone in 1985 that Haggard "had a hit and sort of dragged me along", while Haggard admitted to Newsweek that he "almost prostituted" himself with the song, jokingly telling Eastwood he was a better actor than singer.