Ace in the Hole Band

And that was when he discovered his voice, that unique sound that belongs to George Strait.

When his military service ended, he returned to Texas and enrolled at Southwest Texas State University, where he got his degree in agriculture and joined a local band that later became known as the Ace and the Hole Band.

Now, this was the band that they would go around and they would play Texas dance halls and honky tonks and started building a loyal regional following.

Around this time, George started making trips up to Nashville to try to look for a record deal But nobody was interested in him.

But his wife, Norma, encouraged him to try for one more year.

And that decision, y'all, changed country music forever.

A former record promoter and Texas club owner named Irv Woolsey, he'd heard George perform with the Ace in the Hole band And was a huge supporter of George.

And so he eventually persuaded MCA Records to take a chance on George Strait.