How Did I Not Know This Travis Tritt Classic Was Originally an Elvis Song?

I was today years old when I realized my favorite song of all time is much older than I thought.

Anyone who knows me will tell you that Travis Tritt has been my favorite artist since...well, birth. Maybe it's because we share the same first name, or perhaps it's because he just puts out great country music with his soulful voice. Either way, he has always been it for me.

The fun thing about Travis Tritt is that he is actually responsible for teaching me how to spell my first word. I still remember the first day of pre-school, when the teacher asked students to spell a word. While all of the other kids in my class spelled words like mom, dad, cat, and dog, Little Travis was far more advanced. When my turn finally came around I proudly stood up and sang "T-R-O-U-B-L-E". The teacher was curious about how I knew how to spell that word and why I sang it. All I said back were two words, "Travis Tritt".

If I ever get the chance to meet him, I want to tell him "thank you for making me the smartest kid in pre-school...at least for a day." However, it wasn't until the other day that I discovered that my favorite song of all time was not an original song by Travis Tritt. How I didn't know this is baffling. I feel like I have been living a lie for nearly 30 years.

Travis Tritt Was Not The First To Sing "T-R-O-U-B-L-E"

Judging by the title of this article, by now, you have probably guessed that Elvis Presley was the original singer of "T-R-O-U-B-L-E", not Travis Tritt. If you already knew that, congratulations. However, if you are like me and always associated that song with just Travis Tritt, you might be mind blown to hear this news. Since this week is the anniversary of Elvis Presley's death, I figured now was the perfect time to share the news.

I discovered this after going to see the new "Elvis" movie, which was fantastic by the way. Last week, I was on a bit of an Elvis kick, and got on YouTube and searched "Elvis Evansville, Indiana", to see if there's any footage of him performing locally at Roberts Stadium. That's when I found this video:

Upon hearing this song, I immediately recognized it but thought "is that really Elvis?" After a little research, I was mind blown to find out that this song was not originally recorded by Travis Tritt in 1992. In fact, Elvis actually recorded the song 17 years earlier, in 1975. The song was written by Jerry Chesnut earlier that year.

Now, as you'll be able to tell, lyrically the two versions of the song are very different. Elvis' original recording seems to have more lyrics than Travis Tritt's version, which we all know today. Check out both versions below:

Both are recordings of the song are great, and while Elvis may be the King...Travis Tritt's take on "T-R-O-U-B-L-E" will always be the one that everyone will immediately recognize...and it will still always be my favorite!