Becoming his 27th #1 single on the US country charts, Merle Haggard co-wrote "Big City" with his life-long friend Dean Holloway, who was the inspiration for the song.

After two days of recording, Haggard asked Holloway how he was, to which he replied "I hate this place. I'm tired of this dirty old city", they then immediately started writing the song.

This performance was recorded live at Church Street Station in Orlando, Florida.