Boulder to Birmingham
song written and composed by Emmylou Harris and Bill Danoff, originally recorded by Emmylou Harris and released in 1975
"Boulder to Birmingham" is a song written by Emmylou Harris and Bill Danoff that first appeared on Harris's 1975 album Pieces of the Sky.
Critical reception
In 2024, Rolling Stone ranked the song at #153 on its 200 Greatest Country Songs of All Time ranking. In June 2026, CBS News included the song in its list of the 250 essential American songs of the past 250 years.
Cover versions
A version was recorded in 1975 by Scott Walker and the Walker Brothers on their No Regrets album.
Bill Danoff recorded the song with his group, the Starland Vocal Band, on their 1976 self-titled debut album.
Dolly Parton included a cover of the song on her 1976 All I Can Do album.
Joan Baez cut a live version of the song and it originally appeared on her 1976 live album From Every Stage; the track later appeared in the compilation Joan Baez: The Complete A&M Recordings (released September 23, 2003).
A version of the song was a hit in New Zealand for The Hollies, reaching number ten there, and later appeared on its 1978 album A Crazy Steal.
The song also appeared in a 1984 episode of The Dukes of Hazzard titled "Play It Again, Luke" in which it was sung by actor Tom Wopat as Luke and guest star Roberta Leighton as country singer and a former flame of Luke's named Candy Dix.
Jim Horn recorded a version of the song on his 2012 album Children of the Universe featuring Renee Armand on vocals.
The public source identifies “Boulder to Birmingham” as song written and composed by Emmylou Harris and Bill Danoff, originally recorded by Emmylou Harris and released in 1975. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Boulder, Birmingham and song.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Boulder to Birmingham”, the useful work is to connect “song written and composed by Emmylou Harris and Bill Danoff, originally recorded by Emmylou Harris and released in 1975” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Attribution, date and provenance are strongest when supported by the original work, a catalogue record and documented transmission. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 30, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q4949607. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1975, 2024, 2026 and 1976.
Titles can refer to several editions, objects or performances, making precise identification essential before interpretation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
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The original object or edition, catalogue raisonné, performance record, rights file and holding institution.
Three-step research path
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Questions for further research
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Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Boulder to Birmingham” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.