Raised in Velma, Oklahoma, Diffie worked in a foundry while playing local nightclubs in Oklahoma and moved to Nashville in 1986 to work for Gibson Guitar Corporation.
His first album arrived in 1990 when country music was thriving commercially and creatively. His first single, a sensitive traditional country ballad, Home, reached No. 1, although Diffie quickly counted on novelty hits to sustain his career. For instance, his other No. 1 hits are Pickup Man, Bigger Than the Beatles, Third Rock From the Sun and If the Devil Danced (In Empty Pockets). Toward the end of the 1990s, Diffie lost his chart momentum and left Epic Records following his 2001 album, In Another World. Subsequently, he toured with Mark Chesnutt and Tracy Lawrence on the Rockin' Roadhouse tour.
In 2013, Diffie collaborated with Aaron Tippin and Sammy Kershaw on the album All in the Same Boat, and cut the single "Girl Riding Shotgun" with D Thrash of the Jawga Boyz. This was followed in 2019 by a vinyl album called Joe, Joe, Joe Diffie.
Diffie passed away from complications of coronavirus (COVID-19) on March 29, 2020.
Texas Size Heartache
Joe Diffie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It was a pitiful sight, me begging her to stay.
I never had a hunch, so how was I to know
That she packed a punch that knocked my heart out cold?
She put a hurtin' on this old cowboy,
Broke my heart like a little play toy,
Brought me to my knees from ten feet tall.
I cried crocodile tears in my pillow.
The bigger they are, the harder they fall.
How could a blue-eyed beauty only five-foot-three
Lay a Texas size heartache on me?
She came across so cool I didn't think that I'd get burned.
Now I'm a big ol' fool with a leaving lesson learned.
I thought I was strong like old Hercules,
But she proved me wrong with her little see'est la vie!
She put a hurtin' on this old cowboy,
Broke my heart like a little play toy,
Brought me to my knees from ten feet tall.
The night she left me in Amarillo
I cried crocodile tears in my pillow.
The bigger they are, the harder they fall.
How could a blue-eyed beauty only five-foot-three
Lay a Texas size heartache on me?
How could a blue-eyed beauty only five-foot-three
Lay a Texas size heartache on me?
In Joe Diffie's song, "Texas Size Heartache," the singer reflects on his heartbreak after being left by a woman who seemed to have a cool demeanor. He describes her as a "little Miss Dynamite" who packed more of a punch than he could have anticipated. The singer is left in a pitiful state, begging the woman to stay, and feeling humbled as he realizes how much power she held over his heart.
The woman was able to hurt the singer deeply, leaving him feeling broken and small. He compares himself to a cowboy who has been knocked down by a little toy, and he acknowledges the irony in the situation, as he was once "ten feet tall." When the woman left him in Amarillo, the singer was crushed, and he cried crocodile tears in his pillow. He reflects on how someone as small as her could "lay a Texas size heartache on [him]."
The theme of the song is that love and heartbreak can come from unexpected places, and that sometimes the people who seem the coolest or smallest can pack the biggest punch.
Line by Line Meaning
A little Miss Dynamite just blew my world away.
I met a girl who completely captivated me.
It was a pitiful sight, me begging her to stay.
I was so devastated by her leaving that I begged her to stay.
I never had a hunch, so how was I to know
That she packed a punch that knocked my heart out cold?
I had no idea that she would hurt me so badly; she completely broke my heart.
She put a hurtin' on this old cowboy,
Broke my heart like a little play toy,
Brought me to my knees from ten feet tall.
She caused me so much pain and heartbreak that I was completely destroyed by it.
The night she left me in Amarillo
I cried crocodile tears in my pillow.
The bigger they are, the harder they fall.
After she left me, I was inconsolable, and my size and strength couldn't protect me from the pain.
How could a blue-eyed beauty only five-foot-three
Lay a Texas size heartache on me?
How could someone who seemed so sweet and harmless cause me so much heartbreak and devastation?
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: LONNIE WILSON, ZACK TURNER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
David Ostrander
RIP Joe. You will be missed. This song is one of my favorites! Back when counrty music was good!
The Mad Catter
A lot of people don’t know who Joe Diffie was in 2020. I’ve been a life long fan. This is my favorite song by him. It payed when I was about to ride my first bull. It played in my tractor while I mowed my field. This guy was a country legend and I hope his family reads this. He was there on my radio through a lot in my life. A pretty girl next to me who is now my wife, a dog in the back seat, and Joe Diffie on the radio.... those where the days.
kristina touirtou
R I P Joe Diffie. This coronavirus is awful. He will be greatly missed but his music will live forever
Jon Holmes
What the hell I didn't hear about that oh my God
Daniel Moore
Rest in peace, Joe! Your songs will live on and be loved forever!
W a y n e - B r o c k
20 years later, this song is still the best that Joe ever done.
Christopher Sherrell
Pick up man, John Deere Green, White Lightning, Third Rock....hardley his best but def a good one.
Hazedidit
Damn good song but hard to beat “ships that don’t come in” or “ so help me girl “...
Tim Branson
@Christopher Sherrell The ones you mentioned are nowhere near the top
SUTTY BUDDY
If there’s any song by Joe Diffie people know it’s “Pickup man”. I went to Alan Jackson’s tornado benefit concert last Saturday and Jered Ames who plays at Alan’s bar was there. He played “Pickup man” and I said “Pickup man”? If you ask me why not “Honky tonk attitude”?