"El Paso" is a western ballad written and originally recorded by Marty Robbins, and first released on Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs in September 1959. It was released as a single the following month, and became a major hit on both the country and pop music charts, reaching No. 1 in both at the start of 1960 (the first No. 1 hit of the 1960s). It won the Grammy Award for Best Country & Western Recording in 1961. It is widely considered a genre classic for its gripping narrative which ends in the death of its protagonist, its shift from past to present tense, haunting harmonies by vocalists Bobby Sykes and Jim Glaser (of the Glaser Brothers) and the eloquent and varied Spanish guitar accompaniment by Grady Martin that lends the recording a distinctive Tex-Mex feel. The name of the character Feleena was based upon a schoolmate of Robbins in the fifth grade, Fidelina Martinez. Members of the Western Writers of America chose "El Paso" as one of the Top 100 Western songs of all time. Storyline The song is a first-person narrative told by a cowboy in El Paso, Texas, in the days of the Wild West. The singer recalls how he frequented "Rosa's Cantina", where he became smitten with a young Mexican dancer named Feleena. When the singer notices another cowboy sharing a drink with "wicked Feleena", out of jealousy he challenges the newcomer to a gunfight. The singer kills the newcomer, then flees. In the act of escaping, the singer commits the additional hanging offense of horse theft. Departing the town, the singer hides out in the "badlands of New Mexico." The song then fast-forwards to an undisclosed time later – the lyrics at this point change from past to present tense – when the singer describes the yearning for Feleena that drives him to return, without regard for his own life, to El Paso. He states that his "love is stronger than [his] fear of death." Upon arriving, the singer races for the cantina, but is chased and fatally wounded by a posse. Feleena rushes to his side, and he dies in her arms after "one little kiss". Chart performance Weekly charts Year-end charts All-time charts Versions There have been three versions of Robbins' original recording of "El Paso": the original full-length version, the edited version, and the abbreviated version, which is an alternate take in