The film juxtaposes these lyrics by presenting the song in the context of Tom, a character played by Carradine, who is a manipulative womanizer.

In the film, when Tom performs the song at the Exit/In (a real-life Nashville music club where the scene was shot), he dedicates it to "a special someone".

"I'm Easy" was initially released as an acoustic guitar ballad played by guitarist Ben Benay, with a cello accompaniment.

It was re-recorded by Carradine at a slightly higher tempo with the addition of percussion, keyboards and synthesizer accompaniment on Asylum Records.

The song is often mistakenly associated with Jim Croce due to the similarity of Carradine's voice, vocal style and guitar playing.