[2] In October 1963, while walking in his farm in Ridgetop, Tennessee, Nelson was inspired to write the song after he remembered a man he often saw while he lived in Fort Worth, Texas.

[3] The man moved with rollers, selling paper and pencils in front of Leonard's Department Store.

[6] In October 1963, Nelson sang "Pretty Paper" for Foster, who was impressed and decided to forward the song to Roy Orbison in London.

The song was included on More of Roy Orbison's Greatest Hits in 1964, and has appeared on numerous compilations through the years.

There have been numerous cover versions of the song, by artists including Glen Campbell (1968), Mickey Gilley (1976), Randy Travis (1986), Don McLean (1991), Asleep at the Wheel (1997), Kenny Chesney (2003), Chris Isaak (2004), Reverend Horton Heat (2005), Emmy Rossum (2013), The Lumineers (2018), Dolly Parton (2020), Eilen Jewell (2021) and dozens of others.