‘Cowboys’ song suddenly topical

Willie Nelson, whose hits include “Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys” and “My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys,” released a different sort of cowboy anthem this week.

“Cowboys Are Frequently, Secretly (Fond of Each Other)” may be the first gay cowboy song by a major recording artist. But it was written long before this year’s Oscar-nominated “Brokeback Mountain” made gay cowboys a hot topic.

Available exclusively through iTunes, the song features choppy Tex-Mex-style guitar runs and Nelson’s deadpan delivery of lines such as “What did you think all them saddles and boots was about?” and “Inside every cowboy there’s a lady who’d love to slip out.”

The song was written by Texas-born singer-songwriter Ned Sublette in 1981.