It's hard to divorce what we know about country stars' private lives from how we perceive their new music— and not just if we're seeking the tell-tale signs of a breakup album. Surely, Luke Combs' situation as a spouse and first-time parent shaped the lyrical content and overall tone of his two most recent albums, even if those changes came subconsciously. In Tim McGraw's case, his openness about how he's processed his three daughters with spouse Faith Hill leaving home can't help but make us wonder if that impacted the nostalgic feel of Standing Room Only, his 17th studio album.
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Of the 13 album tracks, only "Nashville CA/ L.A. Tennessee" comes across as an on-the-nose exploration of this season in McGraw's life. However, he does describe this set of songs as therapeutic.
"We all make mistakes and we're going to make mistakes and we're going to do bad stuff, and all you can do is try to get up the next day and be the best you can be that day, and know you're going to screw up again later down the road, and you got to figure out how to put that behind you," McGraw told Apple Music 1's Zane Lowe. "And I'm lucky because music is cathartic and for me, it's my therapy. So, to be able to go in the studio and have these great songs and sort of work out your emotional baggage through these songs is a blessing. I think the moment that I feel like I'm not improving and learning and getting better every time I go in the studio, getting better with how sonically I want things to sound, how I want to sing, the songs that I want to record, if I get to the point where I think that I'm not improving, that's going to be the time to stop doing it because I never want to be the guy that's just doing the same thing over and over and over again."
Plus, there's some level of family input in all of McGraw's music, considering he turns to Hill for unfiltered advice.
"She's pretty brutal, but she's honest," McGraw told Lowe. "Well, to me, I think she's one of the greatest artists of all time, one of the greatest singers of all time. And we're different types of artists. We like different kinds of music and we like a lot of the same stuff, but we like different kinds of music, and I'm always playing her the songs that I want to record and playing the mixes as I'll go along, and there's times we don't agree. There's times where she goes, 'I don't like the way that sounds.' 'Well, I do, and that's way it's going to stay.'And the same thing when she's making a record. It's like, 'I think this should be your single.' She goes, 'No, I don't like that song. This is going to be the single.' I go, 'Alright. 'She's right about her stuff and I'm usually right about my stuff, but most of the time we agree."
Here's five standout tracks from one of McGraw's best albums, start to finish, since he left his mark on '90s country.
Noel Vasquez/Getty Images Like Blake Shelton and other superstars that've maintained a spot in the mainstream for decades, McGraw changes with the times without those decisions overshadowing what set him apart during a different era of country radio. "Remember Me Well" feels more modern than other standout tracks without sounding like a detour on McGraw's trip down memory lane. Michael Hickey/Getty Images Sometimes, the right combination of artist and song title all but guarantees that your heartstrings will be tugged by a yet-to-be-released track. Surely others felt this way before hearing Luke Bryan's "Build Me a Daddy" back in 2020. Like Bryan before him, McGraw meets expectations with this moving tale about a protagonist discovering written words of wisdom while cleaning their deceased mamaw's house. All-time great country storyteller Lori McKenna co-wrote it with Chase McGill and Parker Welling. Terry Wyatt/WireImage, From the Hal Ketchum school of storytelling comes this character study of an unnamed everyman that might accurately describe someone you know who's got a tender heart beneath their grizzled exterior. It being titled "Small Town Kings" despite the chorus praising a single "small town king" magnifies —perhaps purposefully— its universal appeal. Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for ABA Sonically, the tasty steel guitar accompaniment and soaring lead guitar riffs of the album opener wouldn't sound out of place on McGraw's crucial 2000 compilation Greatest Hits. Lyrically, it's the sort of song about cherishing the simple things in life that've kept McGraw and Kenny Chesney in the spotlight past age 55. "Cowboy Junkie," "Paper Umbrellas" and Keith Whitley name-dropper "Fool Me Again" could also pass as unreleased tracks from much earlier in McGraw's career. John Shearer/Getty Images for Big Machine Records Just as McGraw left Louisiana to chase country superstardom in Music City, his oldest daughter Gracie moved from Tennessee to Hollywood to pursue her musical theater goals. Tim's been open about the bittersweet experience of driving Gracie from Nashville to Los Angeles. "When I dropped her off, I just lost it," he told Audacy's Rob + Holly podcast in March. "And then I had to drive home all by myself. I was crying the whole time." Tim further processed that life-changing moment through his only writing credit on the album. McKenna co-wrote it (along with fellow Music Row mainstay McGill) and provided harmony vocals. Notably, McKenna penned Tim classic "Humble and Kind." It's the country star's most personal song since "Live Like You Were Dying," a Grammy-winning 2004 hit that's associated with the passing of Tim's father, former MLB pitcher Tug McGraw."Remember Me Well"
"Letter From Heaven"
"Small Town Kings"
"Hold On To It"
"Nashville CA/ L.A. Tennessee"
