Back when Foreman, Arkansas via Atlanta, Texas' Tracy Lawrence was the toast of Nashville, Tennessee, he helped represent the '90s trend of contemporary country singers with an appreciation for the genre's rich history of detailed story-songs. Now he's a CMA award-winning artist.
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Like future collaborators Tim McGraw and Jason Aldean, Lawrence donned a cowboy hat to tell captivating stories. He poured his heart and soul into his songs, including "My Second Home," "The Coast is Clear," "How a Cowgirl Says Goodbye," "Is That A Tear," and "Alibis." The singer even has some Christmas and Christian country in his repertoire.
Now in his 50s, the "Lessons Learned" singer remains an active touring and recording act. Here are the ten best Tracy Lawrence Songs.
10. "When Daddy Was a Strong Man"
As the title implies, this sentimental song looks back to childhood, when a lot of us legitimately thought our dad was stronger than Hulkamania and the Terminator combined.
9. "Better Man, Better Off"
This song would potentially be ranked be ranked higher it if wasn't so thematically similar to Clint Black's "A Better Man." Like Black, Lawrence convincingly explains why the harsh end to a relationship helped him become a better person. It's one of Lawrence's best breakup songs, edging out such memorable guilt trips as "Can't Break It To My Heart" and "Today's Lonely Fool."
8. "Stars Over Texas"
No artist as well-rounded as Lawrence gets a "best-of" list without at least one heartwarming love song. Is this played at Texas weddings still? It should be.
7. "Find Out Who Your Friends Are" (Feat. Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney)
Whether you're religious or not, the Golden Rule is the simplest and best advice for making it through life. As this song points out, the best friends to have followed that familiar "do unto others" creed.
6. "If the World Had a Front Porch"
Country singers have always seemed to dial in on a part of their audiences' longing for simpler times. Family values and a less busy world get magnified by one of Lawrence's greatest songs.
5. "Texas Tornado"
Bobby Braddock wrote this mid-'90s standard about an aloof lover with interest in chasing storms. The song from I See It Now hit number one. Lawrence had the right voice and delivery to belt out a hit worthy of one of his Quantum Leap-inspired music videos.
Read More: 15 Most Underrated Country Songs from the 90s
4. "Paint Me a Birmingham"
It's Lawrence painting a gorgeous picture on this single about lost love. It's from 2003, which proves that Y2K didn't wipe out the singer's trajectory to the top five.
3. "If the Good Die Young"
This fun honky-tonk stomper about a hell-raiser straight out of a Merle Haggard tune shows off Lawrence's cheekier side. For other instances of light-hearted story-songs from his catalog, revisit "God Made Woman on a Good Day" and "Between a Rock and a Soft Place."
2. "Time Marches On"
Lawrence tackles an epic tale in the truest sense, following a married couple and their two kids over several decades. By the song's end, the baby daughter is a single grandparent who's outlived dad and witnessed her mom and brother's health struggles. It's detailed country music storytelling at its finest.
1. "Sticks and Stones"
This 1991 title track from Lawrence's debut album became the first of seven singles Lawrence took to the top of the United States' Billboard charts. As often happens with these lists, it's hard to argue against the song that proved a singer was a step ahead of the pack as being their best.
Honorable mentions: "Runnin' Behind," "Somebody Paints The Wall," "Renegades, Rebels and Rogues," and "All How You Look"
