Tim McGraw has returned to the well which gave him one of his biggest hits. Co-written by Craig Wiseman, Patrick Murphy and Tommy Cecil, “Standing Room Only” retreats McGraw with Craig Wiseman, who co-wrote the award winning 2004 hit “Live Like You’re Dying” with Tim Nichols. “Standing Room Only” really serves as a continuation on that song’s theme about elevating forgiveness and forging human connection so your funeral will be Standing Room Only” because of all of the folks who come to give you your flowers and celebrate your life as one well-lived. The song is the title track to Tim McGraw’s forthcoming album set to be released this fall.
As Tim McGraw has matured, he’s brought these kinds of songs to the radio dials and playlists of popular country songs and it’s a great thing because without him, we may never have been blessed to hear such songs as they’re not exactly what younger artists would have a chance or be willing to record (unless they wrote it).
On the Bobby Bones Show, McGraw talked about how much the song means to him, “Lyrically, there’s not a wasted line anywhere in this song. It’s such an impeccably written song, and then the melody I love. When you get into the studio to record, you’re scared to death that you are going to go in and screw up a song. ‘Humble and Kind,’ I had that song for a year before I recorded it, because when you hear [“Humble and Kind” songwriter] Lori McKenna sing with just an acoustic guitar, it just doesn’t get much better than that.”
“Lyrically, there’s not a wasted line anywhere in this song. It’s such an impeccably written song, and then the melody I love. When you get into the studio to record, you’re scared to death that you are going to go in and screw up a song. ‘Humble and Kind,’ I had that song for a year before I recorded it, because when you hear — “Humble and Kind” songwriter — Lori McKenna sing with just an acoustic guitar, it just doesn’t get much better than that.”
McGraw added, “It’s rare to find a song that has this much lyrical content and this much meaning, it says so much, but still have this sort of high energy. It’s rare to find that combination of not quite a ballad, not quite an up-tempo, but still deep, lyrically.”
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