The country girl going to the big city and leaving her good ole boy lover behind is a common theme in country music.  The fact that this cowgirl chose Hollywood  tells us that she’s ambitious, and probably trying to make it big as an actress or a model which would also lead us to believe that  she’s quite a looker.  The good old boy is me.  And you.  Or at least the country listening equivalent of you and I.

Wasn’t very long ago we were sitting
On a lost dirt road by the railroad tracks

A lost road and a railroad track are a match made in heaven.  They are both icons of  country music that exist side by side in real life and provide the ideal setting for a rural romance.

If you ever think about that
And wonder where I’m at and wanna come back

Grammatical errors are a staple in modern Nashville.  They are included intentionally  so that the  the words will be written in the way that the target audience allegedly speaks, which is ripe with colloquialisms that are grammatically incorrect and would compel stuffy librarians in bifocals to shudder as they sip their tea, which is just fine with the audience and probably the writers too.

I’m sitting’ on a tailgate in the middle of a stargaze
Wishing you were in my arms
Chillin’ right here, baby if you want it
I’ve got a cold beer with your name on it

I am impressed that the writers didn’t merely come up with a rhyme for the word “arm” here.  It would have been the obvious thing to do, and probably easier.  Instead, they turn things around with a pair of lines both ending with “it”, which some would consider lazy, but it beats rhyming with “arm” in my opinion.  It also gives them a chance to introduce the song’s title and catch phrase early on.  Also of note here, the word “chillin’ ” which seems a bit out of place, but times are changing.  Some people in the country talk like that.  Some of them are under 50.

Back 40 on a Friday night
Me and you dancing in the firelight

I know hipsters that have co-opted fire pits in the same way that they have adopted moustaches and knitting, and I have enjoyed these fires.   I hope though, that it still happens out in the sticks the way that this song describes it.  If you’ve never danced in the light of a bonfire, you should.

Girl you gotta admit it sounds pretty good, don’t it?
I’ve got a cold beer with your name on it

Yeah, it sounds good.  It would sound better to me without yet another intentional grammatical error (don’t it), but I’m not the target audience and the more I find it annoying, the better.

Pop the top, kick back like we used to do
Sipping all night long to your favorite tunes
If you ever get tired of the concrete life,
Those honking horns, them flashing lights

Got a jar of shine if you need it,
Under the seat, you know where I keep it

Here we have a glorification of the fun one can have drinking in the country contrasted with a condemnation of the alleged hassles of urban living. Again we have  the double “it” rhymes, and again I’m ok with it (no pun intended).  The use of the word “shine” here gives us more insight into this good old boy.  He’s also a rebel.  He drinks and drives, he buys illegal, homemade liquor.  Bet you won’t find that on the sunset strip!

Hey girl turn off your cell phone,
Put your blue jeans on, get back home

Slamming technology never hurts when you’re trying to appeal to a down home crowd.  Trade in your cell phone for blue jeans!  Especially if you’re a hot cowgirl!

Next we repeat the chorus, no need to repeat myself.  Then finally we have:

Cooler loaded down, picture perfect view
All that’s missing now is… you

I like the way the first line finds common phrases that are rhythmically identical.  Then there’s the melancholy reminder of the girl that inspired this song.  And then the chorus kicks in again and ends the song.

In all  the country songs I’ve heard recently, the lyrics are usually  a fabric  woven of  common phrases with the goal of effectively preaching to a choir that  praises simplicity, loyalty, and all things rural.   Every day sayings are employed, twisted, modified, and in some cases even created.   For me, new country challenges the notion of what a cliche actually is, and at what point it (or they) become a cop-out  in terms of lyric writing.

 

I doubt that I’ll begin sporting a cowboy hat any time soon, but I do appreciate the craft that is put into these and other lyrics in modern country music.