{"id":9341,"date":"2013-04-01T15:07:57","date_gmt":"2013-04-01T22:07:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/?p=9341"},"modified":"2013-04-02T23:16:22","modified_gmt":"2013-04-03T06:16:22","slug":"tim-mcgraw","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/2013\/04\/tim-mcgraw\/","title":{"rendered":"TIM MCGRAW"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Tim-McGraw-6\"<\/p>\n

Two decades into his superstar career, Tim McGraw is still hungry for new musical adventures<\/b><\/p>\n

Tim McGraw is a man in motion. Twice a day, even while on tour, he hits the gym\u2014lifting weights in the morning and devoting a couple of hours to a grueling CrossFit regimen in the afternoon. The concept of constant movement is also the driving force behind his creative philosophy.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m always looking for something that propels me forward and makes me want to work harder,\u201d he explains. \u201cI don\u2019t want to get complacent, or start thinking I can just relax. That\u2019s been the main impetus for all the changes I\u2019ve made over the last four or five years. It\u2019s a matter of looking for ways to move forward, and not get stagnant.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stagnation has never been an issue for McGraw, Nashville\u2019s most successful male artist for the past decade. Still, his entry into country music hardly seemed predestined. Raised in small-town Louisiana by his mother\u2014she divorced McGraw\u2019s stepfather when McGraw was 10\u2014the singer attended Northeast Louisiana University on a baseball scholarship. His skills came naturally\u2014at age 11, he learned that his biological father was Major League pitching star Tug McGraw.<\/p>\n

Soon enough, the lure of music won out over studies in sports medicine, and in 1989 McGraw dropped out and bought a bus ticket to Nashville. Landing a deal with Curb Records in 1992, he scored his first Top 10 single two years later with the novelty tune \u201cIndian Outlaw,\u201d and a nonstop string of hits soon followed. McGraw is quick to credit his mother for the confidence to pursue the long odds of a career in music. \u201cShe was a dreamer,\u201d he says. \u201cMy drive came from her. No matter how bad our circumstances were growing up she always dreamed big and talked about the things you could accomplish in life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Tim-McGraw-4\"<\/p>\n

McGraw has seen his own big dreams become reality. Since releasing his debut album in 1993, he\u2019s scored 32 chart-topping hits and sold more than 40 million albums. Among his honors: three Grammys, 12 Country Music Association awards and 10 American Music Awards. He\u2019s also made his mark as an actor, delivering acclaimed performances in feature films The Blind Side<\/i>, Country Strong<\/i>, The Kingdom<\/i> and Friday Night Lights<\/i>. Personally, he\u2019s maintained an idyllic family life with his wife of 16 years\u2014country star Faith Hill\u2014and their three daughters. The husband-and-wife team\u2019s 2006 Soul2Soul II Tour still ranks among the highest grossing tours in country music history. \u201cIf we\u2019re not out there in our country gear, we don\u2019t think about that sort of thing,\u201d McGraw says when asked if there\u2019s a downside to the couple\u2019s celebrity. \u201cIf you just behave normally, people won\u2019t bother you. It\u2019s when you start acting like a rock star that people begin treating you differently.\u201d<\/p>\n

McGraw may downplay stardom, but his latest album, Two Lanes of Freedom<\/i>, sizzles with the energy of an artist with something to prove. Recording mostly live in the studio with Nashville\u2019s finest session players, he and longtime producer Byron Gallimore emphasized teamwork during production. \u201cWe went in early in the morning and stayed late into the night for two solid weeks,\u201d he says. \u201cWe brought in food and made sure everyone involved was always present. Everybody had input. No one was afraid to raise his hand and say, \u2018Let\u2019s try this, let\u2019s try that.\u2019 It was a big stew of great ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although a positive spirit courses through the record, McGraw admits the contentious split with Curb Records\u2014his business partner for nearly two decades\u2014provided further impetus to deliver something special. Recently signed to Big Machine Records, McGraw is approaching his craft with a renewed sense of vigor. Two decades into his career, the 45-year-old artist is just hitting his stride.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m a fighter,\u201d he says. \u201cWhen things aren\u2019t going the way they should, I strive to find ways to make them work. I\u2019ve got more than 20 years in the business\u2014I think I know a bit about what I\u2019m doing.\u201d From his Nashville home, McGraw spoke with us about his approach to making records, the singers he once tried to emulate, and why his favorite songs aren\u2019t his big hits.<\/p>\n

Did you have a goal for the record?<\/b><\/p>\n

Not so much a goal. The way I approach every record is to start developing these sounds in my head. It might be a drum sound I want to use\u2014a kick or a snare\u2014or it might be a particular guitar or keyboard sound \u2026 just various sounds and textures. With that in my head, as I\u2019m imagining these sounds, I\u2019m always looking for songs. I might remember a song I have that might work with that. I look for songs that will work with these sounds I want to use. That\u2019s how I start a project.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Why begin with sound?<\/b><\/p>\n

It all comes down to having a great song\u2014that goes without saying. But every record begins with what you hear sonically. Tone is what captures my attention. Someone might listen to a record and think, \u201cWell, this song isn\u2019t for me, but still I can\u2019t wait to get to that keyboard sound halfway through the second verse.\u201d You want to find various things that keep a record interesting from start to finish.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Did the title track drive the album?<\/b><\/p>\n

It did. We recorded the title track on the first or second night in the studio. Instantly, we latched onto its feel and energy. It sort of raised its hand and said, \u201cI\u2019m the song to stake your flag.\u201d It became the hub of the album. Everything that came afterward more or less spun out of that song. We would grab a piece of that sound, and say, \u201cWhy don\u2019t we use this piece over here but change it a bit?\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

You didn\u2019t include songs you wrote.<\/b><\/p>\n

I\u2019ll never record a song just because I wrote it. If I feel something I\u2019ve written doesn\u2019t measure up to the least of the material I\u2019m considering, then it\u2019s not going to be on the album. I\u2019m just harder on my own stuff. I\u2019ve always written songs, going back to when I first moved to Nashville, and I\u2019m sure there are a ton of bad songs of mine lying around out there. But I\u2019m not someone who sits and writes all the time. I get pieces of songs. I\u2019ll walk around and maybe hear something that inspires me and write it down. Or I\u2019ll call a friend and we\u2019ll sit and write. I don\u2019t write constantly, but I always have a few things I\u2019m working on for each project.<\/p>\n

\"Tim-McGraw-2\"<\/p>\n

What do you look for in a song?<\/b><\/p>\n

I have to have some sort of visceral reaction. If I don\u2019t feel that, I can\u2019t expect the audience to feel it. A lot of the times I pick material that\u2019s left-of-center, but those songs affect me. I had an immediate emotional reaction to \u201cBook of John,\u201d from the new record. I think the lack of a deep-rooted relationship with a father and not having a son drew me to the song, so that I can vicariously experience those things.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

How long do you listen to a demo before recording it?<\/b><\/p>\n

I listen just enough to learn the song. I probably piss off writers constantly because I change words in songs all the time without being conscious of it. I want to get the idea of the song and melody before I put it away and head into the studio, relying on the memory I have of it. Doing that makes the recording more uniquely and honestly me.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What are your favorites, cuts or singles?<\/b><\/p>\n

I would say 90 percent of what I like best weren\u2019t<\/i> singles. Singles have their purpose\u2014and I wouldn\u2019t record a song if I didn\u2019t love it\u2014but I sort of cringe when people recognize my music only from what they\u2019ve heard on the radio. I feel they\u2019re only getting about a 10 percent vision of what I do. \u201cKill Myself,\u201d \u201cTelluride\u201d and \u201cThe One That Got Away\u201d are examples of songs I love 10 times as much as any of the singles.<\/p>\n

Does that affect your live set list?<\/b><\/p>\n

It does. I try to include songs I know people want to hear, and then I go back and pick my favorite album cuts. Two or three always end up being our favorites\u2014often album cuts from way back. A couple of years ago we were touring and played \u201cEverybody Hates Me.\u201d It was just an album cut but when we performed, it felt like a hit. Everyone loved it. That became one of the great songs we love playing every summer. \u201cAngel Boy\u201d is another.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Do you get involved in staging and set design?<\/b><\/p>\n

Absolutely. They typically start with something sketched out on a napkin. That\u2019s one of the fun things about doing this for a living, to be involved in that stuff.<\/p>\n

How do you take care of your voice?<\/b><\/p>\n

I try not to talk a whole lot when I\u2019m doing a lot of singing. Talking is harder on my voice than singing is. But I\u2019ve been lucky. During my entire 23-year career, I\u2019ve had to cancel just two or three shows because of voice problems.<\/p>\n

\"Tim-McGraw-3\"<\/p>\n

Way back, were there singers you tried to emulate?<\/b><\/p>\n

Every song I did in the clubs I tried to sound exactly like the person who originally sang it\u2014George Strait, Merle Haggard, Eagles, Keith Whitley, Alabama. Early in my career I\u2019d go into the studio and think, \u201cOK, I\u2019m going to sing this just like George Strait.\u201d You think you\u2019re doing that until you hear the playback and find out, \u201cDamn, that doesn\u2019t sound like George Strait at all\u2014it\u2019s just me.\u201d [laughs<\/i>] Eventually, you find ways to do what you do.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What drove you to country music?<\/b><\/p>\n

First, I\u2019m a country singer. Someone once told me I couldn\u2019t go pop with an ass full of firecrackers, just because of the way my voice sounds. Plus, I grew up with country music. My stepdad drove an 18-wheeler, and I remember being 5 or 6 in the cab of a white Freightliner, hauling cottonseed across Texas and listening to eight-tracks of George Jones, Merle Haggard, Charlie Rich and Charley Pride. Those are the earliest memories I have of music.<\/p>\n

What does Byron bring to the production?<\/b><\/p>\n

Byron\u2019s my anchor in the studio. I can\u2019t imagine being in the studio without him. He\u2019s sort of the baseline for everything we do. He allows me to reach for the stars\u2014to experiment\u2014without leaving the universe. He makes sure things don\u2019t get raggedy, things don\u2019t get too loose. But he allows them to get loose enough for me to be happy. He makes sure things don\u2019t go off the rails.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Do you seek Faith\u2019s opinion about songs?<\/b><\/p>\n

Always. Not that we always agree\u2014we\u2019re two completely different artists, and certainly we\u2019re stylistically different\u2014but I have tons of respect for her opinion about everything I do. Sometimes I don\u2019t agree with her, and end up doing something only to see she was right.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s next?<\/b><\/p>\n

I feel there\u2019s way more ahead of me than there is behind me. I really believe that. I\u2019m probably about 35 percent into my career. I want to get better as a musician and as an artist. I\u2019m just beginning to figure all these things out\u2014what I\u2019m doing in the studio, what I\u2019m doing on the road, what I\u2019m doing with music. I think I\u2019ve found another level of depth. I don\u2019t want to discount what I\u2019ve done in the past, because if I\u2019d had even half the career I\u2019ve had, I would feel incredibly lucky. But I\u2019m always about pushing forward. I feel like I\u2019ve sort of slung sideways off a gravel road, hit pavement and grabbed another gear. I\u2019m pushing the gas. \u00a0 M<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Two decades into his superstar career, Tim McGraw is still hungry for new musical adventures Tim McGraw is a man in motion. Twice a day, even while on tour, he hits the gym\u2014lifting weights in the morning and devoting a couple of hours to a grueling CrossFit regimen in the afternoon. The concept of constant […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[23],"tags":[6164,4565],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9341"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9341"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9341\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9344,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9341\/revisions\/9344"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9341"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9341"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9341"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}