Riley Green Explains Why He Had to Cover a Tim McGraw Deep Cut

Riley Green knows of what Tim McGraw sings, so he just had to put his thumbprint on an under-appreciated deep cut from 2015.

The veteran country singer made "Damn Country Music" the title track to his album, but it never got sent to radio. It remains to be seen if Green takes the risk and pushes a ballad that repeats "damn" over and over again out there for maximum airplay.

It certainly makes for a great live moment, though, and that's part of the reason he chose to kick off Ain't My Last Rodeo with this track.

Green's Ain't My Last Rodeo album was released on Friday (Oct. 13).
Cary Barlowe, Josh Thompson and Jessi Alexander wrote "Damn Country Music." It was Alexander that introduced the song to Green.
Luke Combs and Jelly Roll are two featured artists on the "Different 'Round Here" singer's second studio album on BMLG.

"The world were in now, me especially — the change in my reality to having a record deal and playing shows — there's a lot about it that's a grind," Green tells Taste of Country. "It's the travel and being out on the road and away from home."

Later, he (unintentionally) emphasized his point. ToC Nights host Evan Paul asks if he's still one of country music's most eligible bachelors. Find the full interview in the audio player above, or by searching for Taste of Country Nights, On Demand on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast platform.

"I'm pretty ineligible in the sense of how busy I am out on the road," Green says. "I think that's why it's tough for me to settle down. You're spending a couple hundred days on the road — I don't know many girls that are okay with that."

Damn country music for making a love life so hard to come by. It's something McGraw knew well, and when you listen to Green's interpretation, it's hard to call it anything but personal.

The bad news is, that won't change in 2024 — not that Green's complaining. Getting to tour with his heroes (like Tracy Lawrence next year) is the best part of the job. As for regrets? Well, he's making progress.

"I did get a dog. That's the best I can do," Green says.

The Top 40 Country Songs of 2023, Ranked

The best country songs of 2023 fit snugly over your life and experiences. Each is written from personal experiences, but somehow, translate as if they were custom to each of us.

We've loved, we've longed, we've lost and we've cut loose in the country.

Airplay charts, sales data and streaming numbers helped make this list of country music's Top 40 songs of 2023, but staff and Taste of Country reader opinion were most influential. Songs included on previous Top Country Songs lists were not eligible. A song may have been released in 2022, but it had to have the majority of recorded airplay or impact this year to count.

Gallery Credit: Billy Dukes

See Inside Tim McGraw + Faith Hill's Private Island Estate:

Tim McGraw and Faith Hill's private island estate in the Bahamas has gone on the market, and it could be yours — that is, if you've got $35 million to spend. The couple bought an island in the Bahamas called L’île d’Anges in 2003, according to Architectural Digest, but they did not move into their home there until 2012.

Gallery Credit: Sterling Whitaker