In an ever-changing, uncertain world, Tim McGraw’s “I Called Mama” is pressing. As it imparts the story of a dear friend’s untimely passing, you begin to succumb to the very real collapsing nature of life’s fragility. “Got a call from a friend about a friend,” his voice gently wakes you. “It’s the news no one ever wants to hear.”
His words punch hard, though, and shake you to the core. And you quickly realize exactly what it means to be alive and have the time now. The chorus ebbs and flows, rinsing you in the evocative as much as the mundane. “So I stopped off at a Texaco / Bought a Slim Jim and a Coke / Parked out by the water just to watch that river flow / Grabbed my guitar from the back seat / Wrote a song just for me / And I sung it for the blue sky.”
In the midst of death, life has a way of marching on whether we’re ready or not. He continues, “And a couple live oak trees / I thought of home, grabbed my phone from my pocket / And I called mama.”
Listen to “I Called Mama” below.