The ’90s were a heyday for country music. Every artist was operating at the top of their game, sharing countless top-selling songs and earning crossover appeal. Songwriters knew how to craft timeless hits during this era, and perfect one-liners ran rampant. Some of the best lyrics in ’90s country can be found in the three songs below. Revisit these classic country songs for a dose of nostalgia.
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“Independence Day” (Martina McBride)
Let the weak be strong, let the right be wrong / Roll the stone away, let the guilty pay.
Martina McBride’s “Independence Day” is one of the most potent tracks in ’90s country. McBride sings about a scorned woman getting payback on her abuser. Regardless of whether you know what McBride is singing about firsthand or not, the lyrics above reverberate deep within us. We can’t help but feel empowered by the character portrait McBride paints here. It prompts the listener to feel proud of the ways they’ve stood up for themselves in their own lives.
“You Were Mine” (The Chicks)
He’s two and she’s four and you know they adore you / So, how can I tell them you’ve changed your mind?
Few lines succinctly sum up the consequences of cheating on your spouse better than the bridge from The Chicks’ “You Were Mine.” The lyrics could’ve been simpler, akin to “How can you leave me when we have kids together?” But The Chicks decided to twist the knife deeper than that. The line they settled on is among the most heartbreaking in all of ’90s country. If you held it together for the rest of this sob-worthy ballad, the lines above will surely be the breaking point.
“Time Marches On” (Tracy Lawrence)
The only thing that stays the same is everything changes.
Many country songs aim to convey simple yet salient truths about life. Tracy Lawrence did just that in “Time Marches On”. Released in 1996, this mid-tempo track tells us all what we already know: The only thing that stays the same is everything changes.
The only thing we can be sure of in life is that things don’t always go according to plan. Sometimes they work out better than we hoped, and sometimes we get the short end of the stick. Regardless of your lot, Lawrence reminds us, time marches on.
(Photo by Erika Goldring/Getty Images)
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