The following six songs are about fathers who did get to be in their childrenвЂ™s, and speak about watching kids grow up, teaching them lessons, and preparing them for the world. My heart breaks when the daughter in this song asks вЂњDaddy when you coming home?вЂќ and continues to break when the father replies, вЂњ IвЂ™m already there / Take a look around / IвЂ™m the sunshine in your hair / IвЂ™m the shadow on the ground / IвЂ™m the whisper in the wind / IвЂ™m your imaginary friend / And I know IвЂ™m in your prayers / Oh IвЂ™m already there.вЂќ These lyrics break my heart because you can hear the want to be there in LonestarвЂ™s voice and the knowledge that his response, while touching, isnвЂ™t enough. In the second geographic heartbreak song of the list, based on the experiences of one of the band members, this father talks to his kids on the phone as he is on the road. Work can take fathers away from their kids mentally, like in вЂњThe Greatest Man I Never KnewвЂќ but also physically. вЂњIвЂ™m Already ThereвЂќ (2001) вЂ“ Lonestar, Writers: Gary Baker, Frank Myers, Richie McDonald So, fathers, while showing love by providing financially for a family is important, some dads might forget to tell their kids that they love them. The complexity of Reba and her fatherвЂ™s relationship is summed up so succinctly and powerfully in the lyrics ,вЂњThe greatest man I never knew / Came home late every night / He never had too much to say / Too much was on his mind / I never really knew him / And now it seems so sad / Everything he gave to us took all he hadвЂќ. The majority of Country songs about dads are from the perspective of sons because the majority of Country Music artists are male, but in this classic by Reba McEntire we get the perspective of a daughter growing up with an emotionally unavailable father. Brown hopes that his son will forgive him for not being there just as Johnny Cash did in at the end of вЂњBoy Named Sue.вЂќ вЂњThe Greatest Man I Never KnewвЂќ вЂ“ Reba McEntire, Writers: Richard Leigh, Layng Martine Jr. This sad and beautiful song takes place as a father drives to go see his kids, and in one of the most vulnerable lines of any song on the album Brown sings, вЂњAnd a part of you might hate me / But, son, please donвЂ™t mistake me / For a man that didnвЂ™t care at all.вЂќ While the effect of not having a father is strong on a child, that effect goes both ways.

This is another song about a father who isnвЂ™t there with his son, but it is told from the fatherвЂ™s perspective while the son is still young. вЂњHighway 20 RideвЂќ (2009) вЂ“ Zac Brown Band, Writers: Zac Brown, Wyatt Durette In this classic Johnny Cash tale a boy named Sue goes on a mission to kill his dad for naming him what he did, but upon finding him his father says, вЂњ I knew I wouldnвЂ™t be there to help ya along / So I give ya that name and I said goodbye / I knew youвЂ™d have to get tough or die /And itвЂ™s the name that helped to make you strongвЂќ Cash goes on to sing, вЂњI got all choked up and I threw down my gun / And I called him my pa, and he called me his son, / And I came away with a different point of view.вЂќ I chose this song because while the father in this tale was never there he found a way to make his son into a man and even forged a relationship after all the years. I am going to begin this list with the man in black himself Johnny Cash and his song вЂњBoy Named Sue,вЂќ which was originally written and sang by popular poet Shel Silverstein. вЂњBoy Named SueвЂќ (1969) вЂ“ Johnny Cash, Writer вЂ“ Shel Silverstein The first group of songs are about fathers who werenвЂ™t able to be there for their kids for one reason or another.

In addition, each song has some sort of lesson or moral in regards to being a father. The ten songs on this list were chosen to represent different aspects of fatherhood. In addition, Country music speaks to the uglier parts of fatherhood like divorce and absenteeism, and the love as well as the fear that comes with raising a child. Country music has a lot to say about dads and how they teach their kids. Speaking from my own experience my dad taught me things that my mom never could have. However, not everybody is as lucky as me because increasingly kids are raised by single mothers, in 2010 about 24% of kids grew up without a father. One of the people who I look up to most is my dad and if I can become half the man he is then I know that I will make it in this world. Of all the things in life that I am looking forward to the most, one day becoming a dad is at the top of my list.

Everybody everybody song