About The Song
Kenny Chesney tops the chart with his strongest single yet.
After two consecutive No. 1 singles – “When I Close My Eyes” and “She’s Got it All” – Chesney went top fifteen with “A Chance,” the second single from I Will Stand. He returned to the top with the album’s third single.
Yes, in a run of No. 1 singles that included artists like Reba McEntire, Brooks & Dunn, George Strait, and Steve Wariner, the best two songs came from Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney.
Chesney modeled his own successful run at superstardom after McGraw, although he didn’t have the same consistent access to top drawer material. “That’s Why I’m Here” demonstrated his ability to identify a great song when given the opportunity, as well as his skill in delivering a strong lyric with emotional clarity.
It’s a powerful story about a man turning up late at night at his ex’s door, and fully understanding why she assumes he’s been drinking. Instead, he’s there to make amends for the horrible impact his alcoholism had on his loved ones, especially her.
It’s him taking one of the twelve steps in real time, without the expectation that he’ll be forgiven and that they’ll get back together. In fact, all he asks of her is to hear him tell his story at AA, so she can seem him take public responsibility for what he’s apologizing for in private.
Compare this treatment of AA to the recent Walker Hayes hit, and you’ll have a damn good measuring stick for how far the genre has fallen in the new century.
The title track was released as the fourth single from I Will Stand, and it went top thirty. Chesney will close out the nineties with two more No. 1 singles. We’ll cover them both when we get to 1999.
Video
Lyrics
… No I ain’t had nothing to drink
I knew that’s probably what you’d think
If I stopped by this time of night
Remember way back when
I promised you I’d drop in
At one of those meetings down at the Y
When they started talkin’ ’bout the steps you take
Mistakes you make, the hearts you break and the price you pay
I almost walked away
You could hear a pin drop when this ole man
Stood up and said, I’m gonna say it again like I do every week
For those who don’t know me…
… It’s the simple things in life
Like the kids at home and a loving wife
That you miss the most when you lose control
Everything you love starts to disappear
The devil takes your hand and says, no fear
Have another shot, just one more beer
I’ve been there, that’s why I’m here
… This ole boy stood up in the aisle
Said he’d been living a life of denial and he cried
As he talked about wasted years
I couldn’t believe what I heard
It was my life word for word
And all of a sudden it was clear
… It’s the simple things in life
Like the kids at home and a loving wife
That you miss the most when you lose control
Everything you love starts to disappear
The devil takes your hand and says, no fear
Have another shot, just one more beer
I’ve been there, that’s why I’m here
… For us it may be too late
But it would mean the world to me
If you were there when I stand and say
… It’s the simple things in life
Like the kids at home and a loving wife
That you miss the most when you lose control
Everything you love starts to disappear
The devil takes your hand and says, no fear
Have another shot, just one more beer
I’ve been there, that’s why I’m here