The Cowboy in Me
{{Infobox song
| name = The Cowboy in Me
| cover = The Cowboy in Me.jpg
| alt =
| type = single
| artist = Tim McGraw
| album = Set This Circus Down
| released = November 26, 2001
| format =
| recorded =
| studio =
| venue =
| genre = Country
| length = 4:04
| label = Curb
| writer = {{flatlist|
}}
| producer = {{flatlist|
- Byron Gallimore
- Tim McGraw
- James Stroud
}}
| prev_title = Bring On the Rain
| prev_year = 2001
| next_title = Unbroken
| next_year = 2002
}}
"The Cowboy in Me" is a song written by Jeffrey Steele, Al Anderson and Craig Wiseman, and recorded by American country music artist Tim McGraw. It was released in November 2001 as the third single from McGraw's Set This Circus Down album. The song reached number one on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) charts just one week after McGraw's duet with Jo Dee Messina, "Bring On the Rain".{{cite book|last=Whitburn|first=Joel|title=Hot Country Songs 1944 to 2008|publisher=Record Research, Inc|date=2008|isbn=978-0-89820-177-2}}
Critical reception
Kevin John Coyne of Country Universe gave the song a B grade, saying that the song "might be an amoebic form of the country lifestyle anthems that have flooded the genre in the years since it was released." He added that it is "certainly subtler and more refined than what’s come out since, and McGraw’s hit doesn’t include the head-pounding loudness that sinks so many other 'country' anthems."[http://www.countryuniverse.net/2012/08/28/retro-single-review-tim-mcgraw-the-cowboy-in-me/ CountryUniverse.net] Song review
Music video
The music video was directed by Sherman Halsey and was released in early 2002.
Commercial performance
"The Cowboy in Me" debuted at number 48 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks for the chart week of December 1, 2001. It reached a peak of number one on the chart dated March 16, 2002, remaining there for one week and dethroning Jo Dee Messina's "Bring On the Rain", on which McGraw is a featured artist. This was the first time that an artist replaced themselves at the top based on country radio play, and would not happen again until July 2024 when Morgan Wallen reached number one back-to-back with the singles "I Had Some Help" and "Cowgirls".{{cite magazine |last=Asker |first=Jim |date=July 19, 2024 |title=Morgan Wallen Claims Consecutive Country Airplay Leaders as 'Cowgirls' Follows 'I Had Some Help' to No. 1 |url=https://www.billboard.com/pro/morgan-wallen-cowgirls-number-1-country-airplay-chart/ |access-date=July 20, 2024 |magazine=Billboard}}
Chart performance
| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|+Weekly chart performance !align="left"|Chart (2001–2002) !align="center"|Peak |
| {{singlechart|Billboardcountrysongs|1|artist=Tim McGraw|artistid=32771|rowheader=true}} |
| {{singlechart|Billboardhot100|33|artist=Tim McGraw|artistid=32771|rowheader=true}} |
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|+Weekly chart performance for "Yellowstone Edition" |
| scope="col"| Chart (2021)
! scope="col"| Peak |
|---|
| scope="row"| Canada Digital Song Sales (Billboard){{Cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/tim-mcgraw/chart-history/cns/|title=Tim McGraw Chart History (Canadian Digital Song Sales)|magazine=Billboard|access-date=July 12, 2022}}
| 38 |
| scope="row"| US Digital Song Sales (Billboard){{Cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/tim-mcgraw/chart-history/hds/|title=Tim McGraw Chart History (Digital Song Sales)|magazine=Billboard|access-date=July 30, 2022}}
| 19 |
| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|+Yearly chart performance |
| scope="col"|Chart (2002)
!scope="col"|Position |
|---|
| scope="row"| US Country Songs (Billboard){{Cite magazine | url=http://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/2002/hot-country-songs| title=Best of 2002: Country Songs | magazine=Billboard | publisher=Prometheus Global Media |year=2002 | access-date=August 13, 2012}}
| align="center" | 21 |
Certifications
{{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for The Cowboy in Me}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|artist=Tim McGraw|title=The Cowboy in Me|award=Gold|type=single|relyear=2001|certyear=2019|access-date=August 12, 2022}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|streaming=true|nosales=true|noshipments=true}}
References
{{reflist}}
{{Tim McGraw singles}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cowboy In Me}}
Category:Songs about cowboys and cowgirls
Category:Songs written by Craig Wiseman
Category:Songs written by Jeffrey Steele
Category:Songs written by Al Anderson (NRBQ)
Category:Song recordings produced by Byron Gallimore
Category:Song recordings produced by Tim McGraw
Category:Song recordings produced by James Stroud