Big & Rich’s Next Single, ‘California’, Might Sound Familiar [LISTEN]
Big & Rich have announced their plans to release a brand-new single, "California," from a forthcoming new album, in early March, but it's a song that some country fans may know already. Tim McGraw recorded the tune for his most recent album ... and the country duo actually sing it with him!
Track No. 10 on Damn Country Music, McGraw's 2015 studio album, "California" was written by John Rich, Rodney Clawson and Vicky McGhee. McGraw tells Taste of Country that he first heard the song when his guitar player played it for him; he, in turn, "begged John to let me cut it."
"I’ve been a fan of those guys for a long time. When their first album came out, they were touring with me," McGraw remembers. "I’d heard a rough tracking of one of their songs because I was in the studio they were in, at Blackbird Studio."
Readers can press play below to hear McGraw's version of "California," and hear McGraw tell the tale of how the collaboration came to be. Both McGraw and Big & Rich's takes on the track are sonically sunny and smooth.
Big & Rich's version of "California" will impact country radio and be available for purchase on March 6. The album on which it will appear, Did It for the Party, is scheduled for release in the third quarter of 2017.
Listen to Tim McGraw and Big & Rich's Version of "California"
See Big & Rich + More Country Stars Then and Now