Parker McCollum
Never Enough, Parker McCollum’s second major-label release, is a statement … Read Full Bio ↴Never Enough, Parker McCollum’s second major-label release, is a statement album. If its predecessor, Gold Chain Cowboy, announced Parker’s arrival in the country music mainstream, Never Enough (MCA Nashville) says that, damn right, he’s here to stay.
Like Gold Chain Cowboy, it pairs Parker with producer Jon Randall (Miranda Lambert, Dierks Bentley), a fellow Texan who understands exactly what fuels Parker’s artistry: authenticity, vulnerability, and a little bit of defiance. Never Enough bristles with honesty and attitude and is shot through with equal parts rock guitar and country songwriting.
“What I do best is write songs from a very real place and sing country music, but also be very ‘me’ and not try to sound like someone else,” Parker says. “We definitely did that on this record and every one of the 15 songs sounds different.”
Compare album opener “Hurricane” and the confessional ballad “Have Your Heart Again” to hear his point. “Hurricane,” a song about a strong-willed girl who blows through your life and leaves it in tatters, is a driving rock anthem with a guitar riff that calls to mind the theme from Friends (“I’m sure some people will hate on that, but I don’t give a shit,” Parker laughs. “I thought it was cool”). “Have Your Heart Again,” meanwhile, is a simple vocal-and-piano arrangement with Parker hitting a stunning falsetto note. The songs are each irresistible and unique, rich in lyrical imagery, and unlike anything you’ll hear coming out of Nashville today.
Credit that to Parker, as sturdy as a live oak, for knowing exactly who he is.
“This town can eat you alive, the music business can eat you alive, with artists trying to remain relevant and have hit songs. That’s something I never cared about when I’m writing or making a record,” he says. “I’m never thinking about singles. I’m trying to just write songs that can potentially stand the test of time. That’s the sole purpose of writing songs for me.”
Even Never Enough tracks that have since become gold-certified hits weren’t written with radio in mind. To Parker, “Handle on You” was just a drinking song with clever lyricism (“I tell myself that I should quit/but I don’t listen to drunks”) and a late-Eighties country sound as smooth as Tennessee whiskey or, perhaps, a Shiner Bock.
“That song is a nod to some of the great records I grew up with,” says Parker, who counts George Strait, Willie Nelson, and cult hero Chris Knight as chief inspirations. “A lot of radio songs nowadays are kind of bubble-gummy. I don’t have any problem with pop-country, but I’d like to hear a little more classic country too. My team kept saying ‘Handle on You’ was a radio song and I said, ‘If y’all put that on the radio, then hell yeah.’”
A mostly solitary songwriter prior to his entrée into Nashville, Parker has now written with some of country music’s finest. Hillary Lindsey, Lori McKenna, and Liz Rose (a.k.a. The Love Junkies), David Lee Murphy, Brett James, and Ashley Gorley all contribute to Never Enough, along with Parker’s Texas peers Randy Rogers, Wade Bowen, and Ryan Beaver.
“That’s been the biggest change since coming to Nashville: having access to some of the best songwriters in the world and sitting in a room with them to write,” Parker says. “The way these songwriters care and write, it’s from a place that I think I do as well. It’s made me look at songwriting differently.”
The proof is in Parker’s chart history. He scored his first-ever No. 1 country hit with 2020’s “Pretty Heart,” his debut single. “To Be Loved by You” followed suit, also hitting No. 1. Now, he’s staring down a career-making single in “Burn It Down,” a moody, smoldering break-up song that equates a busted relationship to a house reduced to just ashes and smoke.
Written with the Love Junkies, “Burn It Down” was born during a writing session at Parker’s home, where he spontaneously started singing the words “burn it down” over and over again. “Some days are like that, where the melody and the idea for the song is so good and everybody is on the same page,” he says. “If you’re talking about moving the needle in my career, ‘Burn It Down’ is probably going to be the song.”
Parker lives for the type of spontaneous creation that happened that day. He’ll often challenge himself to write a song without changing a single word. He did that with “Too Tight This Time.” With a pretty acoustic guitar lick, a Dobro guest shot by Jerry Douglas, and a heavy dose of humility and introspection in Parker’s vocal performance, “Too Tight This Time” is Parker’s favorite track on Never Enough.
“I said, ‘Let’s pour this thing out and whatever it is in 15 minutes, that’s what it’s going to be forever.’ I love to write songs like that and live with the end result. This one was easy to do because the melody was so good,” he says. “The line ‘There must be something broken inside this lonely man’ just hits so hard.”
For all his quiet strength and rough-hewn masculinity, Parker isn’t afraid to bare his soul. But, ironically, one of the most personal songs on Never Enough is the only song he didn’t write: “Things I Never Told You,” penned by Monty Criswell, Lynn Hutton, and Taylor Phillips, parallels Parker’s relationship with his mother. “When I moved away from home/I didn’t realize how much I’d miss ya,” he sings. “A phone call don’t take the place/of your smilin’ face cooking in that kitchen.”
“Those lines were all in there. People send me songs all the time and I never really hear any that I’m blown away by,” he says. Currently getting ready for a massive summer tour, including stadium dates with Morgan Wallen, Parker debuted “Things I Never Told You” for his mother during rehearsals. “We were in this massive amphitheater and my mom came the last day and I sang it for her. It was pretty cool.”
To Parker, the gesture was a way to show he cared. Never Enough then is a testament to how much he cares about country music.
“Sometimes I wish I didn’t care so much because everything would be easier. Hopefully one day people will look back at what I’ve done in country music and think it was honest and good for the genre,” Parker says. “This album may be called Never Enough, but if they see that what I did was real, that’ll be enough for me.”
Like Gold Chain Cowboy, it pairs Parker with producer Jon Randall (Miranda Lambert, Dierks Bentley), a fellow Texan who understands exactly what fuels Parker’s artistry: authenticity, vulnerability, and a little bit of defiance. Never Enough bristles with honesty and attitude and is shot through with equal parts rock guitar and country songwriting.
“What I do best is write songs from a very real place and sing country music, but also be very ‘me’ and not try to sound like someone else,” Parker says. “We definitely did that on this record and every one of the 15 songs sounds different.”
Compare album opener “Hurricane” and the confessional ballad “Have Your Heart Again” to hear his point. “Hurricane,” a song about a strong-willed girl who blows through your life and leaves it in tatters, is a driving rock anthem with a guitar riff that calls to mind the theme from Friends (“I’m sure some people will hate on that, but I don’t give a shit,” Parker laughs. “I thought it was cool”). “Have Your Heart Again,” meanwhile, is a simple vocal-and-piano arrangement with Parker hitting a stunning falsetto note. The songs are each irresistible and unique, rich in lyrical imagery, and unlike anything you’ll hear coming out of Nashville today.
Credit that to Parker, as sturdy as a live oak, for knowing exactly who he is.
“This town can eat you alive, the music business can eat you alive, with artists trying to remain relevant and have hit songs. That’s something I never cared about when I’m writing or making a record,” he says. “I’m never thinking about singles. I’m trying to just write songs that can potentially stand the test of time. That’s the sole purpose of writing songs for me.”
Even Never Enough tracks that have since become gold-certified hits weren’t written with radio in mind. To Parker, “Handle on You” was just a drinking song with clever lyricism (“I tell myself that I should quit/but I don’t listen to drunks”) and a late-Eighties country sound as smooth as Tennessee whiskey or, perhaps, a Shiner Bock.
“That song is a nod to some of the great records I grew up with,” says Parker, who counts George Strait, Willie Nelson, and cult hero Chris Knight as chief inspirations. “A lot of radio songs nowadays are kind of bubble-gummy. I don’t have any problem with pop-country, but I’d like to hear a little more classic country too. My team kept saying ‘Handle on You’ was a radio song and I said, ‘If y’all put that on the radio, then hell yeah.’”
A mostly solitary songwriter prior to his entrée into Nashville, Parker has now written with some of country music’s finest. Hillary Lindsey, Lori McKenna, and Liz Rose (a.k.a. The Love Junkies), David Lee Murphy, Brett James, and Ashley Gorley all contribute to Never Enough, along with Parker’s Texas peers Randy Rogers, Wade Bowen, and Ryan Beaver.
“That’s been the biggest change since coming to Nashville: having access to some of the best songwriters in the world and sitting in a room with them to write,” Parker says. “The way these songwriters care and write, it’s from a place that I think I do as well. It’s made me look at songwriting differently.”
The proof is in Parker’s chart history. He scored his first-ever No. 1 country hit with 2020’s “Pretty Heart,” his debut single. “To Be Loved by You” followed suit, also hitting No. 1. Now, he’s staring down a career-making single in “Burn It Down,” a moody, smoldering break-up song that equates a busted relationship to a house reduced to just ashes and smoke.
Written with the Love Junkies, “Burn It Down” was born during a writing session at Parker’s home, where he spontaneously started singing the words “burn it down” over and over again. “Some days are like that, where the melody and the idea for the song is so good and everybody is on the same page,” he says. “If you’re talking about moving the needle in my career, ‘Burn It Down’ is probably going to be the song.”
Parker lives for the type of spontaneous creation that happened that day. He’ll often challenge himself to write a song without changing a single word. He did that with “Too Tight This Time.” With a pretty acoustic guitar lick, a Dobro guest shot by Jerry Douglas, and a heavy dose of humility and introspection in Parker’s vocal performance, “Too Tight This Time” is Parker’s favorite track on Never Enough.
“I said, ‘Let’s pour this thing out and whatever it is in 15 minutes, that’s what it’s going to be forever.’ I love to write songs like that and live with the end result. This one was easy to do because the melody was so good,” he says. “The line ‘There must be something broken inside this lonely man’ just hits so hard.”
For all his quiet strength and rough-hewn masculinity, Parker isn’t afraid to bare his soul. But, ironically, one of the most personal songs on Never Enough is the only song he didn’t write: “Things I Never Told You,” penned by Monty Criswell, Lynn Hutton, and Taylor Phillips, parallels Parker’s relationship with his mother. “When I moved away from home/I didn’t realize how much I’d miss ya,” he sings. “A phone call don’t take the place/of your smilin’ face cooking in that kitchen.”
“Those lines were all in there. People send me songs all the time and I never really hear any that I’m blown away by,” he says. Currently getting ready for a massive summer tour, including stadium dates with Morgan Wallen, Parker debuted “Things I Never Told You” for his mother during rehearsals. “We were in this massive amphitheater and my mom came the last day and I sang it for her. It was pretty cool.”
To Parker, the gesture was a way to show he cared. Never Enough then is a testament to how much he cares about country music.
“Sometimes I wish I didn’t care so much because everything would be easier. Hopefully one day people will look back at what I’ve done in country music and think it was honest and good for the genre,” Parker says. “This album may be called Never Enough, but if they see that what I did was real, that’ll be enough for me.”
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Parker McCollum Lyrics
All Day It ain't easy It ain't hard I found the whole towns Sweetest…
Best I Never Had Goodbye's the only thing I ever knew how to say Always…
Blanco County Rain Cowboy's are supposed to be tough Supposed to play it cool T…
Blue Eyed Sally Blue Eyed Sally Parker McCollum Drill bits They keep on tu…
Burn It Down Goodbye, strung out on the lawn The line between us was…
Carrying Your Love with Me Baby, all I got is this beat up leather bag And…
Constantly She's got that certain thing about her Sometimes it drops me…
Dallas If I don't leave Dallas Guess that means that I should…
Don't Blame Me I think about that summer Falling way too fast Yeah, we were…
Drinkin Sorry baby I've been drinkin' I tend to ramble when I…
Falling Apart Happy ever after never happens much these days Forever almos…
Galveston Bay Well you can't stop the ocean And you can't stop the…
Hallie Ray Light Well, it's finally raining And you know that we need it It's…
Handle On You I went and bought the biggest bottle they got 'cause…
Happy New Year Darlin', since you left I been livin' good Travelin' dirt ro…
Have Your Heart Again I know you and I know me I know that I'm…
Heart Like Mine It's easier to miss ya, than it is to let…
Hell of a Year Its been a hell of a year How did you see Who…
High Above the Water Hooked on money hooked on chains No more cripple no more…
High Above Water Hooked on money, hooked on chains No more cripple, no more…
Highway Highway Lord, it's in my bones Ah, it's in my way Highway Lo…
Hold Me Back From going too far From going too fast Spinning my wheels He…
Hurricane Her daddy tried to warn me and her mama did…
I Ain't Going Nowhere There's keys on the counter and a tank full of…
I Can%27t Breathe It's been forever, my dear But I can't stop here 'Cause I…
I Can't Breathe It's been forever my dear But I can't stop here Cause I…
I Cant Breathe It's been forever my dear But I can't stop here 'Cause I…
I Can’t Breathe It's been forever, my dear But I can't stop here 'Cause I…
Learn to Fly To left of me a striped fence To me, this does…
Lessons from an Old Man Out run your wild side before you buy that ring The…
Like A Cowboy When I was six I had two .45's Strapped to my…
Lonesome Ten Miles Feel your rhythm You are the king of the road Only thing…
Love You Like That Well, I wish that I could tell you why That when…
Lucy Lucy's in the bedroom, crying, laughing Trying on all of her…
Meet You in the Middle Here that whistle wind and holler waking you up in the…
Memphis Rain Still remember that crackle, the needle laying down. The sta…
Misunderstood Late night train back to Austin Couple cars cocaine and the…
never loved you at all I wish you'd never walked in Never sat down I wish I…
New Orleans Woke up this mornin 50 miles from New Orleans And I…
Permanent Headphones What is this Nobody knows Playing a fool Making nothing my g…
Pretty Heart I didn't think I was a bad guy I knew that…
Prohibition Rose Prohibition Rose sat on the counter With a long day in…
Rest Of My Life There's a picture frame hanging a little to the side Some…
Silhouette Your silhouette its in my nightmare And I cant rest my…
South of the City Lights I′ve been learning how to do it all the hard…
Speed I came in going at a hundred miles an hour Just…
Stoned I cry when it's raining I cry when it's dark I feel…
Tails I Lose Sittin' here carvin' this heart Around your name on this bar…
The Truth Baby you just left and I'm already missin you Had a…
The Tune Back stuck down in your vein Whether you rode off or…
Things are Looking Up No sir I cannot pay you but will you work…
Things I Never Told You Cop got me doing 88 on Main He let me off…
To Be Loved By You Hell, maybe I'm right, maybe I'm wrong Finding out why shoul…
Too Tight This Time This place seems so familiar We always go right 'round I jus…
Tough People Do This ain't our first time to the rodeo, baby This ain't…
Wait Outside Hey pretty angel Flip the switch and turn off the Sun You…
What Kinda Man Look at that, I done stayed up all night again I…
Wheel How 'bout another tequila Out by the motel pool I won't stea…
Who Falling through that sleeping rain I screamed and cried and …
Why Indiana Well it could have been Vegas Or somewhere way out west Some…
x Feel your rhythm You are the king of the road Only thing…
Young Man Blues Used to run down County Road 2854 Now I'm the boy…