Definitely Heartbreaking: Tim McGraw’s “Please Remember Me”

American country singer and songwriter Rodney Crowell originally sang “Please Remember Me” and co-wrote it with Will Jennings. He released the song in 1995, which peaked at No. 69 on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.

Since it was released, artists like Aaron Neville and Linda Rondstadt dropped their song versions. But Tim McGraw’s version of “Please Remember Me” took off the Billboard charts and into the listeners’ hearts.

About McGraw’s Version

Three-time Grammy Award winner Tim McGraw released his version of Crowell’s “Please Remember Me” in March 1999. The track peaked at the No. 10 spot on Billboard’s Hot 100. 

The ballad is about loving another dearly, eventually letting the person go, and feeling the pain but still wanting to be remembered. 

It is a difficult thing about love, indeed. Spending time with a significant other for a long time only to let them go is like taking an arrow to heart; it’s excruciating. Despite the pain, you still want the precious memories to be there, even if they find love in another. In his music video, with over 13 million views on YouTube, listeners comment on how “bittersweet” and “extremely real” the song’s lyrics are. Others empathize with other commenters about the loved ones they’ve lost, while some reminisce on good memories with their parents, grandparents, and even their lovers.

Tim McGraw undoubtedly delivered the message in “Please Remember Me” through his powerful, emotional, and intense vocals. The way he gave the song was enough to make first-time listeners clutch their chests in awe and those going through something rough weep.

No wonder it became one of McGraw’s biggest solo hits on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.

The rendition, along with Tim McGraw’s other songs “Grown Men Don’t Cry,” “If You’re Reading This,” “She’s My Kind of Rain,” and “Live Like You Were Dying” were nominated Best Male Country Vocal Performance, with the latter winning the category.

Feel McGraw’s passion by listening to “Please Remember Me” here.