Craig Morgan Sums Up the Important Themes and Re-Introduces Himself On ‘God, Family, Country’

Craig Morgan didn’t go into making his newest studio album, God, Family, Country, with any particular theme in mind. Instead, the theme organically rose to the top as he began adding songs to the project.

“For me, the title always comes after the fact,” the singer explains to Country Now. “I’ve never themed a record in the beginning. We just always tried to write and record and sing great songs. It’s after the fact that you look up and say, ‘Hey, this happened.’”

The album emerged from the same soulful, grassroots well of inspiration that helped Morgan make his powerful new song, “The Father, My Son and the Holy Ghost.”

“I attribute [the album] to the same thing I attribute [the song] — God,” the singer reflects. “He has a plan. I just run along, and every now and then, I see it. That’s what God, Family, Country is. It’s inspirational, motivational lifestyle songs about God, family and country.”

Though the theme sounds simple enough, there’s plenty of diversity within the project. Morgan even includes a rendition of “Soldier,” which was a hit for Gavin DeGraw in 2012. Though the song is an out-of-genre cover, Morgan, who served as active duty in the U.S. military for nearly ten years and still remains closely involved in philanthropic efforts supporting veterans, feels a close kinship with the song.

“I was a soldier professionally for 17 years, and it has become a big part of my life. Once a soldier, always a soldier,” he points out. “When I first heard that song, I felt it was truly reflective of the attitude and moral character of a soldier. It describes a soldier in such great detail that I wanted to sing it, because I wanted people to hear what I felt like a soldier was.”

Plus, recording the song gave Morgan a chance to show an artistic side of himself that even longtime fans might not have seen yet. “It’s a little different than I think people might expect from me,” he acknowledges, “So it was fun to do something a little different.”

On the same project that finds Morgan exploring new musical frontiers, the singer also tips his hat to fans who may not know his earlier material, or may have come to know him recently through his reality TV show, Craig’s World.

Included on the track list is a rendition of his 2005 hit, “That’s What I Love About Sunday,” which has been one of the singer’s best-loved songs to date.

“What I’m finding out is that even though I’ve been doing this for almost 20 years, there are still a lot of people that have never heard of Craig Morgan,” he relates. “I wanted to put a song on there that we knew our team one demographic people all knew, but there are people out there that don’t, but are listening to country now.”

Of course, the other reason he wanted to include “That’s What I Love About Sunday” is because that song simply falls perfectly into the themes of God, Family, Country. From the pleasure of savoring a lazy afternoon with family to the joy of worshipping together on Sunday morning, the song sums up many of the important points that the new collection revolves around.

“That song covers all three aspects, in my opinion,” Morgan says.