Top 10 Country Thanksgiving Songs

Thankful Lyrics: “Got a house and piece of land / A few dollars in a coffee can / My old truck’s still runnin’ good / My ticker’s tickin’ like they say it should … Lord knows I’m a lucky man.”

The award-winning duo included this song on their 2006 CD Some People Change. Although it will likely be a hard one for Eddie Montgomery to sing following the September 2017 death of Troy Gentry, it feels extra poignant now. With their success and strength to overcome daunting obstacles, Gentry was — and Montgomery still is — a lucky man, indeed.

Thankful Lyrics: “Such a feelin’s coming over me / There is wonder in most everything I see / Not a cloud in the sky, got the sun in my eyes / And I won’t be surprised if it’s a dream.”

The title track of Anderson’s 1973 album was written by John Bettis and Richard Carpenter, the latter of whom first recorded it with his sister Karen for the Carpenters’ 1972 record, A Song for You. Anderson’s version of the song, which nearly reached the top (No. 2) of the country charts, prompted the Carpenters to release it as a single as well. The song’s sunny message helped the duo’s version of the prophetically titled tune climb to the No. 1 spot on the pop charts.

Thankful Lyrics: “All the doors that I had to close / Everything I knew but I didn’t know / Thank God for all I missed / ‘Cause it led me here to this.”

Rucker scored his second No. 1 song from the album Charleston, SC 1966 (and fifth No. 1 country single overall) with this tune, which is obviously one of his favorites as well.

“I love everything about it,” proclaims the married father of three. “I love the danceability of the song. I love the words to the song. I love the sing-a-long chorus, and then you get the payoff: ‘All that stuff, all that stuff led me right here.'”

Thankful Lyrics: “Everything is fine, fine, fine / Through the sunshine and the rain / I got a peace of mind / You know I can’t complain / I make it a point to thank the Lord / When I got Him on the line / I’m feeling good and everything is fine.”

The title track of his 2008 album was one Turner penned by himself, stepping “in the shoes of this average blue-collar American guy,” he explains to The Boot.

“[He] wasn’t necessarily financially well-to-do, but he was well-to-do in life,” Turner says of the song’s protagonist. “Everything that he could ever want — whether it was family or community or church, his dog or his truck — he had, so everything is fine.”

Thankful Lyrics: “Well I got me a fine wife, I got me ol’ fiddle / When the sun’s comin’ up, I got cakes on the griddle / Life ain’t nothin’ but a funny, funny riddle / Thank God I’m a country boy”

Denver liked this feel-good tune so much he included it on two albums — first on 1974’s Back Home Again, and then one year later on his live LP, An Evening With John Denver. The second No. 1 country hit (and third pop chart-topper) of his career, the song continues to resonate with music fans of all genres today. Since its release, it’s found its way on to Billy Dean‘s 2005 CD, Let Them Be Little; Canadian group the Road Hammers’ 2009 disc, The Road Hammers II; and a 1981 LP by Alvin & the Chipmunks.

Thankful Lyrics: “But for the grace of God go I / I must’ve been born a lucky guy / Heaven only knows how I’ve been blessed / With the gift of your love.”

This song marked the New Zealand-born guitar slinger’s first No. 1 hit, and for good reason. Acknowledging that his life could have gone the way of several characters in the song, including a lonely old man or the neighbors who argue, the singer-songwriter concludes it’s only the “grace of God” — and the love of a good woman — that led him down a very different path.

Thankful Lyrics: “And today, you know, that’s good enough for me / Breathing in and out’s a blessing, can’t you see? / Today is the first day of the rest of my life / And I’m alive and well”

This song has definitely made the rounds. Written by Kenny Chesney, along with Dean Dillon and Mark Tamburino, the tune first appeared on Nelson’s 2008 album Moment of Forever, which was co-produced by Chesney (who later included it on his own album, Lucky Old Sun, as a duet with Dave Matthews). But there’s something about a man who was born during the Great Depression — and who has waged his share of personal battles in the public eye — singing “As for me, I’d like to thank my lucky stars / That I’m alive and well,” reminding us why he’s still one of our favorites.

Thankful Lyrics: “These are the moments I thank God that I’m alive / These are the moments I’ll remember all my life / I’ve found all I’ve waited for / And I could not ask for more.”

This Diane Warren-penned tune first hit the airwaves in 2000, when Edwin McCain took it to the Top 5. But it was Evans’ version that brought it to country fans, and we’re thankful she did. She’s probably grateful herself, since the 2001 single from Born to Fly was released the same year that the Missouri native scored four CMA Awards nominations, including one for Female Vocalist of the Year.

Thankful Lyrics: “And it’s a great day to be alive / I know the sun’s still shinin’ when I close my eyes / There’s some hard times in the neighborhood / But why can’t every day be just this good?”

Included on Tritt’s Down the Road I Go album, this anthemic, high-on-life tune penned by Darrell Scott extols the virtues of some very simple pleasures, from “rice cooking in the microwave” to taking his “Harley for a three-day cruise.” A brand-new tattoo or some fancy facial hair? The possibilities are endless.

Thankful Lyrics: “At the end of every day / I have been blessed / With so much more than I deserve / To be here with the ones that love me / To love them so much it hurts / I have been blessed.”

As a married mom, it’s a pretty safe bet that McBride would consider this an accurate portrayal of her life. Focusing on the many gifts for which she’s thankful, from hearing the laughter of children to relaxing on the front porch swing, the song really speaks to all of us, reminding us to pause and give thanks on a daily basis. The No. 1 tune (McBride’s fifth) earned a CMA nomination for Single of the Year and remains a staple at radio many years after its release. Blessed, indeed.