Granger Smith's poignant new single "That's Why I Love Dirt Roads" pauses for a moment to remember his late son, River, but it's the beautiful scenery around the second verse that will make the song a hit.

Missing from country music in 2019 is country — as in, songs about living and playing outdoors. Songwriters spend a lot of time in clubs and bedrooms and trucks, but not as much time breathing clean mountain air or exploring paths nature has cut between brush and waterways. Smith is there during "That's Why I Love Dirt Roads," and it's not a coincidence that's where he finds peace and quiet, two things that sound plenty good on him after a simply tragic year.

The rolling arrangement matches the spirit of this forward motion lyric. Steel guitar lights up the moments between each line like a shooting star across a midnight sky, but it's Smith's sincerity that ties it all together with a bow. Fans may receive it as a gift, because in his peace, we find our own.

Did You Know?Smith says the cover art for his new single "That's Why I Love Dirt Roads" offers plenty of easter eggs that tell of his story and this song's story. Find late son River's face in the mountain range.

WATCH: Granger Smith's Tribute to River Is Beautiful

Granger Smith's "That's Why I Love Dirt Roads" Lyrics:

Midnight Milky Way, through a cracked windshield / The highways never know how free this feels / I learned how to drive out here / My grandpa let me steer / I still hear “both hands on the wheel.”

Chorus:
Talked to God on ‘em / We get lost on ‘em / Find our way to a rocky mountaintop on ‘em / We get stuck on ‘em / Fall in love on ‘em / Rough around the edges just like us / That’s why I love dirt roads / Make the world turn real slow / Feel the gravel letting go and stirring up my soul / That’s why I love running wild through country miles / They’re out of style, they take awhile / But every wind and rattle leads me home / That’s why I love dirt roads.

Chasin’ a painting sky and river winding curves / Can’t help but feel like my heaven here on Earth / Out here in the quiet, I know you hear me / The stars are smiling, I feel you near me.

Repeat Chorus

Sometimes they’re beat up and broken / Scattered and tossed in the breeze / But no matter they’re scars it doesn’t change what they are / That sounds a little like me.

That’s why I love dirt roads / That’s why I love dirt roads / That’s why I love dirt roads / Feel the gravel letting go and stirring up my soul / That’s why I love running wild through country miles / They’re out of style, they take awhile / But every wind and rattle leads me home / That’s why I love dirt roads.

More From 102.3 The Bull