Kenny Chesney is a name that every country music fan knows. He has a different type of country music than most classic country music artists, though. Chesney is known for his island sounding, tiki howling songs that certainly could be heard sitting around a bonfire on the beach.
Since releasing his first studio album (In My Wildest Dreams) in 1994, Chesney has sold over 30 million albums worldwide. He has also received dozens of awards, including awards from the Academy of Country Music (ACM) and Country Music Association (CMA).
In January 2005, Chesney released a single called, “Anything But Mine.” It was the fifth single from his ninth studio album, When The Sun Goes Down, and was written by songwriter Scooter Carusoe. “Anything But Mine” hit No. 1 in just six months and has become a classic song of Chesney’s.
The song follows a young teenage boy and girl as they spend their last night together before he leaves for his hometown of Cleveland, TN. Presumably on a summer vacation in a beach town, the lyrics describe the night in detail.
“Walking alone beneath the lights of that miracle mile,
Me and Mary making our way into the night.
You can hear the cries from the carnival rides,
The pinball bills, skee ball slides,
Watching the summer sun fall out of sight.”
The rest of the first verse describes the atmosphere during this exact moment. When you reach the chorus, you’re hit with a loud belting of the line:
“And in the morning I’m leaving, making my way back to Cleveland,
So tonight I hope that I will do just fine.”
A picture I took during “Anything But Mine” at The Brothers of the Sun Tour in 2012 at FirstEnergy Stadium
Up until researching the lyrics of this song, I had always thought this line in the chorus was referring to Cleveland, OH. Although about the city in Tennessee, Chesney still embraces it when he comes to Ohio.
I’ve seen Chesney live twice and both times he ended his show with this song. The most epic ending to a set I’ve ever seen occurred during The Brothers of the Sun Tour in the summer of 2012. The tour consisted of Chesney and Tim McGraw headlining. The tour rolled into FirstEnergy Stadium (formerly Cleveland Browns Stadium) in the middle of downtown Cleveland.
Chesney performed this song while the buildings of Cleveland towered over him and his stage and when he sang the chorus, the stadium echoed his words. It was an unreal and chill-worthy moment that I will never forget.
The last line of the chorus reads: “And I don’t see how you could ever be anything but mine.” This line adds the cherry on top to a perfect sounding stanza of lyrics. (I’m a big fan of this song, can’t you tell?)
The song continues with events that they experience throughout the night and comes to a close with an acoustic and haunting chorus.
“Anything But Mine” has been certified gold and you can watch the music video below.
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