"That's a Man" is a song written by Mark D. Sanders,

Ed Hill Edward Monroe Hill (born in Hanford, California) is an American country music songwriter. Hill has been active since the early 1970s. Hill plays piano and keyboard and has backed Merle Haggard and Kris Kristofferson.

, and Steven Dale Jones and recorded by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

singer

Jack Ingram Jack Owen Ingram (born November 15, 1970) is an American country music artist formerly signed to Big Machine Records, an independent record label. He has released eleven studio albums, one extended play, six live albums, and 19 singles. Although ...

. It was released in October 2008 as the first single to Ingram’s album '' Big Dreams & High Hopes''. The song is Ingram's sixth Top 40 entry on the '' Billboard'' country charts.

Content

"That's a Man" is a mid-tempo mostly accompanied by

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gu ...

and pedal steel guitar. In it, the narrator describes three different men, citing each as an example of men that are committed to their lives and peers. The first verse focuses on a nineteen-year-old who works two jobs to raise a family; the second tells of two Marines who become friends while in combat until one of them is killed; and an old farmer who is trying to maintain his family's farm is described in the third.

Critical reception

Matt Bjorke of Roughstock gave the song a favorable review. He compared the song to

Lee Roy Parnell Lee Roy Parnell (born December 21, 1956) is an American country music and blues artist, singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Active since 1990, he has recorded eight studio albums, and has charted more than twenty singles on the '' Billboard'' Hot ...

's "roots-y country rock anthems about the common folks" such as 1993's "On the Road", adding " There’s a place on country radio for songs like “That’s A Man” and Ingram should be the man to take it." Jasper Jones of 411 Mania gave the song two-and-a-half out of five, saying that the song had a worthy concept but awkward lyrics.

Chart performance

References

{{Jack Ingram 2008 singles 2008 songs Jack Ingram songs Songs written by Ed Hill Songs written by Steven Dale Jones Songs written by Mark D. Sanders Big Machine Records singles Song recordings produced by Jeremy Stover