Justin Moore "If Heaven Wasn't So Far Away" Single Review

How often is it that a song comes along that everyone can relate to?  That may be said a lot but there are very few.  The loss of a grandparent is something that almost everyone has dealt with or eventually will.  It is the first time many of us have to deal with pain and grief that we never knew.  Almost everyone’s grandparents spoil them to some extent and we remember all the great times that we had with them.  In Justin Moore’s newest single, “If Heaven Wasn't So Far Away”, Moore taps into those feelings.  I know when I first heard the song, it really brought back a lot of memories. 

The song starts off by describing what his grandpa was like and what his lifestyle was.  Moore describes his grandpa’s fruit stand and how pieces of it are still standing today.  Fishing trips are described and how he would like to be riding around in his old truck with him.  The chorus then describes how if heaven was so far away he would visit his grandpa and introduce his kids to him and how he would visit other loved ones lost, such as his cousin, and update them on their family.  The second verse focuses on other people that he knows that was lost during school, his dog, and even mentions Hank Williams and Janis Joplin.  It’s a little different from the first verse and the entire song could have been written about his grandpa and cousin alone, but I think the song flows well into the second verse.  Overall, the message of the song is summed up well in the last line of the chorus, stating: “losing them wouldn’t be so hard to take, if heaven wasn’t so far away.”

Moore does a great job of singing the song with his southern, country voice.  The music gives the song a traditional country music feel about it with an electric guitar that is featured just enough, but not over the top, and the traditional steel guitar and fiddle.  Even though Moore has written a song called “Grandpa” and is very capable of writing songs of this caliber, this isn’t part of his penmanship.  The song was written by Brett Jones, Dallas Davidson, and Rob Hatch and was originally cut by Rhett Akins.  Akins released this song as a single in 2006 but it wasn’t really heard on country music radio.  Akins also did a great job with the song, but like Rick Trevino, it seems his music quit being promoted after the 1990s.  If you haven’t heard this song yet on radio, I can assure you that it is just a matter of time.  Moore has a hit on his hands here and this may end up being a bigger hit than “Small Town USA” was for him.  In case you haven’t figured it out yet, I really like the song and think you will too.  I’m not sure when the new album will be released yet, but he will have a number 1 hit on it before it comes out.  That I can guarantee.