Highway Don't Care (Taylor's Version) (song)

## **"Highway Don't Care (Taylor's Version)"**Song by Taylor Swift

"**Highway Don't Care (Taylor's Version)**" is a re-recorded song by Taylor Swift. It was released on TBA as a stand-alone single, through Republic Records. It is a re-recording of "Highway Don't Care" by Tim McGraw that features Swift and Keith Urban. However, it was also re-written, with a different structure and an additional bridge that wasn't in the original version.

A lyric video was released on the same day as the song, and it peaked at #36 on the *Billboard* Hot 100 and #28 on the *Billboard* Global 200. The song received positive reviews from music critics, with some saying it was "better than the original with Tim McGraw and Keith Urban", while others think that it would perfectly fit on *Red (Taylor's Version)*.

## Background

The song was originally released as the third single in 2013 from McGraw's twelfth studio album, *Two Lanes of Freedom*, and was featured as the eleventh and final track on the album. The song is a mid-tempo ballad where the male narrator is separated from his lover who is driving. Throughout the verses, he tells her what he "bets" she is feeling, when a song comes on her radio (its part sung by Swift) containing the lines "I can't live without you, baby." He also says that the highway she's driving on doesn't care if she's alone or if she's going home, but he does.

In 2018, having recorded six studio albums under Big Machine, Swift's contract with the label expired. She signed a new contract with record label Republic Records, which is a division of Universal Music Group. In 2019, Big Machine Records was acquired by American talent manager and businessman Scooter Braun and his company Ithaca Holdings. As part of the acquisition, ownership of the masters to Swift's first six studio albums transferred to Braun. The master is the first recording of an audio recording, from which copies are made for sales and distribution; the owner of the master, therefore, owns all copies, such as digital versions for download or on streaming platforms, or physical versions available on CDs and vinyl records. In August 2019, Swift denounced the purchase, and announced her intention to re-record her first six studio albums so as to own their masters. In November 2020, Braun sold the masters to Shamrock Holdings, an American private equity firm owned by the Disney estate, under the terms of acquisition that Braun and Ithaca Holdings will continue to benefit from the albums financially.

On TBA, Swift announced on her social media accounts, two days prior to the song's release, that she'll be releasing a "special re-record". She also said "meet me at the highway", meaning that she'll be recording a new solo version of "Highway Don't Care". Swift later conformed in an interview after release that the reason she decided to re-record/rewrite "Highway Don't Care", is because it was released under her previous record label.

An EDM remix produced by Elvira Anderfjärd, who had previously remixed Swift's song "Love Story (Taylor's Version)", and worked with her on "Girl at Home (Taylor's Version)" and "Message in a Bottle", was released to digital and streaming services on TBA.

## Lyrics

**[Verse 1]**

Bet your window's rolled down and your hair's pulled back

And I bet you got no idea you're going way too fast

You're trying not to think about what went wrong

Trying not to stop 'til you get where you goin'

You're trying to stay awake so I bet you turn on the radio

And the song goes

**[Pre-Chorus]**

I can't live without you, I can't live without you, baby

I can't live without you, I can't live without you, baby, oh, baby

**[Chorus]**

The highway won't hold you tonight

The highway don't know you're alive

The highway don't care if you're all alone

But I do, I do

The highway won't dry your tears

The highway don't need you here

The highway don't care if you're coming home

But I do, I do

**[Verse 2]**

I bet you got a dead cell phone in your shotgun seat

Yeah, I bet you're bending God's ear talking 'bout me

You're trying not to let the first tear fall out

You're trying not to think about turning around

You're trying not to get lost in the sound but that song is always on

So you sing along

**[Pre-Chorus]**

I can't live without you, I can't live without you, baby

I can't live without you, I can't live without you, baby, oh baby

**[Chorus]**

The highway won't hold you tonight

The highway don't know you're alive

The highway don't care if you're all alone

But I do, I do

The highway won't dry your tears

The highway don't need you here

The highway don't care if you're coming home

But I do, I do

**[Bridge]**

Yeah, I could have told you, but you said you were just feeling me

So I held my tongue, and I let you free

Now you're gone, but you're just a cell phone call away

But I don't know, I don't know why

**[Pre-Chorus]**

I can't live without you, I can't live without you, baby

I can't live without you, I can't live without you, baby, oh baby

**[Chorus]**

The highway won't hold you tonight

The highway don't know you're alive

The highway don't care if you're all alone

But I do, I do

The highway won't dry your tears

The highway don't need you here

The highway don't care if you're coming home

But I do, I do

The highway won't hold you tonight

The highway don't know you're alive

The highway don't care if you're all alone

But I do, I do

The highway won't dry your tears

The highway don't need you here

The highway don't care if you're coming home

But I do, I do

**[Outro]**

I can't live without you, I can't live without you, baby

I can't live without you, I can't live without you, baby

I can't live without you, I can't live without you, baby

I can't live without you, I can't live without you, baby, oh baby

## Trivia

* This is Swift's only re-recording which isn't included on an album.
* Tim McGraw sings the background vocals in the choruses.