Song You Need to Know: Luke Combs, ‘Beer Never Broke My Heart’

When Luke Combs first played a solo, acoustic “Beer Never Broke My Heart” at one of his concerts way back in January 2018, fans responded as if the brand new song were an old favorite. Chalk it up to the North Carolina singer-songwriter’s gift for crafting sharp hooks and on-the-nose country lyrics. Last week, Combs released the studio recording of the single and, fleshed out with full production, it’s even more of a country-music monster, a sing-along salute to a frosty friend. Out only five days, “Beer Never Broke My Heart” has already gained more than three million streams on Spotify.

Just as beer is a means of delivering a buzz, the music mostly exists to shotgun Combs’ clever, relatable lyrics. In his husky voice, he ticks off a list of things, from bosses to beauties, that have let him down. “It takes one hand to count the things I can count on,” he laments, before the arena-ready chorus comes in and Combs emphasizes each phrase with a heavy pause: “Long neck/ice cold/beer never broke my heart.”

There’s a tasty solo at the midpoint and an extended outro that gives the song some extra funk, but this is Combs’ star turn. He relishes singing that final chorus with the knowledge that this tune will be on radios all summer. No doubt he knew how irresistible the song was as soon as he wrote it: Combs named his tour after the anthem before he ever released it.