"I'm from the Country" is an up-tempo twelve-bar blues, backed by electric guitar and fiddle, with some Hammond organ flourishes. In it, the narrator describes the rural lifestyle that he and his peers live, saying "We know how to work and we know how to play / We're from the country and we like it that way". On the final chorus, Byrd is joined by a crowd of backing singers, many of whom begin cheering over the final guitar solo. The song was co-written by Marty Brown, along with The Kentucky Headhunters' rhythm guitarist Richard Young, and Stan Webb. Brown and The Kentucky Headhunters recorded the song's demo.
Music video
The song's music video debuted on the television network CMT on February 3, 1998, and was directed by Michael Merriman. The song's music video consisted of Byrd singing the song at a lodge with all of his friends. Stock footage from "Watermelon Crawl" is also used in the video. Scenes also included Byrd sitting on the stereo, in the kitchen with two women, and some guys cooking on the grill. The last scene of the video shows Byrd sitting in a hot tub, and blowing out his candle.
Critical reception
Thom Owens, who reviewed I'm from the Country for Allmusic, said of the song, "the key to the record's success is that he takes pains in proving the title true — and by the end of the record, you have no question that he is indeed from the country." Deborah Evans Price, of Billboard magazine reviewed the song with general favor by saying that the song is "buoyed by lots of fiddle and steel guitar riffs as well as a fun sing-along chorus." She also calls it a "festive, uptempo little romp, but with his deep, resonant voice, it would be nice to hear Byrd deliver songs with a little more meat to them." Stan Webb received the SESAC Country Song of the Year award in 1998 for co-writing the song.
Chart performance
"I'm from the Country" debuted on the BillboardHot Country Singles & Tracks charts at number 57 on the week of February 14, 1998. It charted for twenty-eight weeks, peaking at number 3. The song also spent seventeen weeks on the BillboardHot 100, peaking at number 63. It was a Number One on the RPM country charts in Canada.
