Tim McGraw Decries "Hits 3"

Tim McGraw performs onstage during the 42nd Annual Academy Of Country Music Awards held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on May 15, 2007 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Frank Micelotta./ACMA/Getty Images for ACMA)

Oct. 15, 2008 — Tim McGraw’s Greatest Hits 3 is likely to debut high on the Billboard album charts, but Tim is not one of the CD’s fans.

Tim routinely performed three new songs this year during his Live Your Voice Tour as he prepared for the fall release of a new studio album, but Curb Records decided instead to put out the new compilation which, according to a release from Tim’s spokesperson, will "extend McGraw’s recording contract term."

"I am saddened and disappointed that my label chose to put out another hits album instead of new music," Tim said. "I’ve only had one studio album since my last hits package. It has to be just as confusing to the fans as it is to me. I had no involvement in the creation or presentation of this record. Sure, I love the songs, and I don’t want to take anything away from all the creative people who were a part of making those records. But the whole concept is an embarrassment to me as an artist."

Tim released his last studio album, Let It Go, May 2007, a little more than a year after the release of Greatest Hits Vol. 2: Reflected in March 2006. This past April, Curb combined Tim’s first two hits albums in a combo package and released it under the banner Greatest Hits: Limited Edition.

His statement is not the first time a Curb artist has publicly rebuked an album released under his or her name. In 2001, LeAnn Rimes posted a note on her website saying the album I Need You was "made without my creative input" and "is not a reflection of me as an artist." By the end of that year, she and Curb had reached an agreement on a new recording deal.

Tim shows no signs at the moment of relenting in his opposition.

"In the spirit of an election year," he explained, "I would simply say to my fans ‘I’m Tim McGraw, and I don’t approve their message.’"