LOS ANGELES, Calif. --

Tim McGraw has been married to fellow country superstar Faith Hill for over 16 years (it’ll be 17 in October), and on Thursday’s Access Hollywood Live, the singer revealed the secret behind the pair’s lasting love.

“With a house full of women it’s a lot of just shut up, you know?” the husband and father of three daughters told Billy Bush and Kit Hoover, when asked how he and Faith make their marriage work. “Just try not to say too much. If you say too much, you get yourself deeper and deeper into trouble!”

As an international country music icon with an impressive roster of movie roles under his belt, Tim is arguably a pretty hip guy, but his daughters (Gracie, 15, Maggie, 14, and Audrey, 11) don’t see their dad as “cool.”

“I’m probably the most uncool guy that they know-- as far as they are concerned anyway – ‘cause I’m Dad,” Tim said with a smile. “I mean dads just aren’t cool — especially when I dance! They don’t want me to dance.”

Adding, “I’m not a dancer. I’m a white country singer. [There’s] not that much dancing involved with me!”

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One of Tim’s most notable roles was in 2009’s “The Blind Side,” where he played Sean Tuohy, the father of real life NFL star Michael Oher (who helped lead the Baltimore Ravens to a Super Bowl victory this past Sunday as part of quarterback Joe Flacco’s offensive line).

Despite Tim’s strong connection to the East Coast team, he admitted he was rooting for the Colin Kaepernick-led 49ers.

“I picked San Francisco to win,” he said. “That was my pick and I’m dealing with the wrath of [Michael’s mom] Leigh Anne Tuohy right now!

“I was going with my head and not my heart because I thought that San Francisco had better matchups,” he continued, explaining his reasoning. “Shows how much I really know about football on the interior… My wife picked the Ravens!”

On the music front, Tim recently left Curb Records, the label he’d called home for two decades.

“I escaped,” he joked, adding, “I think more than anything I just feel invigorated in a lot of ways to have a plan and, you know, you can only beat your head against a wall so long.

“I’m proud of all the stuff I’ve done and we did some great stuff together,” he continued. “I’m just making fun of them a little bit, but I feel like I’m just getting started in a lot of ways. I feel like there’s so much more ahead of me.”

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The singer – whose new single, “One of Those Nights” (from his new album “Two Lanes of Freedom, which dropped on Tuesday) is already charting – recently revealed he has been sober for nearly five years.

“Was there a moment that made you want to stop [drinking]? Was there one defining thing?” Kit asked.

“No, I mean, look — I probably had a lot of moments if I look back on it… just time, kids, and you want to set a good example, especially when they get in their teenage years and things like that,” Tim answered. “It’s not for everybody. Everybody doesn’t need to make that decision. For me, it was the decision I needed to make.”

Tim said Faith was one of “plenty of people” who said he was drinking “too much,” and that his marriage has improved since he chose sobriety.

“We’ve always had a great relationship — she’s a rock. But certainly it’s better [now],” he shared. “My communication skills are a little better.

“I think I’m still fun,” he added. “I’m probably a little more boring.”

“Two Lanes of Freedom” – which features a collaboration with Taylor Swift and Keith Urban – is available in stores and on iTunes now.

-- Erin O’Sullivan

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