Search - Garth Brooks :: The Hits

A country music phenomenon

Peter Durward Harris | Leicester England | 07/18/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Garth Brooks recorded some great songs many of which are included in this fine collection, which was compiled from his first five albums (Garth Brooks, No fences, Roping the wind, The chase, In pieces). Garth's phenomenal success in his American homeland contrasts sharply with his international profile. He became very popular in some countries (notably Ireland) but conspicuously failed to make more than a limited impact elsewhere, notably Britain, where he had a few hit singles but his chart history is not spectacular, so this review focuses primarily on his American career.



Garth's first single (Much too young) was a great song but the other two hits (If tomorrow never comes, The dances) from his debut album (simply titled Garth Brooks) really set up his career. Irish singer Ronan Keating later had a British number one hit with a cover of If tomorrow never comes. While his debut album provided Garth was a great start to his career, he was at that stage overshadowed by another rising country star, Clint Black. While Clint was never quite able to match the brilliance of his debut album, Garth took country music to a whole new audience.



Garth's second album (No fences) yielded four major hits (Friends in low places, Unanswered prayers, The thunder rolls, Two of a kind working on a full house). Garth co-wrote The thunder rolls before he had a recording contract and Tanya Tucker was the first singer to record hit. Tanya's brilliant version was not released on an album at the time (it later appeared on a 4-CD boxed set in 1994) so Garth recorded it himself. The album eventually sold well over ten million copies in America, reaching out to a pop and rock audience that traditionally ignored country music.



Garth's third album (Roping the wind) consolidated Garth's status as a superstar. No less than six tracks from it can be found here, these being Burning bridges (a hit for Garth in Spain), Shameless (a cover of a Billy Joel song), What she's doing now (co-written by Garth but first recorded by Crystal Gayle), Rodeo, Papa loves Mama and the title track.



Garth's fourth album (The chase) is represented by just two tracks here (We shall be free, That summer). Garth is upset at the controversy generated by We shall be free. He and Stephanie Davis, who co-wrote the song, intended it to be a simple love song but the lyrics can be interpreted differently to make it sound like a political anthem. Listen and judge for yourself.



Garth's fifth album (In pieces) is represented by three tracks here (Ain't going down till the sun comes up, Calling Baton Rouge (a cover of a song first recorded by the New Grass Revival, who back Garth on his version of the song), American honky-tonk bar association). The European edition of this compilation, also long out of print, includes two further tracks from this album (Standing outside the fire, The red strokes).



This collection fairly represents Garth's classic period. Although he continued to record further albums, he never quite recaptured the magic of his first five albums. This hits collection was released as a limited edition and is long out of print, but the original albums are still in print. If you can't find a used copy, I recommend you begin with No fences, then pick up In pieces, Garth Brooks, Roping the wind and The chase in that order, stopping if you feel you've got as much of Garth as you want. Garth also recorded a Christmas album (Beyond the season) during this period, which is also worth hearing."

1st Country CD I bought and the best one

Godzilla | Denver | 09/09/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I never liked country music until I gave this CD a try back in 1994. It introduced me to Garth and to country, and I loved both ever since. Ever track on The Hits is a keeper, unlike all of Garth's studio albums which has a few fillers. Highly recommended to everyone!!! Doesnt get any better"

The Master Of Self-Promotion

K. Fontenot | The Bayou State | 01/02/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Love him or hate him, you have to admit that Garth Brooks knew how to sell himself to the masses. His career started out promising enough with his self-titled debut which included two of my personal favorites, "The Dance" and "Much Too Young (To Feel This Damn Old)." He followed that with the harbinger of things to follow, "No Fences," which included the tune that really put him on the map, the wonderful "Thunder Rolls," and the bar-friendly "Friends In Low Places." From there, Brooks' tunes took less of a personal and genuine turn and evolved into a hybrid of "what sells the most" and "what sounds most genuine to those outside of Country music."



Starting with the album, "Ropin' The Wind," Brooks began to crank out commercially successful, yet lyrically insignificant songs like "American Honky-Tonk Bar Association" and "Rodeo." He managed to fire off a couple of solid, meaningful songs like "Standing Outside The Fire" and "River," but most of his songs were fluff like "Ain't Goin' Down (Till The Sun Comes Up."



All of the aforementioned songs are available on "The Hits." It, much like every album after his first two, was also created to generate high, fast, and record-setting sales marks by having it put out in limited release. However, it's a very significant album in Country music history since it catalogs the first half of a career full of great promise (songs like "The Dance") and a huge ego (the forced-upon social tune, "We Shall Be Free"). It also signalled a turning point in Brooks' career with the release of even heavier commercial works such as "Fresh Horses" and "Sevens" after "The Hits" hit the store shelves.



Brooks' ego finally caught up with him with the abysmal "Chris Gaines" era. He suffered a huge commercial blow due to this experiment and he has never regained his status as a commercial star. However, this knock to the ego did result in the decent "Scarecrow" album, yet nothing has added up to the success of his pre-"The Hits" albums.



Brooks forever changed the face of Country music. He helped expose the world outside of Country music to great neo-traditional artists such as Alan Jackson and Vince Gill. He also helped pave the way for fluff acts like Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney, who've managed to master Brooks' old formula of self-promotion.



From a blah cover like "Shameless" to a wonderful cover of "Callin' Baton Rouge," and every original hit and miss in between, "The Hits" is a crucial album to Country music history since it is a gathering of the best and worst of a true Country "performer" who single-handedly saved and destroyed real Country music."