Garth Brooks (album)

Garth Brooks is the debut album by American country music artist Garth Brooks, released on April 12, 1989, through Capitol Nashville. It was both a critical and chart success, peaking at No. 13 on the Billboard 200 and at No. 2 on the Top Country Albums chart. The album has been certified diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments over ten million copies.

Background

Brooks commented on the album, saying:

Musical style and composition

Garth Brooks has been labeled as a neotraditional country album, with elements of traditional country subgenres such as honky-tonk and Western swing, and non-country based genres such as rock and roll and pop music that Brooks would further expand upon on his follow-up album, No Fences. It has been compared to the styles of traditional country artists such as George Jones and George Strait.

Singles

This album contains Brooks' earliest hits, for instance his first ever single, "Much Too Young (To Feel This Damn Old)", which peaked at No. 8 on the Country Billboard Charts in 1989. It put the name of an independent cowboy singer, Chris LeDoux, into the mainstream due to the lyric "A worn out tape of Chris LeDoux" Two other strong starts include his first No. 1, "If Tomorrow Never Comes" and the Academy of Country Music's 1990 Song of the Year and Video of the Year, "The Dance" (another No. 1). It also features his first hit he wrote entirely in "Not Counting You", another top 10 success.

Notable covers

Punk rock cover artists Me First and the Gimme Gimmes released a version of "Much Too Young (To Feel This Damn Old)" as the first track on their October 2006 album Me First and the Gimme Gimmes Love Their Country.

"If Tomorrow Never Comes" has been covered by Ronan Keating (former lead singer of Irish group Boyzone), and many other famous singers including Barry Manilow.

Moe Bandy previously recorded "Nobody Gets Off in This Town" on his 1988 album No Regrets.

Commercial performance

Garth Brooks peaked at No. 13 on the US Billboard 200, and peaked at No. 2 on the Top Country Albums. In November 2006, it was certified diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of over ten million copies in the United States. To date, the album has shipped ten million copies in the US.

Critical reception

USA Today deemed the album "core country with heartfelt, hurtin' vocals and country timelessness."

Track listing

Original Release

Limited Series Release

Personnel

• Garth Brooks – lead and backing vocals, acoustic guitar

Additional musicians

• Bruce Bouton – pedal steel guitar
• Mark Casstevens – acoustic guitar
• Mike Chapman – bass guitar
• Kathy Chiavola – backing vocals on "Alabama Clay"
• Charles Cochran – string arrangements
• Rob Hajacos – fiddle
• Wendy Johnson – backing vocals on "I've Got A Good Thing Going", "If Tomorrow Never Comes" and "Everytime That It Rains"
• Chris Leuzinger – electric guitar
• The Nashville String Machine – string section
• George Binkley III
• John Borg
• Roy Christiensen
• Carl Gorodetzky
• Dennis Molchan
• Pamela Sixfin
• Gary Vanosdale
• Jennifer O'Brien – backing vocals on "I've Got A Good Thing Going", "If Tomorrow Never Comes" and "Everytime That It Rains"
• Wayland Patton – backing vocals on "Alabama Clay"
• Milton Sledge – drums
• Hurshel Wiginton – backing vocals on "I've Got A Good Thing Going", "If Tomorrow Never Comes" and "Everytime That It Rains"
• Bobby Wood – keyboards, synthesizer
• Curtis Young – backing vocals on "I've Got A Good Thing Going", "If Tomorrow Never Comes" and "Everytime That It Rains"

Technical personnel

• Allen Reynolds – production
• Mark Miller – recording and mixing engineering
• Denny Purcell – mastering

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Singles

Certifications

See also

• List of best-selling albums in the United States

References