Garth Brooks came to the world of country music in the year 1989, and I am sure Mr. Brooks himself did not know the path he was about to take! I consider Garth one of country music’s best of all time, and also Garth was one who really opened doors for many up and coming artists! Garth Brooks first album is very much a traditional type album for country! His vocals are great and he really soars high on some of his songs on this cd!
Track 1 of the cd opens up very upbeat and also a song Garth wrote himself! The song is called Not Counting You! Garth really goes into a male Patsy Cline here! I like this song due to the fact it is upbeat and very fun! Alot of people do not realize that Mr. Brooks is also a great song writer! This is something I think Garth needs to really explore a little more! He is a great song writer!
Track 2 is a song called I’ve Got A Good Thing Goin’ and this another song Garth had a hand in writing! A very pretty ballad with fiddles playing in the background! This song is one that will put you to mind of another hit maker by the name of Clint Black! It is a great song and very traditional!
Track 3 is the radio hit If Tomorrow Never Comes! Garth is famous for songs like these! He really gets you the listener thinking of the time when we pass! He really expresses here that we should all let the loved ones around us know just how much they mean to us! This is one of Garth’s prettiest songs ever! This is one you will tend to dedicate to that special someone in your life!
Track 4 is a song called Uptown Downhome Country Boy! This song is a mid-tempoed song and it is very enjoyable! Very country bound and very much in the same style that Waylon Jennings was always famous for! That is one of the key things I think Garth always does, he tries to show influence in his music and this is one you will probably play time and again, especially if you are small town guy like Garth!
Track 5 is a mellow ballad called Everytime It Rains, and it also has his hand in writing on this! I like this pretty ballad! It is a shame that Garth never really showed this song off at concerts, because it also would have made for a great single! I really enjoy this song too! Garth is great at those beautiful ballads! He has range and strength in his vocal! Also this song is a great one to just pull the one you love up on a dance floor and just simply slow dance!
Track 6 is Alabama Clay and it opens up on piano! This another beautiful ballad from Garth! It is a song about a man who wanted to escape the country and live his life in the big city! A very relatable song to many of us who grew up in small towns! But also in the song he finds out he doesn’t really belong in the big city, he really craves to be back home! It just proves in this song that sometimes the changes we crave does not really work out sometimes and we are better off back where we began!
Track 7 is Garth’s first radio hit called Much Too Young( To Feel This Damn Old) and this is a song alot of people can relate! This is really for the people in their mid 30’s! I would say this is an all time fave for any Garth fan! Mr. Brooks also had a hand in this song as far as writing goes! Traditional country and just a great tune to jam to any time, any place!
Track 8 is Cowboy Bill and this is a mid tempo song! This song puts me to mind of Dolly Parton, and if you like Dolly’s music, then you will surely like this cute tune from Garth! Very much a story telling type country song!
Track 9 is a typical fun one from Garth! Nobody Gets Off In This Town is a bluesy like song and it really puts me to mind of a Janis Joplin like song! When Garth does songs like these, he tends to really have fun with them! It shows in his vocals! This is something Garth does in future albums as well!
Track 10 is I Know One, a ballad that really once again has a Patsy Cline like feel! It is a major shame Patsy Cline is not here to listen to this, because I am sure some where along the line Garth would have had her on stage singing this one with him! Once again, chalk this great tune up to influence!
Track 11 closes out the album and it is Garth’s all time favorite song! The Dance! The secret to any Garth Brooks album is that the last song is his favorite! This is still a favorite song of his to this very day! A beautiful ballad about life in general! Alot of people tend to use this for when loved ones die! Garth once said in an interview, he did not intend on this song being an anthem, but he said that he is grateful that people have kept this classic alive through memories of their loved ones! Also in this video for the song, Garth used alot of important heros in our culture, such as President Kennedy and also Martin Luthor King! I think Garth made a wise choice in choosing this song! Great song and beautifully sang! Garth always does this live and always his audiences in tears by the end! If Garth ever was to do an unplugged album, I garuntee this would be there!
Over all a great cd and I promise you will play this time and time again!