Garth Brooks "The Ultimate Hits"

Saturday, August 25, 2007

For someone my age (30), and a country music fan, Garth Brooks is one of the biggest influences. For myself, maybe just a little bit more than most fans. He is more than an artist, more than a performer, but one that I look up to. When he talks, I listen. When he sings, I listen.

Last week or so, I was listening...closely. Brooks held a press conference to announce the new project. I have posted a brief news story on the website, but I wanted to dig in just a little deeper.

Lets sumerize the conference:

• A timeline was set about his recent past. (The world tour ended in 98, last studio album was "Scarecrow," retired, Wal-Mart found him, did the Lost Sessions, DVD Tin)
• Now, a new album coming with Big Machine handling radio distrubution and going to be in all stores, not just Wal-Mart.
• New project is called "The Ultimate Hits" It is a 3 disc set. 2 audio CDs and 1 DVD. 34 songs in total. 30 classic hit songs, 3 new songs, and 1 new bonus track song. The DVD will include videos for the 33 songs, including updated video for "We Shall Be Free."
• The first new single goes to radio Monday.
• No tour scheduled or anything. A Wal-Mart appreciation concert is in the works, but no announcement now.

Now, there were a few other topics that came about I found so very interesting.

Brooks addressed the topic of will fans buy yet another compliation album? His answer was simple, yet so deep. He discussed his love for James Taylor and that he owns all the albums Taylor has done, and fans do the same. Think about it. Its so true. Fans of Brooks will be right in line for this one. Its exciting.

Did you realize that legally, you can not find Brooks' music for sale to download? Why, you may ask? The reason is something that I have talked about in the past and is very important to me. Brooks answer was that he does albums , not singles. His music is made to be heard as a whole package. All the songs, and the cover art. The album is something you hold, you take in the pictures and the linear notes. Especially the art production of an album. Itunes doesn't allow album-only download, so Brooks doesn't do I-Tunes. I love it personally, music is more than just one track from the album. Each album is an experience.

Lastly, Brooks also talked about his fans. He discussed for a moment this idea of fans are on a local level. He wants to be able to bring his product on a local level, Brooks' isn't at some mega-concert. He is your home, locally. This discussion came about while a reporter asked about another Ireland show or a New York City style show. It said no, but it really makes me wonder what is in the plans. Something is up, not sure what, but knowing Brooks, its going to be special.

The next step though in our journey with Brooks is Monday with the release of the new song from the upcoming "The Ultimate Hits" set. The single is called "More Than A Memory" written by Lee Brice, Kyle Jacobs, and Billy Montana. We will enjoy that until the release on November 6, 2007 of the entire project... artwork, all 34 songs, and the 33 videos.