Back in November Garth had a special on TV. It was essentially the life and times of Garth Brooks told through the music which inspired and influenced him. And it was awesome.
He'd tell stories of his childhood and transition that into 30 seconds of Billy Joel or Simon and Garfunkel. I ate it right up. It was goosebump-enducing.
Prior to this special I hadn't listened to Garth Brooks in close to 15 years. I had heard a song here and there, but I never really listened to him. Watching him sing during that special re-ignited my fandom.
The next day I dusted off my old CD books, found all of my Garth discs and loaded them onto my iPhone. "Blast from the past". "Trip down memory lane". Whatever nostalgic cliche you'd like to apply, applies. It was fantastic. I still had the lyrics to 90% of those songs memorized and I belted them out like they were a long lost friend; which they pretty much were.
Not all the songs held up over time. I'm sure the blame for that falls on both mine and Garth's shoulders. My tastes in music are undoubtedly different. Some of those songs are 20 years old and haven't aged well. But maybe 10 of those songs I love as much, if not more than I did when I was barely a teenager. It's been a month since I put those discs on my my phone and I'm still listening to them on my way to and from work each day.
So my love of Garth Brooks still rages on, despite our lengthy separation. This is important. Because this next part is painful.
Garth didn't do that TV special for the hell of it. He had something to sell. Exclusively at Wal-Mart (Walmart?) Garth was releasing an 8-disc box set appropriately titled, "Blame It All On My Roots". This box set has some of the classic Garth that we all know and love. But more importantly, it has 4 discs of those inspiration, influential songs he touched on during his special.
Remember earlier when I said I got goosebumps watching him sing 30 seconds of those tunes? Imagine my excitement at 4 discs of the stuff.
I read the track list. "Midnight Train to Georgia", "Ain't No Sunshine", "Stand By Me", "Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay", "Somebody To Love", "Mrs. Robinson", "Maggie May", "Who'll Stop The Rain", "Operator". These are some of my all-time favorite songs. Probably yours too.
I was on the verge of hearing Garth, one of my favorite singers, sing some of my favorite songs. I popped the first disc into my computer, cycled through a few songs, and immediately wanted my money back.
This was an abomination. Garth wasn't singing these songs, he was murdering them. Murder probably isn't a strong enough or right word. Mockery. He was making a mockery of these classic hits.
Go here for a taste, if you dare.
Did you listen to that? Did you? I hope you didn't, but I kinda hope you did.
What is he doing? Who is that man singing? What is he doing? I'll stop asking you questions now. But seriously, what was that?
Now, in his defense, there are a few songs he handles well. But mostly it's him trying to impersonate the original artist, backed up by what sounds like 2nd or 3rd rate musicians and backup singers. Almost none of it works.
And it's not as if he lost his voice or talent. That TV special proves that he still has it. This was just 8 discs full of missteps and bad decisions. That I paid for. I beg of you dear reader: don't make that same mistake.
So that box set was a pretty big letdown. Huge disappointment aside, I'll let it pass. Rediscovering Garth has been awesome. Having an additional half a life of experiences since I last absorbed those tracks has given me an entirely new appreciation and understanding of his music. Here's on my favorites, which hits me a lot harder today than it did when I was 14: http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/Every+Now+And+Then/5frrLp?src=5
So I thank him for the memories: both old and new. And it's a safe bet that Garth isn't going to leave my music rotation any time soon. But that won't stop me from deleting the majority of his box set from my iPhone and memory.
Instead I'll focus on the musict that brought so much joy to teenage, and now 30 year-old Aaron.
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