Of course, he’d long said he couldn’t keep up with Trisha Yearwood in the studio. “I just hang on and hope,” he once quipped. Their duet on Scarecrow, “Squeeze Me In,” written by Nashville blues-rockers Gary Nicholson and Delbert McClinton, was nominated for a Grammy the following year.
Over the months it took to record Scarecrow Trisha was often in the studio both singing harmony and performing on duet material. As time went by, the friendship she and Garth had had for the past decade began to change. Trisha was divorced from Robert Reynolds in 1999 and knew what Garth was going through. The two had always had an upfront relationship when talking about music, the industry, touring, careers, and their own personal value systems. Now the conversations took on a more personal tone: marriages, the pain of divorce, and trying to put lives back together. The more time they spent together, the more Garth became convinced that his longtime friend represented the beginning of the rest of his life.
This was not a situation where they started to “date” as such. Nor did Trisha spend more time at the studio than usual. She came in to sing when she was needed, no more. But they did spend more time talking, at Trisha’s home and on long drives. Trisha also faced some career decisions. Her MCA label deal was almost up, and she was considering making a move. She had problems deciding on the direction of her next album. And so everything that made the two trusted friends, platonic soul mates, came into play on an intensified level.
But while Garth did talk about the relationship to friends, the couple did not go public for over a year. The event that brought them out was the March 19, 2002, memorial service for Harlan Howard. Both artists had loved Harlan and been deeply affected by his March 3 death. Trisha, in fact, sang one of Harlan’s songs on her last demo session after signing with MCA Records in 1990. Garth and Trisha arrived at the Ryman Auditorium for Harlan’s service arm in arm, making no attempt to hide the fact that they were, indeed, a couple.
As soon as the couple went public, singer/songwriter Gary Nicholson told a friend, “Delbert and I are planning to take full credit for this.” He laughed. “Garth and Trisha went into the studio and sang ‘Squeeze Me In’ and realized they couldn’t live without each other.”
There was a flashback to earlier days on Scarecrow. When Garth heard the demo for “Big Money,” written by Shawn Camp, Randy Hardison, and Wynn Varble, he immediately recalled his first album. “That song would have fit in perfectly on Garth Brooks,” he said. “It’s country and it has a message that will put a grin on your face.”
Scarecrow was released in 2001. What happened just a year later to one of the songwriters on the album was one of Nashville’s great tragedies, with all the drama of a country song. In June 2002 a neighbor found Randy Hardison lying outside his apartment building in a pool of blood, still alive. The neighbor immediately called an ambulance, and friends began gathering at his hospital bedside. It was first thought that he had fallen off a ladder, but that theory was soon replaced by suspicions of foul play.
In the end two men were charged with criminally negligent homicide. They served seven months and were released for good behavior.
Shawn Camp, who wrote “Big Money” with Randy, was devastated over the murder. “It was one of those times when you come up against something so terrible that you are numbed,” he reflected. “Randy was a funny, funny guy. That’s why he was so perfect for a tongue-in-cheek song like ‘Big Money.’ He hadn’t even had a chance to get his first royalty check from the song, and it kills me to think how much that financial security would have meant to him.”
Many of the artists and writers who were deeply affected by Randy’s death mentioned him in their shows, hoping to keep his spirit alive. Ironically, that is exactly what another song on Scarecrow, “When You Come Back To Me Again,” is about.
In 1999 when asked to write a song for the ending of the movie Frequency, Garth phoned his frequent writing partner Jenny Yates and asked her to accompany him to a screening at New Line Cinema in Los Angeles. Garth loved the story. After the initial twists and turns in the mystery/drama, what might appear to be a happy ending only sets in motion a series of changed events that must be put right. The final scenes, for which Garth was to write a song, show three generations of a family reunited and playing baseball.
When the film wrapped, Garth turned to Jenny Yates and asked, “Are you ready to get to work?” The two went to his hotel room in L.A. and started talking about life, family, touchstones. Garth’s late mother Colleen was very much on his mind. And the image that came to him was that of the family as a lighthouse.
And so, from beginning to end, Colleen Brooks was a force in Scarecrow. Garth believes that her positive spirit pulled him to safety, much like the lighthouse in the harbor in “When You Come Back To Me Again.”
Frequency did not have a soundtrack album, so in 2000 Garth put together clips from the film and released “When You Come Back To Me Again” as a video. Almost immediately, radio began pulling the audio off the video and played the song right up the charts to number 21. That “When You Come Back To Me Again” was a tribute to family, and Colleen in particular, meant a great deal to Garth. That the public loved it so much that they made it an unreleased hit caused him to include the cut as the final song on Scarecrow. It received a Golden Globe nomination in the category of Best Original Song.
Under Mike Dungan’s direction Scarecrow was released on November 13, 2001. Since he wasn’t touring, Garth hosted three CBS-TV specials to promote the album. Garth Brooks: Coast to Coast Live aired on November 14, 2001, from the Los Angeles Forum with special guests Keb’ Mo’ and Trisha Yearwood. Guests at the Forum show included Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, Woody Harrelson, Marlee Matlin, and John Travolta. The second aired on November 21 with special guest Jewel from the flight deck of the USS Enterprise just as it was returning from an extended deployment. The series ended on November 28 with a concert on the beach in South Padre Island, Texas, with special guests Steve Wariner and Jerry Jeff Walker.
Together with Joe Mansfield and Capitol marketing VP Fletcher Foster, Dungan put together a massive effort that included commercials involving Dr Pepper and Kmart, talk show appearances, and a limited-edition version of the album.
“There won’t be a person in the world that doesn’t know there’s a new Garth Brooks out,” Dungan said. But, he added, the label was not promoting Scarecrow as “Garth’s final album.” The Chicago Sun-Times pointed to a finalalbum pitfall Garth wisely avoided: “Garth Brooks has resisted the urge to make a Grand Statement. Instead, he opted for a solid, exquisitely produced, no-strings-attached contemporary country disc.”
Noted music journalist Jack Hurst, writing in the Nashville Scene, called Scarecrow “a mainstream masterpiece offering touches of everything from hard-core country and bluegrass to big ballads to delicious swing, soul, and Celtic music, infused throughout with a mix of sexy humor and altar-call seriousness. Sometimes employing strings and other times stark sparseness, he delivers it all with a winning, backing-off-self-assurance born (one suspects) of the fact that he finally has nothing left to prove… undeniable artistic genius.”
The Daily Oklahoman said, “Just when you thought country music was set to be taken over by young punks, here comes Garth Brooks to show you how real country sounds.” Time noted that Scarecrow is “a reminder that Brooks is a man with a significant gift. Like Elvis and Sinatra, Brooks isn’t just a singer, but an interpreter.” People called it “his best work to date.”
Scarecrow debuted at number 1 on the Billboard Top 200 and country albums charts with first-week sales of 465,523. Shakira’s English language debut sold 202,000 and Madonna’s third hits collection, GHVD, sold 105,000. Even Paul McCartney had a bad sales week with Driving Rain: 66,000.
This marked the seventh time Garth debuted at number 1 on the Top 200 chart (more times than any other artist) and the ninth time atop the country albums chart. It was the highest-selling debut week for a country album since the release of Garth Bro
oks Double Live in 1998. The album was also among the ten best-selling country albums of 2001.
The critical reception to Scarecrow led to questions about Garth’s retirement. Was he still serious about it? Would he really be able to keep himself from booking another big tour? Was this his final album for Capitol? Was he turning his back on music? The answers were yes, yes, yes, and no.
Garth was philosophical in a lengthy interview with Billboard’s Melinda Newman. He admitted to being torn between examples like Elton John, who had said that he didn’t want to be a forty-year-old guy still out there rocking, yet he was still out there rocking. Garth didn’t want to announce a retirement, then run out and tour again. Yet, as Newman pointed out, James Taylor and others had said that despite age, giving up music was impossible.
“Have you gotten everything you wanted from it [the music]?” Newman asked.
“No,” Garth said. “Music is such a wonderful partner and mate. It’s like every time you go there, the love you make is better than the first time, but it always feels like the first time… but because of choices I’ve made I am now a father that sings, whereas I used to be a singer that was a father.”
Garth settled into life as a divorced dad in Oklahoma. He and Sandy had farms close to each other. They both saw the girls every day, were in constant communication about their upbringing, and in absolute agreement that their children were the priority. As divorces go, this one was as cordial as you could find.
He explained the differences between life in Oklahoma versus Nashville: “I have a new love for Nashville. Where I live in Oklahoma, the creative energy has a lot to do with agriculture, with just blue-collar muscle. In Nashville, the energy pool has a lot to do with dreaming, a lot to do with expressing yourself in an artistic way. When I would come to town, the first thing I noticed was this massive ball suddenly churning inside of me again, and it made me feel like I wanted to record. In Oklahoma, the energy you feel makes you feel very American. You get up and take your kids to school and it’s a wonderful rush and joy and it’s solid as a rock. So what’s weird about Oklahoma and Nashville is, it’s like my life has been with my mom and dad. One is a very realistic, grounded foundation and the other is, ‘Let’s see how high we can fly and see how dangerous we can get up there.’ And I found out that they are both what I need.”
In a phone call to Nashville to discuss his final Capitol album, Garth did an unusual thing. He put talking about his music on the back burner. “This has been a strange year,” he began. “For a long time after my mom died I was living in a funk. Something was growing inside me and I couldn’t seem to stop it. It was growing inside my dad, too. Neither one of us were moving on and I couldn’t help but think my mom would tell us both to snap out of it. Because of my girls, it was so important for me to get completely back to myself. You don’t get a second chance when you’re raising children.
“I started thinking about how I had been changing, and realized that I had been so passionate about my music, my career—that a lot of the time I was out of touch. I never knew what day it was, let alone the hour. I was passionate about the moment, always trying to go new places. But I didn’t have a clue about what was going on in the world in general, and sometimes not even in my own world. Somebody would ask me if I’d heard about this or that event, and I’d have to admit I hadn’t. But I had started watching the television news on a daily basis, started paying attention to my surroundings.
“Finally, I decided to tell my mother about what was going on with me. I started writing a poem to her. It started out, ‘If you ever wonder what happened to me, I’ve become the man that I feared I would be. Politically conscious, a payer of dues, aware of the hour and the hourly news.’ I really wanted to try and explain this crossroads I was at. I was making changes that both scared and excited me. And in the end, I wanted her to know that she was still with me, still guiding me.”
In the poem, Garth wrote of being in a room and blending in, rather than being the pivotal point. Garth put the poem up on his wall and stopped to read it every time he walked by.
“What I started learning is that you can be passionate about many, many things. Obviously I’m passionate about my kids—but I’ve even become passionate about learning to cook, learning to take care of myself on very basic levels.”
“Do you want to talk about the music?” he was asked.
“I’m gonna have to call you back later to talk about Scarecrow,” he said. “Because I want to talk about Miss Yearwood—how insanely happy I am right now.”
Well, all right.
“When I started making this record at that low point, I had my best friend by my side at every step. Trisha would not let me sink any further down. You remember that I always said I could never get into too much of an ego trip because my family would beat me up? Well, Trisha was that fierce about pulling me out of the hole I was in. I’ve always loved Trisha Yearwood as a friend. But then I realized I was falling in love with her. I want to tell you that when I saw how our whole relationship was changing, I was so happy that I worried it was a dream and I might wake up.”
How does this story end, he was asked. “I’d rather tell you how it starts,” he laughed. “I’m beginning this next stage of my life with my best friend beside me. My new goal is to be known as Mr. Trisha Yearwood.”
EPILOGUE
Time is not your enemy
Giants of the industry would be turning out on that Sunday night in May 2005 to honor two towering figures: Gentleman Jim Foglesong and Kris Kristofferson. The Country Music Foundation had issued the invitations, and if the crowd turned out as expected, it would be the largest number of Hall of Fame members gathered at the HOF Museum in the foundation’s history. It was being billed as a Family Reunion. Among those asked to take part in the musical tribute were Ray Price, Vince Gill, the Oak Ridge Boys, and Garth Brooks.
Garth was scheduled to sing his first number 1 song, “If Tomorrow Never Comes.” He’d been away from Nashville doings for several years by then, so he thought long and hard about what to say to these two legends. Neither man had stepped back from their lives or careers. In the years since Jim Foglesong left Capitol he had devoted himself to his family and to music education. Kris Kristofferson was still a prolific writer and performer, living in Hawaii with his wife and children. Finally, on the night of the event, after reflecting on the men and their longevity, he said, “It’s funny how if you take care of what you do, time’s not your enemy.”
* * *
NOR HAS TIME BEEN Garth’s enemy. In the eight years since he announced his retirement, between his 100 Million event in 2000 and 2008, Garth has sold an additional 28 million records. And he is still making history. When a new single, “More Than A Memory,” was released in 2007, it became the first to ever enter the Billboard charts at number 1. He has spent his time since retiring being a father to three daughters, working on charitable efforts, and, as of 2005, a husband to Trisha Yearwood. He is also making music at a pace that doesn’t interfere with his family life.
At the time his final Capitol album, Scarecrow, was released, the industry still looked to Garth to bolster overall sales. Country music had not seen an upward swing since 1998, according to the CMA’s year-end wrap-up. Moreover, the entire music industry had been in a slump, with a 2.8 percent loss in album sales.
Then, in 2001 country sold 67.2 million albums, up 1.3 million from 2000. Two albums led that charge. Just as Urban Cowboy brought renewed excitement for honky-tonks back in 1980, a film and soundtrack helped revive country and bluegrass sales and influence two decades later. O Brother, Where Art Thou? was the ninth best-selling album in all genres during 2001, at 3.5 million, and spent twenty-four weeks at number 1 in Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart. O Brother took home CMA awards for Album and Single of the Year (“I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow” performed by Dan Tyminski). Garth’s Scarecrow entered the top country and pop album charts at number 1, the seventh time one of his albums had done so. Scarecr
ow sold 2.3 million during the same time period.
Tim McGraw had the next highest sales with 2.7 million in sales from two offerings: Set This Circus Down and Greatest Hits. Other artists selling over a million that year included Toby Keith, Lee Ann Womack, Kenny Chesney, Faith Hill, and the Dixie Chicks. Amusement Business named Tim McGraw the top touring artist of the year, bringing in $23.5 million, followed by Brooks & Dunn’s Neon Circus tour at $17.6 million.
Following the release of Scarecrow speculation again ran high: would Garth Brooks tolerate being out of the spotlight? Given his years on the road, could he live up to his decision to be a stay-at-home dad? Moreover, would he be capable of staying away from the recording studio?
“After Scarecrow was released, I had a long talk with Garth,” recalls Allen Reynolds. “I understood his wanting to give up the time-demanding tours, but I thought he might still record new albums. But he told me that with the passion that goes into making an album of new material, he believed he’d have to tour to support it. He said he’d consider other creative outlets in music, just not the emotional investment involved in the writing, song search, and recording of something brand-new. Not until he felt he could take it to his fans on the road.
“What struck me during that conversation, and in others since that time, is that Garth is not sacrificing anything to be with his children. He does not see this as him givingup anything, but rather, receiving something far more important.”
In fact, rather than longing for another big tour of his own, Garth applauded the acts carrying his torch. He was especially proud of Girls Night Out, the biggest all-female tour in country history, headlined by his close friends Reba McEntire and Martina McBride, and featuring Jamie O’Neal, Sara Evans, and Carolyn Dawn Johnson. And the following year, Garth did do a short—albeit nonmusical—tour. After being named honorary chairman of the National Education’s Read Across America 2002 celebration, he participated in a six-school reading tour. He kicked off the events by appearing on Good Morning America, where he read from Dr. Suess’s I Can Read with My Eyes Shut. Steve Wariner joined him for a Nashville reading, and Trisha Yearwood accompanied him to Los Angeles, where the couple read Suess’s Horton Hears a Who.
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