Back In The Saddle Garth Brooks Returns With ‘Fresh Horses’

As Garth Brooks prepares for Capitol Nashville’s Nov. 21 release of “Fresh Horses,” his first studio album in two years, he faces a country market that is radically different from the one in which he made his debut in 1989.

In fact, in the two years since his last album - the pause was punctuated by a greatest-hits collection and a special compilation for McDonald’s - country’s ranks have swelled. Close to 30 of the 75 positions on Billboard’s Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart are occupied by artists who have released their debut albums since 1993’s “In Pieces” came out.

Although he wonders if he’s stayed away too long from a market that demands a release from an artist every year, Brooks says the time away from the studio and the road has done him good. “I’m writing more now than ever,” he says. “I haven’t written this much since 1987 or 1988, before I got signed.”

His refreshed spirit shows on “Fresh Horses,” produced by Allen Reynolds. Brooks coined the term “garage country” to describe the new album’s sound - a high-energy, stripped-down, take-no-prisoners approach.

But the last two years have not been without their complications. Brooks found himself in the middle of two legal battles: one of his comanagers, Pam Lewis, filed suit against his other co-manager, Bob Doyle. One result of the case, which is still pending, is that Brooks had to set up his own management company. Additionally, Brooks himself was named defendant in a copyright infringement suit lodged by songwriter Guy Thomas, who alleged that the Brooks/Jenny Yates composition “Standing Outside The Fire” bore a too striking resemblance to the Thomas/Kenny Loggins song “Conviction Of The Heart.” “This has been the year that I’ve seen things that I never dreamed of when you dream about making music,” says Brooks.

Through it all, Brooks’ star continues to rise. Since his 1989 self-titled debut, he has sold an astronomical 54 million albums in the United States, placing him behind only the Eagles (56 million), Billy Joel (58 million) and the Beatles (70 million), as the top-selling albums artist, according to the Recording Industry Association of America.

The following is an interview conducted Oct. 9 with Brooks in his Music Row management office and on the steps of Jack’s Tracks recording studio. Throughout, Brooks made it clear he is not about to rest on his laurels.

Billboard: You’ve worked on this album off and on for two years. That’s the longest you’ve ever taken.

Brooks: And it was the hardest (album) by far. I’ve thrown up, cried, passed out. I have done everything physically possible you can do with a record and for some reason loved it. Don’t ask me why.

BB: You told Billboard earlier this year that it would take a miracle to put a record out in 1995. What was the miracle?

Brooks: The miracle was the fact that I found Garth Brooks somewhere in the middle of the summer. Just found him. I don’t know where. I don’t know how to explain it without people thinking I’m nuts anyway, but I was thinking if it’s going to take a miracle to produce another album like anything we’ve done in the past, I just thought I’ll never make it, because at that time we had only two or three songs. And somewhere in the middle of summer, it’s like the writer came out in me … and the next thing you know, we’ve got 12 songs.

BB: You co-wrote eight of the 10 songs on the album. The most you’ve ever co-written before was six songs on “Ropin’ The Wind.” In fact, you’ve vehemently protested having too many of your songs on your albums.

Brooks: That’s another reason I’m real scared (about this album), because I know I’m not one of the upper writers in this town. I’ve never been a fan of my writing. I just bring what I do to (producer) Allen Reynolds. I didn’t care for (previous Brooks’ hits) “If Tomorrow Never Comes” or “Unanswered Prayers.” I gave “The Thunder Rolls” and “What She’s Doing Now” away, and all of them found their way back to me. I just trust Allen and his ears.

BB: Songwriters have tremendous power in Nashville. They can even decide whether they will let an artist cut a track, can’t they?

Brooks: Sure. There’s millions of stories I could tell you about songwriters who wouldn’t let me have things because they wanted them for bigger artists, you know, when we started. And (those writers) have been real sweet and come up to me and said,”Damn, you know, I feel kind of funny,” and it’s like, “Hey, you just gotta do your gig.”

BB: Have you cut anything by anyone who refused you a song for the first album?

Brooks: I’m sure I have, because if the song is good, you gotta block that out. There are people in this town that I don’t get along with, but it’s all about being true to the music. It’s not about politics. And that was one of the hardest lessons I had to learn here.

BB: Aside from “The Change,” the only song you didn’t co-write is the second single, a reworking of Aerosmith’s “Fever.” What reaction did you get from (the rock band’s) Joe Perry and Steven Tyler?

Brooks: Their manager sent the (changed) lyric to both Tyler and Perry, because we didn’t have a tape to play them yet. Perry immediately said, “Sure, man. Why not? Let’s give it a run,” which was sweet of him. Tyler wanted me to call him, (so) we talked, and he said one of the coolest things. He said, “Just go for it. I know you’ll take care of it.” Those weren’t his exact words, but I felt like he trusted me not to drag it through the dirt.

BB: Were you thinking about Tyler when you cut the vocals, because this album features your loosest, most vibrant vocals yet.

Brooks: Yeah. This is the cut that set the whole mood for the album for us. When we started cutting, we came upon a term called “garage country.” It’s very stripped down. This was five pieces - two guitars, bass, drums, and a fiddle, and that’s it. We got a cut called “Rollin’ ” where the harmonies are off. The lead vocal is off in places, but it’s so much fun that we left it. We just decided to have fun on this one and to take ourselves seriously only on songs that needed to be taken seriously. … But at no time do I ever want anybody to think that I’m not competitive or that I’m complacent with where I’m at. I feel very thankful to be making records, but when I’m making records, it’s kill or be killed. Do the best job that you can do.

BB: How did your time off help you creatively?

Brooks: I think it helped me extremely. The slogan for this record was “if it ain’t fun, it ain’t me,” and we just got back to doing what we do, you know. It got extremely heavy there for a while. I’m being sued for the first time ever in my career, so all this stuff is real heavy for me. I had to get back to the things you see when you’re first dreaming about this: You see the people’s faces, you smell the empty auditoriums at sound check; you know, that stuff. And that’s what we’re back into, so I feel a lot better.

BB: Were you listening to the radio when you were making this album?

Brooks: Yeah, I’m always listening to the radio. To be honest with you, I have the same problem everybody else does right now, trying to keep up with all of the artists. I have friends, program directors, at radio stations that I’m very close with (who) say, “I have five people on my top 20 list that I’m playing right now, and I wouldn’t know them if they walked up to me in full dress” … I tell you what would be new to radio now is traditional country music. George Strait and David Ball are probably the only guys hanging on to the real traditional stuff now. And they are now the minority, which is weird.

BB: But you don’t go that traditional route.

Brooks: I gotta be me. So my sounds that I bring are just me. I am not Haggard, you know. I stay up nights wishing I was, but I’m not. I am not George Jones. I can only be myself. I could think of a couple of guys named (Chris) LeDoux and Strait that I’d much rather be like. I’m proud of who I am; I just like listening to their stuff.

BB: According to Billboard, country radio posted its fourth consecutive down quarter, scoring its lowest audience share since the fall of ‘91. What’s wrong with country radio?

Brooks: I don’t think anything’s wrong with country radio, OK? I think if anything is wrong, it’s stemming out of this town. And what this town has done is bomb country radio. I blame Nashville and the 20-something labels here by not giving a damn if the product is quality or not. They’re just throwing stuff out there, and if it sticks, fine. Nobody is developing artists. I talk to artists every day (who) had a record deal two years ago and they don’t today. That’s never happened in country music before.

BB: Why did you put the single out three months in advance of the album? (This week, the song “She’s Every Woman” is No. 7 on the country singles chart.)

Brooks: Because every (first) single we’ve had out has gotten killed by the album (because programmers would jump on other cuts). Also, the record label put it out because they had it, you know. Record labels don’t like to wait, I guess, because the next single’s now been bumped up. They want to keep piling them right on top of each other.

I’m sure they have their reasons for it, but Allen and I sit there and go, “Jeez, let it breathe. Let the people have time to soak it in.”

BB: Isn’t “getting out” a terrifying prospect to you?

Brooks: Yeah, but that’s what I love; it’s the weirdest thing. I’m sure everybody’s been in a relationship where somebody treats you like crap, but you just keep coming back for more and that’s what this is, man. It wears you out, it tears you down, you always think, “Is it over? Is it over? Was I worth remembering?” And you love every minute of it.