Sunday, September 23, 2018

Vital Personal Connections

Song 426: This week on the playlist you can hear Friends in Low Places by Garth Brooks, written by Dewayne Blackwell and Earl Bud Lee, and you can find a YouTube video of it by clicking on the title. Around the turn of the 1990s, Garth Brooks emerged as one of the fresh faces lighting up the New Country scene, as it was called by the NYC country station that I listened to a lot during that stretch, and this hit stood out as one of his most entertaining releases. I had to smile at a guy who could ruin a black-tie affair just because he showed up in boots, especially when he didn't mean to cause a big scene. In researching this piece, I learned that Garth cites James Taylor as a major musical influence, as do I, and though I didn't previously know it, it doesn't surprise me - I can sense the JT echoes in Brook's performance. While he may not be big on social graces, I'm sure he'll be okay because he does have those friends in low places. On a side note, this track is the third sly reference to the final verse of my own song As Long as Merle is Still Haggard, which begins with the line So I think Aaron's been Tippin a few and Garth is one for the Brooks. You can find the Merle video by clicking on the title.

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