Garth Brooks in...the Life of Chris Gaines
Garth Brooks in...the Life of Chris Gaines, also titled Greatest Hits, is an album by American country music artist Garth Brooks, in which Brooks assumes the fictitious persona of Australian rock artist Chris Gaines. Originally, this album was intended to be the soundtrack for a movie called The Lamb that would star Brooks as a rock star recalling the different periods of his life. This album was purposely released a year in advance from the scheduled film release date to pique interest in Brooks performing rock instead of country. The Lamb, however, was never filmed due to financial and management problems.
| Garth Brooks in...the Life of Chris Gaines | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Garth Brooks (as Chris Gaines) | ||||
| Released | September 28, 1999 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 56:23 | |||
| Label | Capitol | |||
| Producer | Don Was | |||
| Garth Brooks chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| The A.V. Club | (mixed)[7] |
| Christgau's Consumer Guide |  [8] |
| The Daily Vault | B−[9] |
| Entertainment Weekly | C−[2] |
| Mojo | (favorable)[10] |
| PopMatters | (favorable)[11] |
| Q | [10] |
| Rolling Stone |  [3] |
The album was released on September 28, 1999. It reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart behind Creed's Human Clay, and also gained Brooks his first and to date only appearance in the top 40 of the US Billboard Hot 100, with "Lost in You", which peaked at No. 5. The track "It Don't Matter to the Sun" was later covered in 2005, by Rosie Thomas on her If Songs Could Be Held album, and later as a duet between Don Henley and Stevie Nicks on the Target edition of Henley's 2015 album Cass County. The track "Right Now" samples the chorus of The Youngbloods' 1969 hit "Get Together", while the track "Maybe" was previously recorded by Alison Krauss on her 1999 album Forget About It.
On November 13, 1999, Brooks hosted Saturday Night Live as himself but performed the musical number ("Way of the Girl") as Chris Gaines without acknowledging to the audience that they were the same person. The album had disappointing sales compared to Brooks' previous albums, with some citing Brooks' image change of wig and make up, and the album's rock-star concept for this fact.[12]
Commercial performance
editGarth Brooks in... The Life of Chris Gaines peaked at No. 2 on the U.S. Billboard 200, and peaked at No. 5 on the Canadian Albums Chart. In November 1999, it was certified 2× Platinum by the RIAA.
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "That's the Way I Remember It" | Tommy Sims, Tony Arata | 4:29 |
| 2. | "Lost in You" | Gordon Kennedy, Wayne Kirkpatrick, Sims | 3:05 |
| 3. | "Snow in July" | Kennedy, Kirkpatrick, Mike More, Andrew Logan | 4:20 |
| 4. | "Driftin' Away" | Sims | 4:56 |
| 5. | "Way of the Girl" | Kennedy | 3:44 |
| 6. | "Unsigned Letter" | Kennedy, Kirkpatrick | 4:17 |
| 7. | "It Don't Matter to the Sun" | Kennedy, Kirkpatrick, Sims | 4:21 |
| 8. | "Right Now" | Cheryl Wheeler, Chet Powers | 3:24 |
| 9. | "Main Street" | Kennedy, Kirkpatrick, Trisha Yearwood | 4:12 |
| 10. | "White Flag" | Kennedy, Kirkpatrick | 4:45 |
| 11. | "Digging for Gold" | Kennedy, Kirkpatrick | 5:08 |
| 12. | "Maybe" | Kennedy, Phil Madeira | 5:11 |
| 13. | "My Love Tells Me So" | Kennedy, Kirkpatrick, Sims | 4:33 |
| Total length: | 56:23 | ||
Personnel
editMusicians
- Garth Brooks (as Chris Gaines) – lead vocals, acoustic guitar
- Gordon Kennedy – acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass (1–4, 7, 10–13), backing vocals, lead vocals (13)
- Reggie Young – electric guitar (4)
- Jimmie Lee Sloas – bass (5, 6, 8)
- James "Hutch" Hutchison – bass (9)
- Wayne Kirkpatrick – keyboards, clavinet, acoustic guitar, drum programming, backing vocals
- Tommy Sims – keyboards, acoustic guitar, drum programming, backing vocals
- Blair Masters – keyboards (1, 3, 5, 6, 11)
- Mike Lawler – keyboards (3), clavinet (3)
- Greg Phillinganes – keyboards (3)
- Matt Rollings – keyboards (4)
- Rami Jaffee – Hammond B3 organ (9)
- Phil Madeira – Hammond B3 organ (10, 12), horn and string arrangements (12)
- Dan Needham – drums (1)
- Chris McHugh – drums, percussion, drum programming
- Eddie Bayers – drums (4)
- Kenny Aronoff – drums (9)
- Lenny Castro – percussion (3)
- Terry McMillan – percussion (12)
- Carl Marsh – horn and string arrangements (12), Fairlight horns (13)
- Carl Gorodetzky – string contractor (12)
- The Nashville String Machine – horns and strings (12)
- Lee Leavitt – vocal whispers (8)
- Crystal Taliefero – backing vocals (9)
- Kelly Shane – stock market reporter (11)
- Chris Harris – chanting (12)
- Mark Heimermann – chanting (12)
Technical personnel
- Don Was – production
- J.B. Baird – recording and mixing
- George Massenburg – recording and mixing (horns and strings)
- Glenn Spinner – recording and mixing
- Rik Pekkonen – recording
Charts
edit
Weekly chartsedit
|
Year-end chartsedit
|
Certifications
edit| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Canada (Music Canada)[19] | Platinum | 100,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[20] | 2× Platinum | 2,000,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b Garth Brooks in...the Life of Chris Gaines at AllMusic
- ^ a b David Browne (October 1, 1999). "In... The Life of Chris Gaines Review". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on April 25, 2009. Retrieved April 14, 2013.
- ^ a b David Wild (October 28, 1999). "Garth Brooks: In...The Life Of Chris Gaines". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on November 13, 2007. Retrieved April 14, 2013.
- ^ MacLachlan, Heather (2008). "The Greatest Rock Star Who Never Was: Garth Brooks, Chris Gaines, and Modern America". American Music. 26 (2): 196–222. doi:10.2307/40071703. JSTOR 40071703.
- ^ Farley, Christopher John (September 26, 1999). "A Different Hat". Time. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
- ^ Lisa Earle McLeod (January 5, 2010). The Triangle of Truth: The Surprisingly Simple Secret to Resolving Conflicts Large and Small. Penguin Publishing Group. p. 89. ISBN 978-1-101-17147-9.
- ^ Stephen Thompson (April 19, 2002). "Garth Brooks: In The Life Of Chris Gaines". The A.V. Club. Retrieved April 14, 2013.
- ^ Robert Christgau. "CG: Garth Brooks". RobertChristgau.com. Retrieved April 14, 2013.
- ^ Christopher Thelen (October 13, 1999). "The Daily Vault Music Reviews : Chris Gaines Greatest Hits (aka In The Life Of Chris Gaines)". The Daily Vault. Retrieved April 14, 2013.
- ^ a b "Garth Brooks - In The Life Of Chris Gaines CD Album". CD Universe. Retrieved April 14, 2013.
- ^ Nikki Tranter (September 27, 1999). "Garth Brooks: In the Life of Chris Gaines". PopMatters. Retrieved April 14, 2013.
- ^ "Garth Flop: Poor sales for 'The Life Of Chris Gaines' by Garth Brooks". www.crossrhythms.co.uk.
- ^ "Garth Brooks Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 14, 2021.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Garth Brooks – ...The Life Of Chris Gaines" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved October 14, 2021.
- ^ "Hits of the World - Ireland". Billboard. October 30, 1999. p. 43. Retrieved July 21, 2012.
- ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Garth Brooks – ...The Life Of Chris Gaines". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 14, 2021.
- ^ "Garth Brooks Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved October 14, 2021.
- ^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1999". Billboard. Archived from the original on January 24, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2021.
- ^ "Canadian album certifications – Garth Brooks – In the Life of Chris Gaines". Music Canada. Retrieved January 31, 2024.
- ^ "American album certifications – Garth Brooks – In...the Life of Chris Gaines". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved January 31, 2024.