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| Garth Brooks - Chase Band: Garth Brooks Tracks: - We Shall Be Free - Somewhere Other Than The Night - Mr. Right - Every Now And Then - Walking After Midnight - Dixie Chicken - Learning To Live Again - That Summer - Something With A Ring To It - Night Rider's Lament - Face To Face A step back from earlier Garth, but I still like it Garth Brooks took a step backward from his earlier albums on The Chase, but he still put together a likable album. "We Shall Be Free", with its funky, gospel-tinged arrangement, created some controversy with its anti-homophobic stance, but I don't think it should have. It is actually a song with a very simple message about brotherhood and living in harmony. Another controversial song was Tony Arata's "Face To Face" in which one of the verses dealt with acquaintance rape. "Dixie Chicken", the old Little Feat song, is a bluesy romp. These songs are heavily pop-oriented, although the musicianship on them is excellent. Garth, however, included enough ballads and "straight" country songs to make The Chase a high-quality album. On this record, in addition to the three aforementioned songs, are the reflective songs "Somewhere Other Than The Night", "Learning To Live Again", "That Summer", and "Every Now And Then"; the traditional-sounding "Night Rider's Lament"; and the toe-tapping "Mr. Right" and "Walking After Midnight", the latter a classic Patsy Cline song. The Chase is a retreat from the "straight" country Garth started out singing, but I still think it's a great Garth Brooks effort. An Underrated Crowning Achievement As a fan of country music that is "accessible" to non-countrified ears, I feel this is Garth Brooks' strongest album. Less twangy than the still-glorious "No Fences" and less synthesized than his later discs, the album offers a mix of ballads, barnstormers and storytelling that encapsulate myriad human qualities, experiences and feelings. "That Summer" is every adolescent boy's paean to older women, and "We Shall Be Free" delivers a hopeful message against hate, violence, homophobia and hunger. Throughout, Brooks testifies to his own personal growth ("Every Now and Then") as well as his sense of humor ("Dixie Chicken.") Perhaps no track captures the essence of Brooks' strengths as a dramatic interpreter of country music than the song "Somewhere Other Than The Night." In it, he tells a haunting tale of lost romance, risk-taking, and pure unadulterated passion between a couple who'd forgotten how to love. He delivers the track with a mix of anger and gentleness that adds to its drama, and makes it one of Garth's crowning single achievments, up there with "Friends In Low Places" and "The Change." "Face to Face" and "Nightrider's Lament" like the other tracks here show why Garth retained his loyal fans with "Chase." That said, it's true strength lies in potentially reaching beyond the pure-country enthusiasts and onto the CD Players of devoted pop lovers. As a stylist, this is Brooks' finest moment on disc, in that he Bridges the very gap country music has been hoping to cross for a long time. As a songwriter, he shows depth and wisdom, and as the world's ambassador to country music, he reaches new heights. A definitive album, and a MUST HAVE for all serious lovers of pure pop. A step back, but still solid Garth Brooks has another solid album here. However, I think he took a slight step back from his earlier records on The Chase. He started venturing more in the pop direction on some of his songs, though the songs themselves are well-done. Garth's hit "We Shall Be Free", with its funky, gospel-tinged arrangement, created controversy with its anti-homophobic stance, but I don't think it should have. The message is actually very simple; it's about brotherhood and living in harmony. "Face To Face", like "The Dance" a song by Garth's buddy Tony Arata, is another controversial song. One of the verses on "Face To Face" deals with acquaintance rape. "Dixie Chicken", an old Little Feat song, is a bluesy romp. These songs are heavily pop-oriented--Garth, after all, counts the rock icons Journey, Billy Joel, Queen, and Kiss among his musical influences in addition to his country heroes, George Jones and George Strait. The songs on the record are well-done, though, and Garth included enough ballads and "straight" country tunes on The Chase to make it a high-quality album. The reflective ballads "Somewhere Other Than The Night", "Learning To Live Again", and "That Summer" are all well-written, well-performed songs and were big hits for Garth as well. The traditional-sounding "Night Rider's Lament", the country swing song "Mr. Right", and Garth's version of the classic Patsy Cline song "Walkin' After Midnight" round out the record(of which I have the cassette version). Garth's commercial success started getting the better of him on The Chase because he retreated a bit from the "straight" country he started out singing. However, The Chase is still a very good effort. It gets a four-star rating from me. Buy Garth Brooks Chase at Amazon.com Buy posters at Allposters.comJamster - the latest ringtones for your phone! |
