Garth Brooks - The Chase

Garth Brooks was the biggest star of the 1990s and he's one of the Top 5 selling artists of all-time. With 'The Chase,' Garth Brooks started to show a willingness to tackle "meatier" subjects. Still, 'The Chase' is very much a Garth Brooks record, a record that stands among the top albums of his career.

By the time The Chase came out in 1992 Garth Brooks was the biggest thing in popular music. He had sold over 20 million records in two years with No Fences and Ropin' The Wind. On The Chase Garth took a few chances for the first time in his career, especially with the lead single "We Shall Be Free." With its world-view about freedom and the need to end hunger, among other topics, the song didn't exactly play to Garth's "core audience" as well as other songs from the album would, but did provide the album with free exposure via news reports.

After the opening track, there are quite a few strong songs on the album. Songs like "Somewhere Other Than The Night," which, upon listening to it 13 years after it was released, seems to be written directly from Garth's personal life. "Walking After Midnight" is an ambitious cover of the Patsy Cline masterpiece that works here. "Dixie Chicken" is a fun cover of the Little Feat song, while "Every Now And Then" is a lovely ballad. The biggest hit off of this album is also one of my all-time favorite Garth Brooks songs. "That Summer" is one of those songs that describes summertime love. It's the summer in which the character in the story "became a man."

With 11 stand-out tracks (with the bonus "Something With A Ring To It" added in 1998), The Chase stands out as one of Garth Brooks' finest albums. It is a record well worth checking out.