The first volume in the Anthology follows Brooks from his early days in Yukon, Oklahoma, to Nashville, Tennessee, where he chased his dream of being a songwriter and launched his career with his first five studio albums. The narrative is written in the voice of the country-music star himself and is augmented by 200 unreleased photos and five CDs featuring more than 50 master tracks, demos, and unreleased songs.
Garth Brooks: The Anthology
Since 1989, legendary country music star Garth Brooks has released 37 albums and earned two Grammy awards, 17 American Music awards, and the RIAA’s award for Best-Selling Solo Albums Artist of the Century. So we were honored when he approached us to produce a six-part anthology for his legions of devoted fans that would provide a detailed collection of rare personal photos, anecdotes, and insider stories from Brooks and his collaborators. The six volumes in The Anthology follow Brooks’s journey from his first on-stage appearance in college to becoming a world-famous touring artist. The latter half of the series covers his retirement, his personal life, and his latest comeback albums.
Part I: The First Five Years
Part II: The Next Five Years
The second book in the Anthology picks up where Brooks left off in Part I, telling the story of his career and personal life from 1996 to 2001. It offers a front-row seat to some of the biggest events in country music history, as told by Garth and the people who were there when they happened. In coordination with Part II’s release, fans were able to join Brooks live in his studio on the TalkShopLive platform to hear some of the stories that are included in the Anthology, ask him questions, and even hear some new music.
Part III: LIVE
This volume offers an exciting, detailed, behind-the-scenes look at Brooks’s electrifying concerts, from playing for only a handful of people at Willie’s Saloon in Stillwater, OK, to opening for Reba McEntire, the Judds, and Kenny Rogers, to finally headlining his own tours—a journey that earned him six CMA Entertainer of the Year awards. This volume includes five CDs containing 52 live recordings, among them Garth’s live album Triple Live—the soundtrack to the highest-grossing tour in North American history. Using the Garth Live app—which we created just for the book—readers can also watch the Triple Live tour come to life through more than 10 augmented reality experiences that transform the cover and interior photography into moving performances.
Part IV: Going Home
The most personal installment in the Anthology series, Going Home is filled with never-before-seen photos and the story of the 14 years Brooks spent in Oklahoma after his marriage to Trisha Yearwood—when he made the decision to step out of the spotlight and into the little yellow house where he became the dad he always wanted to be to his three daughters.
Part V: The Comeback: The First Five Years
The Comeback: The First Five Years provides an all-access pass to the wildest comeback in music history. During the 14 years when Brooks was retired, the music business changed dramatically, and this entry in the Anthology chronicles his comeback arena tour that went on to become the biggest tour in American history, with 391 shows and over 6.2 million tickets sold. Included with the book is a six-disc CD set featuring the encompassing sounds of Man Against Machine, Gunslinger, and Triple Live.
Part VI: The Comeback: The Next Five Years
The final installment in the Anthology series brings readers full circle with Brooks, beginning with the massive, three-year stadium tour that caused a “Garthquake,” back to the dive bars where it all started, and ending with his historic return to Ireland to play for more than 400,000 fans at Dublin’s Croke Park. This book also takes an in-depth look at every song on Garth’s FUN! and Time Traveler albums and captures the beautiful, spontaneous chaos of the Garth Brooks residency at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.
