Chris Gaines Greatist Hits

Garth Brooks | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 28, 1999)
• Original Release Date: September 28, 1999
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Capitol
• ASIN: B00000K29L
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (500 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #52,189 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. That's The Way I Remember It

2. Lost In You - Garth Brooks

3. Snow In July

4. Driftin' Away

5. Way Of The Girl

6. Unsigned Letter

7. It Don't Matter To The Sun

8. Right Now

9. Main Street

10. White Flag

11. Digging For Gold

12. Maybe

13. My Love Tells Me So - Garth Brooks

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

In... The Life of Chris Gaines is a way for Garth Brooks to indulge his rock-star fantasies without directly putting his country credibility on the line. This fictional greatest-hits album is supposedly a prequel to a movie (The Lamb) in which Brooks will assume the role of a mysterious Australian-born pop singer. The first single, "Lost in You," sounds like Kenny Loggins auditioning for a role in the Backstreet Boys. Gaines's other "hits" range from the funk-lite of "Snow in July" to the Prince-like "The Way of the Girl," the Beatlesesque "Maybe," and the blatant Wallflowers rip "Unsigned Letter." The tune on which Brooks most resembles the cat in the hat we all know is the melancholy ballad "It Don't Matter to the Sun." The most provocative tune is "Right Now," which interpolates (really) the Youngbloods' hippie classic "Get Together" with Cheryl Wheeler's antigun screed "If It Were Up to Me." As himself, Garth Brooks has sold almost 100 million albums. If he's lucky, many of those fans will forgive him for Chris Gaines. --Rick Mitchell

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A drastically underrated CD... June 3, 2002

By Doug DeBolt

Format:Audio CD

When this CD first came out, I had only heard its biggest hit, "Lost in You," and didn't realize that it was Garth Brooks or that it was part of this unorthodox project. That song alone made me want to buy the CD, and I have listened to it regularly over the past two years. It's easy for us to comment today about what would or would not have been popular over the past 20 years, because we have such imperfect memories. We can say these songs could never have been hits and that they lack anything remarkable, but then again, how can you explain Men at Work, Men Without Hats and Devo?

The songwriting team of Wayne Kirkpatrick, Gordon Kennedy and Tommy Sims (which won a Grammy for the Eric Clapton hit, "Change the World") also provided most of the studio work and background vocals. And one of the key producers was Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds. This was not a half-effort, but instead was a genuine attempt on Brooks' behalf to do something new and unusual. Perhaps his greatest miscalculation was thinking that music fans -- including his most loyal -- would accept something so radically different. Rather, people have lashed out at him for this project as though he betrayed them, to the extent that the accompanying movie project (in which Garth would NOT have starred) has been shelved, if not scrapped.

For all of its flaws, "In the Life of Chris Gaines" is a grossly underrated album which deserves a listen on its own merits, of which there are many.

29 of 33 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars I Don't Listen to Country-Western Music or Garth Brooks December 18, 2002

By carol irvin TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Audio CD

I inadvertently discovered Garth Brooks via this recording. This is because I don't own a single country-western album nor do I listen to country-western. Thus, Brooks was unknown to me. I picked this up in the library as a rock album and enjoyed it enormously. I then read about it and discovered that it was a country-western singer, Garth Brooks, doing the entire rock n' roll album under another name, the fictional Chris Gaines. I've since listened to some of Brooks's other albums (also from the library) and I like him a lot when he veers away from country-western into more of the rock mode. When he is in solid country-western mode, I can do without his singing. So if you are a country-western fan, you may well hate this album. If you are more of a rock or pop fan, Brooks is a really good discovery for you if you are willing to sort through his music, picking out the rock and pop and leaving the country-western in his albums. You can find 2-3 good songs an album doing this generally (on one I found an absolutely bang-up version of "Mr. Blue" and on another my absolute Brooks favorite, "I'm Head Over Heels in Love"). This particular album of his fits me best though because there is NO country-western music on it. So I like ALL of it. I am one of those people for whom virtually all country-western music sounds the same. I am beginning to enjoy aspects of C-W when rock and pop singers incorporate elements of it into their own genres, with Mark Knopfler perhaps doing that best. As a musical hybrid only, I'm liking country-western as it joins onto other musical forms. Brooks also has begun to branch out by appearing with other singers, such as Billy Joel. He does an absolutely incredible live job of "New York State of Mind" with Billy Joel that is not on this album but is well worth hunting down. Ditto for a live performance with Don McLean on "American Pie." I'm sure it is heresy to say this but I wish Brooks would leave country-western music so I wouldn't have to hunt and pick around for his songs.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The CD With No Respect January 20, 2003

By PMK

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase

No, it's not typical Garth. It's not even country music. Once you eliminate those preconceived notions you can really listen to this CD. I have heard people call this the "worst CD ever" and "Garth's mistake" and I can't understand why. This album is brillant. I listen to "Chris" constantly and have purchased 3 of them (one for car, home, and office). Some of the tunes are very mellow, such as "It Doesn't Matter to the Sun", "Maybe", and "Drifting Away". Other songs have a soft edge to them, such as "Snow In July" and "White Flag". It's a nice balance, although his softer songs are superior to his attempt at edge.
The best song on the album is "Drifting Away", a ballad about a man in love who cannot committ. The "skip over" song is the one released as a single, "Right Now", a rap attempt with the chorus of the 60's song "Everybody Get Together, Try To Love One Another Right Now". Forget it's Garth singing, forget Garth is country. and don't read the liner notes (which makes it sound like a "concept album") and enjoy it for what it is - good music. This album should be in an "adult comtemporary" or "vocals" category, not country. Give this CD some respect!