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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Garth's Mega-seller, October 10, 2004
Garth Brooks became a music superstar with the release of his second CD, "No Fences," in 1990. He released four singles from the CD in 1990-1991, and all of them hit #1. The first single was "Friends in Low Places," which was #1 for 4 weeks on the country chart, making it Garth's biggest song ever. Country Music Television (CMT) recently named it one of the Top 10 country songs of all time. It's a rollicking good time and undeniably great music; the kind of song you'll hear in bars and honky-tonks now and for decades to come.
"Unanswered Prayers" was the second single - a sweet ballad about life working out as it should, even when you don't get what you wanted at the time. It was #1 for 2 weeks, and was named by CMT as one of the Top 10 love songs of all time. "Two of a Kind, Workin' on a Full House" is somewhat retro-sounding with extremely clever lyrics (#1 for 1 week). The CD actually starts with the fourth single, the rock-tinged "The Thunder Rolls." Although the song's video tells the story of an abusive husband, the song lyrics actually are about a woman waiting for her potentially unfaithful husband to arrive home late at night. The song was a bit risky at the time, as it represented a more rock-influenced direction for Garth. Indeed, the CD overall is less traditionally country-sounding than his debut.
More than a decade later, a fifth song hit the Top 10 when "Wild Horses" peaked at #7 in early 2001. The song is about a rodeo rider who has to travel and be away from his family, and it's one of the highlights of the CD. The remaining songs are all fairly solid, including another Garth interpretation of a Tony Arata-penned song - "Same Old Story" (Tony wrote "The Dance" from Garth's first CD).
The CD was an immediate hit - selling old over 5 million copies within a year of its initial release; it's gone on to become the best-selling country record by a male artist ever, with 16 million copies sold (only Shania Twain's second CD has sold more copies). Although the CD is arguably not Garth's best (I'd nominate his debut), it does contain some of his best singles, and it's certainly understandable why it was such a huge hit. Clearly, Garth was perfecting his style of pop-country; a style that would enable him to go on to sell over 100 million records and become the fourth biggest-selling artist ever.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Five Stars PLUS - A Gem of an Album, November 28, 2001
I started listening to country music ten years ago, once the lyrics that made pop accessible melted away into thumping beats and indecipherable mumbles. Garth Brooks' "No Fences", as inspired by Billy Joel and James Taylor, literally SPOKE to me as I turned 30 in 1991. Back then, and still as I near 40, he wrote songs that were passionate, understated, and sincere, like the Piano Man and Sweet Baby James in their heydays. On "No Fences" he pours his heart and soul into every note of every song, from the unforgettable "Unanswered Prayers" to his own now-signature tale, "Friends In Low Places." He is all of these characters and none of them still, just a storyteller by the fire, but possessed by his protagonists. Few artists have succeeded in blending seamlessly the melody of pop and the resonance and grit of country - but Brooks pulls it off. "No Fences" is the first of a succession of brilliant American fare that made Brooks the unparalleled success of the 90s. It's easy to see why "No Fences" launched Garth's career into the stratosphere, up there with the Beatles and Elton John. He crafts universal themes with every one of his instruments as a songwriter, vocalist and musician. At once epic ("The Thunder Rolls") and soft ("New Way to Fly") "No Fences" will stand the test of time and emerge as the 1990's version of "Tapestry" or "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road." Fun, clever, and emotionally charged all at the same time, Brooks delivers a heartfelt, magical set.
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14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Garth Fan, February 28, 2000
This is Garth's best album. There is not a bad song on this album, and there are many underrated songs that never got radio play. "New Way To Fly," "Wild Horses," "Wolves," and "Victim Of The Game" are some of the best songs in Garth's collection. Throw in "Friends In Low Places," "Same Old Story," "The Thunder Rolls," "Two Of A Kind Workin' On A Full House," and "Unanswered Prayers" and you have one of the classic country albums of all time. I even liked the cheesy "Mr. Blue." This is a must have for any country fan.
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