When you're the best-selling solo artist in history with nine blockbuster albums of material, there are challenges in putting together a set list for your first world tour in 17 years. So there's no doubt Garth Brooks already took pains in choosing the hits he'd be doing when he embarked on his comeback trek last year.
But now that he's landing in North Texas, where he filmed two sold-out, network broadcast spectacles in the 1990s, there's renewed pressure to give fans a wide range of highlights, songs that would make most folks' definitive playlists.
What are those crucial songs? Allow us to throw out 20, including both the brash smashes and the lower-key heartbreakers (in chronological order). Vote on your favorite in our poll.
1. Much Too Young (to Feel This Damn Old) (1989)
It's the debut single, one Brooks calls his "sentimental favorite," and it shows a side of Brooks influenced by the twang'ed-out rodeo anthems of George Strait. There's a notable shout-out to influential big hat singer Chris Ledoux in the lyrics, too.
2. If Tomorrow Never Comes (1989)
Morbid as it may seem, this early hit features the kind of sentiment every person would want to hear from a significant other. Apt for its singer, too — Brooks has never been one to hold back emotions.
3. The Dance (1989)
One of Brooks' earliest singles still stands tall above the rest. From the earnest guitar picking to the wistful vocal and everything in between, "The Dance" is executed flawlessly.
4. Friends in Low Places (1990)
Twenty-five years old, and still so fresh. That's because Brooks' most iconic hit is the ultimate kiss-off, the song you want to sing when someone close to you acts a little too big for their britches. We'll be listening intently for the wonderfully flippant, live-only third verse at Brooks' AAC concerts.
5. The Thunder Rolls (1990)
This dark infidelity story unfolds so hypnotically that it's become the hands-down favorite for many Brooks fans. The singer himself stepped into the part of the no-good, abusive husband in the song's iconic music video.
6. Two of a Kind, Workin' on a Full House (1990)
A little bluesy and a lot country, this falls somewhere between Hank Williams and George Jones on the influence spectrum. Brooks' fifth consecutive No. 1 hit let the Okie employ his thickest accent. Note how he pronounces the word "favorite" with a long vowel at the end.
7. Unanswered Prayers (1990)
It's a clever testament to how the intense feelings of youth can't always be relied upon to last a lifetime. I now find it a little strange that it was a favorite among my middle school friends when it came out.
8. Rodeo (1991)
It's a sad, frequently told tale in country music: When the demands of a lover and the lure of rodeo life go head-to-head, the broncs and bulls usually win. But Brooks' sly vocal and the building arrangement put a fresh spin on the trope.
9. Shameless (1991)
Who'd have ever predicted Brooks covering Billy Joel before this one came out? But he took a beautifully written song and gave it its proper steel-guitar context. Check out Trisha Yearwood, slaying on those "backing" vocals.
10. The River (1991)
A fine dose of James Taylor-esque self-empowerment inspiration penned by Brooks with Victoria Shaw.
11. We Shall Be Free (1992)
Call it the gospel of Garth, complete with choir in the background. Peace and love are this anthem's primary concerns, and it was refreshingly inclusive at the time to be coming from a country artist: "When we're free to love anyone we choose/When the world's big enough for all different views."
12. Ain't Going Down ('Til the Sun Comes Up) (1993)
It's the fastest Brooks song in the bunch, and you might injure yourself if you try to line-dance to it. Hard to fathom how anyone crams all those words into a single verse without losing breath.
13. Standing Outside the Fire (1993)
This fiddle-tinged uptempo tune continued the frequent theme of speaking one's convictions no matter the risk. It also came with a dramatic, pyro-filled music video — always a plus.
14. Callin' Baton Rouge (1993)
Brooks made this epic Dennis Linde-written fiddle jam his own after it'd been previously recorded by the Oak Ridge Boys and others. It's about a truck driver trying endlessly to get in touch with the woman of his newfound obsession.
15. That Summer (1993)
Its premise is not far from a bad romance novel — a young guy gets more than he's bargained for when he starts working for a "lonely widowed woman" — but Brooks' delivery sends it into awesomely melodramatic Bob Seger territory.
16. She's Every Woman (1995)
This is the Brooks who's consistently steeped in the sweeter '70s pop of James Taylor and Billy Joel.
17. The Change (1995)
Here's a fine ode to strength and determination in the face of adversity, a somber but moving piano ballad that fits right into Brooks' wheelhouse.
18. Longneck Bottle (1997)
Another dancehall highlight, it was co-written and features a cameo by the great Steve Wariner.
19. To Make You Feel My Love (1998)
Brooks' cover version of Bob Dylan's musical love letter appeared on the soundtrack to Hope Floats. It's the only great thing to come out of that movie.
20. More Than a Memory (2007)
Country artist Lee Brice co-wrote this single, whose piano and strings make it sound more like adult contemporary pop. But Brooks can pull off the style easily.
