Garth Brooks
The Ultimate Hits (Disc 1)

THE REVIEW

"The Ultimate Hits"... will this really be the definitive summary of the career of one of the greatest storytellers from across the ocean? The substantial absence from the scene, which has lasted since 2001, and the finality of the adjective ultimate leave no other conclusion, but perhaps it is just as well: listening to the 34 songs equally divided between the two CDs in this collection is like reaching the top of a mountain and admiring the landscape from above: "The sky is the limit", sings Garth himself in "Two Of A Kind Workin' On A Full House", and that limit has been reached: everything is perfect, everything is in its right place, and it's just not possible to go higher: all that remains is to leave the stage in grand style, with the awareness of having written important pages in the history of beautiful music: it is thanks to Garth Brooks and his songs that I realized country wouldn't be a passing infatuation, like the dozens I've experienced in the span of 3-4 years, and this review is my personal Grammy Award for the career of this great artist.

For those listening to this collection for the first time, there are no classics or unreleased tracks, covers or original compositions, no differences between the songs from this or that album, just 34 songs in succession, from the merry, alcohol-infused rhythms of "Longneck Bottle" and "Beer Run" to the deep and poetic allure of "To Make You Feel My Love", a wonderful song by Bob Dylan interpreted by our artist with goosebump-inducing pathos, through a myriad of other stories, other emotions, other scenarios: the carefree beach vibe of "Two Pina Coladas", the expressive grit of "Shameless", the typically American mid-western atmosphere of "Rodeo", "Midnight Sun" and "Honky-Tonk Bar Association", the vivacity brought almost to the limit in "Ain't Going Down" and "The Fever", the decidedly tipsy sweetness of "Wrapped Up In You", the bittersweet country of "Papa Loved Mama" or "Too Much Young" and the more lively and cheerful country of "Two Of A Kind, Workin' On A Full House", the R'n'B influences in "Workin' For A Livin" and gospel in "We Shall Be Free", a beautiful anthem to freedom and hope.

All of this would already be more than enough to justify a normal greatest hits and a career measurable in millions of copies sold, but the best part is that it's not all: there are also, above all, the masterpieces, the most beautiful songs: songs that tell stories like "The Beaches Of Cheyenne", and "That Summer", that should only be listened to with the heart, letting oneself be carried away by the perfect intertwining of music and lyrics, not forgetting two classics such as the genius and catchy anthem of social revenge "Friends In Low Places" and the restless and tormented "The Thunder Rolls", the overwhelming vaguely Irish-flavored melodies of "Callin' Baton Rouge" and "Standing Outside The Fire", reaching a song that perhaps isn't even among the most significant of the collection, but is certainly my favorite: "Good Ride Cowboy", an irresistible few minutes of pure country: nothing more, but it's enough to bring back a smile even after the worst day.

Like any respectable country singer, our artist has his share of unforgettable ballads: besides the already mentioned "To Make You Feel My Love", the most beautiful are "The River", with its gentle, dreamy but at the same time almost epic pace, where Garth delivers one of the best performances of his career and the classic "The Dance", with its unmistakable piano line and its sparse and slightly bitter melody, softened by orchestral arrangements. More emphatic but perhaps a little less charming (though certainly not bad, far from it...) are the power-ballads "More Than A Memory" and "When You Come Back To Me Again", while "If Tomorrow Never Comes", "Unanswered Prayers", "What She's Doing Now" and "Leave A Light On" prove to be pure and simple jewels of sentiment and melody.

Whether you like this genre of music or not, one cannot deny that Garth Brooks' songs change their appearance each time but always remain faithful to their simple and direct soul, and this is a precious gift, which many of the "sacred cows" of various musical genres, much more famous and considered than our artist on this side of the Atlantic, totally lack.

"He was up in Wyoming, and drew a bull no man could ride, he promised her he'd turn out, well it turned out that he lied, and all the dreams that they'd been livin'