During the May 11 episode of Garth Brooks' Facebook Live series Inside Studio G, Brooks addressed a fan question about his forthcoming album Fun with the promise of new music shared by his exclusive streaming partner, Amazon Music.
One of the new cuts, "Party Gras (the Mardi Gras Song)," has a title that might scare some into thinking that Brooks decided to embrace "bro-country" party songs well beyond their expiration date. Fear thou not, because it's actually a throwback to Brooks' "Friends in Low Place," "Papa Loved Mama," "'Til the Sun Comes Up" and other stadium-filling hits, crossed with the influence of Doug Kershaw and other Cajun country tastemakers. It's a nice companion piece to another party tune with a retro vibe, the Blake Shelton duet "Dive Bar."
The other new song, "That's What Cowboys Do," would've suited Brooks' first album because it reflects his long-established love of George Strait, Chris LeDoux and the cowboy mythos. Also, when's the last time the fiddle accompaniment on any Nashville's artist's newest song hit this hard?
The dual release bumps the number of songs off Fun on Amazon Music to seven, including the before-mentioned "Dive Bar" and "All Day Long," "The Road I'm On," "Courage of Love" and "Stronger Than Me."
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Sharing songs off Fun seemingly on a whim worked for the Country Music Hall of Fame member because the new album's finished. Brooks just isn't sure when or how to chase his 11th No. 1 on Billboard's Top Country Albums chart.
"We've had this discussion. I don't want to be the guy that tries to do something in the midst where everybody is hurtin'," he explains in a press release. "It's like ... damn it. The album's ready to go. It's just how do you get out and promote and be happy and jolly while everybody's out there fighting for their lives ..."
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