It's hard to imagine now, but Garth Brooks was not the main
attraction at the 1990 Black Gold Festival in Hazard. His Friday night concert
drew a huge crowd, but at the time, the biggest star at the festival was Sawyer
Brown who headlined the Black Gold the following night, on Saturday.
Garth's Hazard concert, was his first in the state of Kentucky and was broadcast
"live" on WSGS. Brooks was born
on February 7, 1962 in Tulsa, Okla. His mother, Colleen Brooks, was a country
singer during the 1950s. As a child Brooks concentrated on athletics, later
earning a track-and-field scholarship to Oklahoma State University. While in
school he began performing at local clubs, graduating in 1984 and moving to
Nashville to advance his nascent country music career. He quickly returned home
and continued performing in local clubs, later returning in Nashville in 1987.
After struggling for almost a year to land a deal, Brooks eventually signed to
Capitol, releasing his self-titled debut album in 1989. It was an instant hit,
spawning the Top 10 hits "Much Too Young (To Feel This Damn Old),"
"If Tomorrow Never Comes," "Not Counting You" and "The
Dance." Forming a band of Oklahoma musicians called Stillwater, Brooks
began touring incessantly, first with Kenny Rogers and later as a headliner.
With 1990's No Fences Brooks became a country superstar. The sophomore
effort went platinum in less than a month, eventually selling over 13 million
copies and becoming the best-selling country album of all time. With hits like
"Friends in Low Places," "Unanswered Prayers," "Two of
a Kind, Workin' on a Full House" and "The Thunder Rolls" the
album stayed at No. 1 for weeks, crossing over to No. 3 on the Billboard Top
200. Brooks was widely credited with changing the face of country music,
bringing in new fans both young and old. Not surprisingly, 1992's The Chase
and 1993's In Pieces both debuted at No. 1 and sold millions. In 1994
Garth released a limited-edition "best of" collection called The
Hits, followed by 1995's Fresh Horses, which spawned the hit singles
"Every Woman" and "The Fever" (an Aerosmith cover). Brooks
embarked on a massive world tour in 1996, culminating in a summer 1997 free
concert in New York's Central Park to more than half a million people.
It's hard to imagine now, but Garth Brooks was not the main
attraction at the 1990 Black Gold Festival in Hazard. His Friday night concert
drew a huge crowd, but at the time, the biggest star at the festival was Sawyer
Brown who headlined the Black Gold the following night, on Saturday.
Garth's Hazard concert, was his first in the state of Kentucky and was broadcast
"live" on WSGS. Brooks was born
on February 7, 1962 in Tulsa, Okla. His mother, Colleen Brooks, was a country
singer during the 1950s. As a child Brooks concentrated on athletics, later
earning a track-and-field scholarship to Oklahoma State University. While in
school he began performing at local clubs, graduating in 1984 and moving to
Nashville to advance his nascent country music career. He quickly returned home
and continued performing in local clubs, later returning in Nashville in 1987.
After struggling for almost a year to land a deal, Brooks eventually signed to
Capitol, releasing his self-titled debut album in 1989. It was an instant hit,
spawning the Top 10 hits "Much Too Young (To Feel This Damn Old),"
"If Tomorrow Never Comes," "Not Counting You" and "The
Dance." Forming a band of Oklahoma musicians called Stillwater, Brooks
began touring incessantly, first with Kenny Rogers and later as a headliner.
With 1990's No Fences Brooks became a country superstar. The sophomore
effort went platinum in less than a month, eventually selling over 13 million
copies and becoming the best-selling country album of all time. With hits like
"Friends in Low Places," "Unanswered Prayers," "Two of
a Kind, Workin' on a Full House" and "The Thunder Rolls" the
album stayed at No. 1 for weeks, crossing over to No. 3 on the Billboard Top
200. Brooks was widely credited with changing the face of country music,
bringing in new fans both young and old. Not surprisingly, 1992's The Chase
and 1993's In Pieces both debuted at No. 1 and sold millions. In 1994
Garth released a limited-edition "best of" collection called The
Hits, followed by 1995's Fresh Horses, which spawned the hit singles
"Every Woman" and "The Fever" (an Aerosmith cover). Brooks
embarked on a massive world tour in 1996, culminating in a summer 1997 free
concert in New York's Central Park to more than half a million people.