Scarecrow is the eighth studio album by American country music artist Garth Brooks. It was released on November 13, 2001, and debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 chart, and the Top Country Albums chart. It has been certified 5× platinum RIAA and was named Best Selling Album at the 2002 Canadian Country Music Association Awards.
The album was re-released in 2016 with two extra songs: "More Than a Memory" which was a number one country hit in 2007, and "Good Ride Cowboy" (2005), a tribute to singer–rodeo star Chris LeDoux.
Contents
Background
Brooks commented on the album saying:
At the end of last year I made a commitment to Capitol (Records) that I would try to bring them one more album. This is the result of that effort, a real labor of love, that I'm proud to hold up next to all of our previous releases. For the first time in my life I think I made a happy album. It's heavy on steel guitars, but you're not aware of it in some places because the musicians are so good at what they do.
Content
Singles released from this album include "Beer Run (B Double E Double Are You In?)" (a duet with George Jones, also found on Jones's 2001 album The Rock: Stone Cold Country 2001), "Wrapped Up in You", "Squeeze Me In" (a duet with Trisha Yearwood), "Thicker Than Blood", and "Why Ain't I Running". Of these, "Wrapped Up in You" was the highest peaking, reaching #5 on the Hot Country Songs charts. Prior to the album's release, "When You Come Back to Me Again" had charted on the country charts as a selection from the soundtrack to the film Frequency.
Several of the tracks on this album were originally recorded by other artists. "Pushing Up Daisies" was originally recorded by Kevin Welch on his 1995 album Life Down Here on Earth, while "Big Money" was originally recorded under the title "It Pays Big Money" by Mark Chesnutt on his 2000 album Lost in the Feeling. Additionally, "Don't Cross the River" was previously recorded by America on their 1972 album Homecoming. "Squeeze Me In" was previously recorded by Lee Roy Parnell on his 1995 album We All Get Lucky Sometimes.
Personnel
Compiled from liner notes.
Musicians
Strings (track 12)
Production
Eric Conn – digital editing
Duke Duczer – recording assistant
Carlos Grier – digital editing
John Kelton – engineer
Mark Miller – recording engineer, mixing engineer
Denny Purcell – mastering engineer
Allen Reynolds – producer
Keith Stegall – recording engineer
Charts
In the United States, Scarecrow debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, becoming his eighth No. 1 album on the chart, and No. 1 on the Top Country Albums, becoming his eleventh No. 1 Country album. In January 2006, Scarecrow was certified 5× Platinum by the RIAA.