Scarecrow (CD) by Garth Brooks

"Squeeze Me In" was nominated for the 2003 Grammy Awards for Best Country Collaboration With Vocals.

After his head-scratching masquerade as a fictional rocker and a heavily publicized early retirement from show business, most folks thought that the Garth Brooks era in country music was over. Just when you thought it was safe to go back to Nashville, here comes SCARECROW, a confident return to form for Brooks. Having apparently gotten that nasty rock thing out of his system, he returns to the wide-screen, Springsteen-with-spurs brand of pop-country that made him a mega-star in the '90s. The first album of new Garth Brooks tunes of the 21st century pretty much picks up where records like ROPIN' THE WIND and NO FENCES left off. There's even a light-hearted duet with honky-tonk legend George Jones on "Beer Run" for any who were doubtful about Brooks's return to country music. The rest of SCARECROW is made up of power ballads, high-energy roadhouse romps (most notably the Trisha Yearwood duet on "Squeeze Me In," and the singular pop/rock/country paradigm upon which Nashville based the marketing plans of a thousand lesser imitators.