DON'T TAKE THE GIRL

TIM MCGRAW
SONGWRITERS: CRAIG MARTIN & LARRY JOHNSON
COUNTRY: U. S. A.
ALBUM: NOT A MOMENT TOO SOON
LABEL: CURB RECORDS
GENRE: COUNTRY
YEAR: 1993
 
        Samuel Timothy McGraw (born May 1, 1967) is an American singer, actor, and record producer. McGraw has released fifteen studio albums (eleven for Curb Records, three for Big Machine Records and one for Arista Nashville). 10 of those albums have reached number 1 on the Top Country Albums charts, with his 1994 breakthrough album Not a Moment Too Soon being the top country album of 1994. All of these albums have produced 65 singles, 25 of which have reached number 1 on the Hot Country Songs or Country Airplay charts. Three of these singles — "It's Your Love", "Just to See You Smile", and "Live Like You Were Dying" — were respectively the top country songs of 1997, 1998, and 2004 according to Billboard Year-End. He has also won three Grammy Awards, 14 Academy of Country Music awards, 11 Country Music Association (CMA) awards, 10 American Music Awards, and three People's Choice Awards. His Soul2Soul II Tour, which was done in partnership with his wife, Faith Hill, is one of the highest-grossing tours in country music history, and one of the top 5 among all genres of music. He has sold more than 80 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time.
     McGraw has ventured into acting, with supporting roles in The Blind Side (with Sandra Bullock), Friday Night Lights, The Kingdom, Tomorrowland, and Four Christmases (with Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon), and The Shack, and lead roles in Flicka (2006) and Country Strong (2010). He was a minority owner of the Arena Football League's Nashville Kats.
        In acknowledgement of his grandfather's Italian heritage, McGraw was honored by the National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) in 2004, receiving the NIAF Special Achievement Award in Music during the Foundation's 29th Anniversary Gala.
        He has been married to singer Faith Hill since 1996, and is a son of former MLB pitcher Tug McGraw.
         "Don't Take The Girl" is a song written by Craig Martin and Larry W. Johnson, and recorded by American country music artist Tim McGraw. It was released in March 1994 as the second single from his álbum Not a Moment Too Soon. The song was McGraw's fifth single overall, and his first number-one single on the Hot Country Songs chart. It reached number one on the Canadian country charts as well and it was also a successful pop song, reaching number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Johnny's daddy was takin him fishing
When he was eight years old.
A little girl came through the front gate
Holdin a fishing pole
His dad looked down and smiled
Said we can't leave her behind
Son I know you don't want her to go
But someday you'll change your mind
And Johnny said
Take Jimmy Johnson
Take Tommy Thompson
Take my best friend Bo
Take anybody that you want as
Long as she don't go
Take any boy in the world
Daddy please- don't take the girl
 
Same old boy
Same sweet girl
Ten years down the road
He held her tight and kissed her lips in
Front of the picture show
Stranger came and pulled a gun
Grabbed her by the arm
Said if you do what I tell you to
There won't be any harm
And Johnny said
Take my money
Take my wallet
Take my credit cards
Here's the watch that my grandpa gave me
Here's the keys to my car
Mister give it a whirl
But please-don't take the girl
 
Same old boy
Same sweet girl
Five years down the road
There's gonna be a little one
And she says it's time to go
Doctor says the baby's fine
But you'll have to leave
Cause his momma's fading fast
And Johnny hit his knees
And there he prayed
Take the very breath you gave me
Take the heart from my chest
I'll gladly take her place
If you'll let me
Make this my last request
Take me out of this world
God please-don't take the girl
 
Johnny's daddy was taking him fishing
When he was eight years old...

REMEMBER WHEN

ALAN JACKSON
SONGWRITER: ALAN JACKSON
COUNTRY: U. S. A.
ALBUM: GREATEST HITS VOL. II
LABEL: ARISTA NASHVILLE
GENRE: COUNTRY
YEAR: 2003
 
          Alan Eugene Jackson (born October 17, 1958) is an American singer and songwriter. He is known for blending traditional honky-tonk and mainstream country pop sounds (for a style widely regarded as “neotraditional country”), as well as penning many of his own songs. Jackson has recorded 16 studio albums, three greatest hits albums, two Christmas albums, and two gospel albums.
           Jackson is one of the best-selling music artists of all-time, having sold over 75 million records worldwide, with 44 million sold in the United States alone. He has had 66 songs appear on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart; of the 66 titles, and six featured singles, 38 have reached the top five and 35 have claimed the number one spot. Out of 15 titles to reach the Billboard Top Country Albums chart, nine have been certified multi-platinum. He is the recipient of two Grammy Awards, 16 CMA Awards, 17 ACM Awards and nominee of multiple other awards. He is a member of the Grand Ole Opry, and was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame in 2001. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2017 by Loretta Lynn and into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2018.
         "Remember When" is a song written and recorded by American country music artist Alan Jackson. Released in October 2003 as the second and final single from his compilation album, Greatest Hits Volume II, it spent two weeks at number 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in February 2004 and peaked at number 29 on the Billboard Hot 100. 
Remember when I was young and so were you
And time stood still and love was all we knew
You were the first, so was I
We made love and then you cried
Remember when
 
Remember when we vowed the vows
And walk the walk
Gave our hearts, made the start, it was hard
We lived and learned, life threw curves
There was joy, there was hurt
Remember when
 
Remember when old ones died and new were born
And life was changed, dissassembled, rearranged
We came together, fell apart
And broke each other's hearts
Remember when
 
Remember when the sound of little feet
Was the music
We danced to week to week
Brought back the love, we found trust
Vowed we'd never give it up
Remember when
 
Remember when thirty seemed so old
Now lookin' back it's just a steppin' stone
To where we are,
Where we've been
Said we'd do it all again
Remember when
Remember when we said when we turned gray
When the children grow up and move away
We won't be sad, we'll be glad
For all the life we've had
And we'll remember when.

THE TUNDER ROLLS

GARTH BROOKS
SONGWRITERS: GARTH BROOKS & PAT ALGER
COUNTRY: U. S. A.
ALBUM: NO FENCES
LABEL: CAPITOL NASHVILLE
GENRE: COUNTRY
YEAR: 1991
 
           Troyal Garth Brooks (born February 7, 1962) is an American singer and songwriter. His integration of rock and pop elements into the country genre has earned him popularity, particularly in the United States with success on the country music single and album charts, multi-platinum recordings and record-breaking live performances, while also crossing over into the mainstream pop arena.
          As of 2020, Brooks is now the only artist in music history to have released nine albums that achieved diamond status in the United States (surpassing the Beatles' former record of six); those albums are Garth Brooks (diamond), No Fences (17× platinum), Ropin' the Wind (14× platinum), The Chase (diamond), In Pieces (diamond), The Hits (diamond), Sevens (diamond), Double Live (21× platinum), and The Ultimate Hits (diamond). Since 1989, Brooks has released 23 records in all, which include 13 studio albums, two live albums, three compilation albums, three Christmas albums and four box sets, along with 77 singles. He has won several awards in his career, including two Grammy Awards, 17 American Music Awards (including "Artist of the '90s") and the RIAA Award for best-selling solo albums artist of the century in the U.S.
        Troubled by conflicts between career and family, Brooks retired from recording and performing from 2001 until 2005. During this time, he sold millions of albums through an exclusive distribution deal with Walmart and sporadically released new singles. In 2005, Brooks started a partial comeback, giving select performances and releasing two compilation albums. In 2009, he began Garth at Wynn, a periodic weekend concert residency at Las Vegas'Encore Theatre from December 2009 to January 2014. Following the conclusion of the residency, Brooks announced his signing with Sony Music Nashville in July 2014. In September 2014, he began his comeback world tour, with wife and musician Trisha Yearwood, which culminated in 2017. This was followed by his Stadium Tour, which began in 2019. His most recent album, Fun, was released in November 2020.
          Brooks is one of the world's best-selling music artists, having sold more than 170 million records. As of 2020, according to the RIAA, he is the best-selling solo albums artist in the United States with 156 million domestic units sold, ahead of Elvis Presley, and is second only to the Beatles in total album sales overall. Brooks was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame on October 21, 2012, having been inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame the year before. He was also inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2016 with his studio musicians, The G-Men. On March 4, 2020, Brooks received the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. At age 58, he is the youngest recipient of the award.
          On January 20, 2021, Brooks performed "Amazing Grace" at the inauguration of Joe Biden. He said his performance was an opportunity "to serve" and is a "statement of unity."
      "The Thunder Rolls" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Garth Brooks. It was released in April 1991 as the fourth and final single from his álbum No Fences. The song became his sixth number one on the country chart.
          It was originally recorded by Tanya Tucker, but was never released until it appeared on her self-titled 1995 box set. Her version included a fourth verse which Brooks himself intended to use on his version but did not at the suggestion of producer Allen Reynolds.
          This song also appears on Brooks' albums The Hits, The Limited Series, Double Live and The Ultimate Hits.
Three thirty in the morning
Not a soul insight
The city's lookin' like a ghost town
On a moonless summer night
Raindrops on the windshield
There's a storm moving in
He's headin' back from somewhere
That he never should have been
And the thunder rolls
And the thunder rolls
 
Every light is burnin'
In a house across town
She's pacin' by the telephone
In her faded flannel gown
Askin' for miracle
Hopin' she's not right
Prayin' it's the weather
That's kept him out all night
And the thunder rolls
And the thunder rolls
 
The thunder rolls
And the lightnin' strikes
Another love grows cold
On a sleepless night
As the storm blows on
Out of control
Deep in her heart
The thunder rolls
 
She's waitin' by the window
When he pulls into the drive
She rushes out to hold him
Thankful he's alive
But on the wind and rain
A strange new perfume blows
And the lightnin' flashes in her eyes
And he knows that she knows
And the thunder rolls
And the thunder rolls
 
The thunder rolls
And the lightnin' strikes
Another love grows cold
On a sleepless night
As the storm blows on
Out of control
Deep in her heart
The thunder rolls
 
She runs back down the hallway
To the bedroom door
She reaches for the pistol
Kept in the dresser drawer
Tells the lady in the mirror
"He won't do this again"
Cause tonight will be the last time
She'll wonder where he's been.

WHO BY FIRE

LEONARD COHEN
SONGWRITER: LEONARD COHEN
COUNTRY: CANADA
ALBUM: NEW SKIN FOR THE OLD CEREMONY
LABEL: COLUMBIA
GENRE: FOLK
YEAR: 1974
 
           Leonard Norman Cohen CC GOQ (September 21, 1934 – November 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer-songwriter, poet, and novelist. His work explored religion, politics, isolation, depression, sexuality, loss, death and romantic relationships. Cohen was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He was invested as a Companion of the Order of Canada, the nation's highest civilian honour. In 2011, Cohen received one of the Prince of Asturias Awards for literature and the ninth Glenn Gould Prize.
        Cohen pursued a career as a poet and novelist during the 1950s and early 1960s, and did not begin a music career until 1967 at the age of 33. His first album, Songs of Leonard Cohen (1967), was followed by three more albums of folk music: Songs from a Room (1969), Songs of Love and Hate (1971) and New Skin for the Old Ceremony (1974). His 1977 record Death of a Ladies' Man, co-written and produced by Phil Spector, was a move away from Cohen's previous minimalist sound. In 1979, Cohen returned with the more traditional Recent Songs, which blended his acoustic style with jazz, East Asian, and Mediterranean influences. Perhaps Cohen's most famous song, "Hallelujah", was first released on his studio álbum Various Positions in 1984. I'm Your Man in 1988 marked Cohen's turn to synthesized productions. In 1992, Cohen released its follow-up, The Future, which had dark lyrics and references to political and social unrest.
        Cohen returned to music in 2001 with the release of Ten New Songs, which was a major hit in Canada and Europe. His 11th album, Dear Heather, followed in 2004. Following a successful string of tours between 2008 and 2013, Cohen released three albums in the final four years of his life: Old Ideas (2012), Popular Problems (2014) and You Want It Darker (2016), the last of which was released three weeks before his death. A posthumous album titled Thanks for the Dance was released in November 2019, his fifteenth and final studio album.
        Released in 1974, New Skin for the Old Ceremony is the fourth studio album by Leonard Cohen. On this album he began to move away from the minimal instrumentation of his earlier work, with the use of violas, mandolins, banjos, guitars, percussion and other instruments producing a more orchestrated (but nevertheless spare) sound. The album has been certified silver in the UK, but never entered the Billboard Top 200.
And who by fire, who by water,
who in the sunshine, who in the night time,
who by high ordeal, who by common trial,
who in your merry merry month of may,
who by very slow decay,
and who shall I say is calling?
 
And who in her lonely slip, who by barbiturate,
who in these realms of love, who by something blunt,
and who by avalanche, who by powder,
who for his greed, who for his hunger,
and who shall I say is calling?
 
And who by brave assent, who by accident,
who in solitude, who in this mirror,
who by his lady's command, who by his own hand,
who in mortal chains, who in power,
and who shall I say is calling?