Calling out Garth Brooks

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What do AC/DC, The Beatles, The Eagles, Led Zeppelin, Garth Brooks and The Rolling Stones have in common? Everyone, except Garth Brooks, are world class bands that have their music available for sale on iTunes.

Garth clearly hasn’t seen fit to give his fans the opportunity to purchase his music on iTunes, yet. Apparently, Brooks wants his music sold in album-format only—no single song sales are allowed. This clearly goes against everything Apple believes for how music should be sold on iTunes.

As a music fan, I have to agree with Apple on this. To be clear, I am a fan of Garth Brooks. I had a number of his CDs years ago, but unfortunately through moves and having them in the car, a couple of them broke. It happens—not a big deal.

Except I no longer buy CDs—I haven’t since iTunes opened. All of my music is purchased on iTunes, put on my iPhone and iPod and streamed in the car.

So what does my scenario mean for Garth Brooks. He sees no sales from me. None. Garth can argue all he wants about album sales, but the fact is, he’s missing out on sales every single day.

It’s so bad now that even music stars like Blake Shelton are calling out Garth Brooks on Twitter to put his music on iTunes.

Come on Garth, join the big boys, and do the right thing. It’s time to stop living in the 1990s.



19 thoughts on “Calling out Garth Brooks”

  1. Garth Brooks has sold out 5 concerts in Ireland this coming summer. That is more than 411500 tickets sold. There are talks of adding more dates. That means that 1 in 10 Irish people have bought tickets. Surely he would be better served if those same fans can buy his music from as many avenues as possible, including iTunes.

  2. I like Garth Brooks, but as far back as I can remember he or his distributor had an ego problem. Remember when he put out a box set after, what, four albums?

    And now I think he’s up to four or five box sets.

    Anyway, some form of iTunes hardball or standoff isn’t a surprise to me at all.

  4. I love the band Tool, they too do NOT have any music on iTunes. Luckily I have physical media, but it sure would be nice to buy it directly from iTunes along with all my other music.

  5. I don’t understand the roadblock here. iTunes has an “album only” option
    for music sales. Are they not willing to offer that to Garth Brooks, or
    is he just using “album integrity” as an excuse?

    P.S. a band refers to an ensemble or group. It should not be applied to individual artists.

  6. Uhm… Garth Brooks released a greatest hits collection – The Ultimate Hits. How can say he wants his music in album-only format when he chopped them up in a collection?

  7. I believe the issue is Garth Brooks wants all or none. The album only option limits specific tracks and I’m not familiar with any album that is completely album only. I wonder if Apple has a limit of how many songs per album can be marked Album Only.

  8. Lot of compilations and live albums are album only due to rights issues. Many of the “NOW That’s What I Call…” compilations are album only, despite being composed of hit singles. The soundtrack for Anchorman 2 has one original song available individually while the rest are album only. Crossroads Guitar Festival Live 2013 by Eric Clapton is album only. No reason it can’t be done except for stubbornness on someone’s part.

  9. Let’s remember that Garth also considers selling used CDs stealing, as he doesn’t get any additional income on them… But the solution is simple: Garth needs to turn prog. Make every song 10min+, and they’re marked ‘Album Only’. Long form jazz fusion? Album Only. He’s got the wankery, now he just needs the length. As it, uh, were…

  11. If I recall, Garth signed a multi-year deal with Wal-Mart for them to be the only retailer of his music. I believe it was something like a 20 years? It sucks.

  13. Some Albums are conceptualised by their creators, to be listened to as a whole.
    The theme, the story, even the rythm and the music, is to be consumed in unison and continuity.

    Pink Floyd albums is a screaming example.
    If you play the songs back to back (no silence between tracks), it sounds as a huge track that flows and changes, kinda like a theatrical play.

    People just buying and listening to songs like “Another Brick in the Wall Pt.2” without the other 2 parts is tragedy.

  14. I’m no Garth Brooks fan and I wonder how much money he’s really losing from Jim Dalrymple by not being on iTunes… Even if it is his style of music, a quick look on Wikipedia shows that his last non-compilation album was in 2001. He released a ‘Limited Series’ box set in 2005 which was only available through Wal-Mart & Sam’s Club, an ‘Ultimate Hits’ compilation in 2007 and another box set of influences in 2013 that again was only available through Wal-Mart & Sam’s Club.
    It looks to me like Garth has picked his business model – keep repackaging stuff and sell it exclusively through Wal-Mart and sell out stadium shows around the world.

    I don’t think he misses any iTunes revenue

  17. No, not at all.
    I don’t even like them to begin with.

    I was just arguing against the notion that every album should be in iTunes and every song should be available separately.

  19. I am pretty sure Album integrity was shot the first time a song was played on the radio or in a juke box. It’s about money and ego. He lost a bunch from me. I would have gladly paid for the albums again, but if finally went ahead and ripped all my CDs.

    I noticed a greatest hits album, what does that do to album integrity?

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