"Friends in Low Places"

Garth Brooks
(Capitol, 1990)

In terms of units moved, Brooks is the unrivaled artist of the decade, gunning for artist of the century even as the clock ticks down. This song went a long way toward getting him started, even if afterward he sublimated the elements that make it so wonderful. Blue-collar proud like Merle Haggard and lustfully rowdy like Hank Williams (1, 2, or 3), the track boasts a cornpone chorus that's more exuberant fun than any "classic" Beatles sing-along. Too bad Garth now thinks he has to outsell the four lads as well.

-- Franklin Soults