Have you ever been to a Garth Brooks concert and heard what happened when he played the first few notes of “Friends in Low Places”? Two notes in, the sold-out crowd whoops, screams, and cheers – every single time. That’s all it takes – two notes.
How many songs can you say that about? What is the song’s appeal?
On the surface, “Friends in Low Places” presents an infectious melody with easy-to-remember and relatable lyrics that resonate with the hearts of blue-collar country music fans. When Brooks performs it, he whips the crowd into a frenzy, and it’s an everyman anthem.
Brooks released “Friends In Low Places” on August 6, 1990, as the lead single from his second album, No Fences. The song not only spent four weeks at the top of Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart but also won both the Academy of Country Music and Country Music Association awards for Single of the Year in 1990. It took up residence in pop culture for decades.
Earl Bud Lee and Dewayne Blackwell skipped church one Sunday in 1989 and went drinking. Lee forgot to bring his money, and when someone asked how he would pay the tab, the songwriter said not to worry – he had friends in low places.
The friend he was referring to was the cook at the restaurant.
Videos by American Songwriter
Everyone is the Guy in “Friends In Low Places”
Who hasn’t found themselves in that situation – the check comes, you reach for your wallet, and you don’t have it? Most of us would panic. Lee and Blackwell used the experience as ammunition for the title. A while later, they went to a No. 1 party, an industry event, to celebrate someone’s chart-topping success. While such gatherings are typically informal, the festive atmosphere and elite attendees reminded them of the “Friends In Low Places” title. The writers started jotting lyrics on a napkin, passing it back and forth. They used the event as the inspiration for the “black tie affair” lyric.
The storyline of showing up and confronting an ex and her new partner just to give them a public send-off spoke to the jilted hearts of the masses. Can he fix his not-so-broken heart with alcohol? Even better. The fact that Brooks is from a working-class family, in the song and real life, just made it more relatable to country music fans.
“I’m not the best golfer in the world, but I can write a song,” Lee told American Songwriter. “After a couple of bottles of champagne, the song just fell out on the bar. So, it was really a gift.”
The songwriters asked Brooks to sing the demo in 1989, which he did. Brooks said in the liner notes on The Hits that “Friends In Low Places” was the last demo session he did as a singer.
“I sang the session out in Hendersonville, and for the next two weeks, the chorus to this song kept running through my head,” he said.
Garth Brooks Asked the Songwriters to Hold It
Brooks knew that since his debut album wasn’t out yet, it would be at least 18 months before he would release a second collection. He asked Lee and Blackwell to save the song for him. They agreed. But Brooks still wasn’t the only person to record the song. Mark Chesnutt included “Friends in Low Places” on his second album, Too Cold At Home. The collection came out about one month after Brooks’ version, but Chesnutt never released it as a single.
Later, Brooks added the much-beloved third verse to the song, which he performs live. In it, he sings, “Sweet little lady, I’ll head back to the bar / And you can kiss my ass.”
The added lyrics, which fans can only hear live, further elevated the experience.
Brooks’ manager, Bob Doyle, tells a story about asking a room of college students if they had heard of Brooks. Only a few raised their hands. When he asked if they knew “Friends In Low Places,” every hand in the room went up.
Brooks knows he’s a charismatic entertainer and a master storyteller – but he’s also the first one to say he owes his career to the songs.
(Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images)
Leave a Reply
Only members can comment. Become a member. Already a member? Log in.