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We Shall Be Free
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Wikipedia article
{{Infobox song
| name = We Shall Be Free
| cover = Garth Brooks - We Shall Be Free.jpg
| alt =
| type = single
| artist = Garth Brooks
| album = The Chase
| B-side = Night Rider's Lament
| released = August 31, 1992
| recorded = 1992
| studio =
| venue =
| genre =
| length = 3:48
| label = Liberty 57794
| writer =
| producer = Allen Reynolds
| prev_title = Whatcha Gonna Do with a Cowboy
| prev_year = 1992
| next_title = Somewhere Other Than the Night
| next_year = 1992
}}
"'We Shall Be Free'" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Garth Brooks. It was released in August 1992 as the first single from his album 'The Chase' and also appears on 'The Hits', 'The Limited Series', 'Double Live', and 'The Ultimate Hits'. It reached #12 on the 'Billboard' Hot Country Singles & Tracks in 1992, becoming his first single to miss the Top 10 on that chart due to an airplay ban from some radio stations. "We Shall Be Free" peaked at #22 on the 'Billboard' Christian Songs charts through a marketing deal with Rick Hendrix Company, and earned Brooks a 1993 GLAAD Media Award.. Archived from [http://www.planetgarth.com/news/article.php?cid=00221 the original] on 21 March 2017. This song was written by Brooks and Stephanie Davis.
Content
An ordinary man imagines a world where all human beings are free from earthly oppressions. Topics covered in this social commentary include: world hunger, freedom of speech, homelessness, homophobia, racism, and freedom of religion. Brooks would go on to perform this song on a 1996 episode of 'Muppets Tonight' with The Muppets, at Equality Rocks, a gay rights march in Washington, D.C. in 2000,[http://www.spinner.ca/2007/07/13/20-protest-songs-that-mattered-no-18/ 20 Protest Songs That Matter], Spinner, July 13, 2007 and at the We Are One Concert, a concert held at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. during the Obama inaugural celebration in January, 2009.
Background and production
According to Brooks, he was inspired to write this song after being in Los Angeles where the ACM Awards were being held during the 1992 L.A. Riots:
'"The night the riots hit we watched it all on TV on the bus leaving LA. And as you drove out of LA you could see the buildings on fire. It was pretty scary for all of us, especially a bunch of guys from Oklahoma. Ya know this is intense out here."[http://www.planetgarth.com/gbstory/gbstory.shtml Transcription from "The Garth Brooks Story" (1995)]
Garth provided the following background information on the song in the CD booklet liner notes from 'The Hits':
"'We Shall Be Free' is definitely and easily the most controversial song I have ever done. A song of love, a song of tolerance from someone who claims not to be a prophet but just an ordinary man. I never thought there would be any problems with this song. Sometimes the roads we take do not turn out to be the roads we envisioned them to be. All I can say about 'We Shall Be Free" is that I will stand by every line of this song as long as I live. I am very proud of it. And I am very proud of Stephanie Davis, the writer. I hope you enjoy it and see it for what it was meant to be.'"Garth Brooks - The Hits: transcription from the CD booklet (bar code 7-2438-29689-2-4)
Garth provided additional information in the 2019 documentary "Garth Brooks: The Road Im On":
Garth was scheduled to sing the National Anthem at the 1993 Super Bowl and had an agreement with NBC to play the video for "We Shall Be Free" immediately after. On the day of the Super Bowl NBC network executives told Garth that the song was too controversial and they weren't going to play it. Garth refused to sing unless the video was played and left the stadium. NBC caved and agreed to play the video. Even though it was played during the 1993 Super Bowl, it's the only Garth Brooks single not to reach #1 on Billboard top 100, it reached #22.
Music video
The music video for "We Shall Be Free" was directed by Timothy Miller and premiered on CMT in September, 1992. The video is filled with much powerful (disturbing to some) imagery. In the ending, the following statement is shown: 'This video is dedicated to the human spirit. Unbreakable. Relentless. Free.' The music video for "We Shall Be Free" won 'Video of the Year' at the 1993 Academy of Country Music awards.
Celebrities
In the introduction, numerous celebrities (including Brooks) are depicted in a matter of seconds and appear throughout the video. They include:*Reba McEntire country music artist
*Michael W. Smith Gospel singer
*Jay Leno comedian, former host of 'The Tonight Show'
*General Colin Powell former Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, later US Secretary of State
*Whoopi Goldberg actress/comedian
*Amy Grant Christian music artist
*Joan Rivers comedian and host of 'The Joan Rivers Show'
*Craig T. Nelson actor, star of 'Coach'
*John Elway Broncos quarterback
*Troy Aikman Cowboys quarterback
*Elizabeth Taylor actress
*Warren Moon Oilers/Vikings/Chiefs quarterback
*Bernie Kosar Cleveland Browns/Dallas Cowboys quarterback
*Eddie Murphy actor and comedian
*Patrick Swayze actor
*Kristi Yamaguchi Olympic figure skating champion
*Burt Bacharach pop music/jazz composer and artist
*Martina Navratilova Czech tennis star
*Michael Bolton pop music star
*Paula Abdul pop music star
*Lily Tomlin actress and comedian
*Julio Iglesias Spanish singer
*Marlee Matlin actress
*Mother Teresa nun
*Martin Luther King Jr. civil rights activist
*Trisha Yearwood country music artist
Chart positions
References
Category:1992 Los Angeles riots
Category:1992 singles
Category:1992 songs
Category:Environmental songs
Category:Garth Brooks songs
Category:LGBT-related songs
Category:Liberty Records singles
Category:Music controversies
Category:Songs about freedom
Category:Songs against racism and xenophobia
Category:Song recordings produced by Allen Reynolds
Category:Songs written by Garth Brooks
Category:Songs written by Stephanie Davis (singer)
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