I wrote 'The River' practically trying to rip off every lick that James Taylor had, so it was neat to hear him sing those lyrics because that's who inspired you to write them.

My retiring days are behind me - they're going to have to throw me out now.

Sometimes I thank God... for cheeseburgers.

It's the sweetest thing to be a parent of a daughter. When they hit their twenties, they become these lovebugs that come back. It's just so sweet.

My father and brothers were in the military.

People said, 'How could you walk away from music?' But being a dad - there's nothing that can touch that.

I don't know of too many double Christmas albums, so it is something that's new, and hopefully will be fun, and there's plenty of stuff out there to cut.

I'm worried a lot of our work day as artists is a producer's creation - not an artist's creation.

Doing new stuff live is tough just simply because I pay my money, I stand in my seats, and I see the guys I love. And if I paid that ticket, there's a good chance that I'm there to hear the stuff that made me fall in love with 'em - we call it the 'old stuff.'

Any pitcher who might throw at me should know I'm not giving up my day job or trying to get anyone else's job. I just can't think of anything cooler than being one of the boys of summer!

When I went to see Kansas and Queen and Styx, I don't even remember the music. But I know what I saw.

As a kid, before I could play music, I remember baseball being the one thing that could always make me happy.

Because of the changes in the Padres team I played with last year, I felt like a veteran recently when I worked out with Jason Kendall and he told me he's liked listening to my records since he was a kid!

I still use the guitar pretty much just to hide my gut.

I introduce her as the love of my life everywhere that we go. She introduces me as her current husband. So you can see how the relationship kinda works here.

You know me, I've got to find some way to get a fresh fire.

I'd much rather have the honesty than not. Because if you will say what's on your mind and get it off your chest, then the sooner I can prove you wrong!

Before the show, we see all these radio people, and most of them say, 'Garth, you're a lot calmer than I thought you were gonna be.' But when the members of the band give one another that handshake, and the lights go out, and the crowd goes up, then you're sliding into the elevator, man, your heart is just going bopbopbopbopbop.

Country music is what is sincere; that's the main thing.

I want to get within myself and write. I really, really want to write.

I am the last guy that wants to quit making music.

I spend most of my time at concerts hoping for that one second that the artist looks at me, I look at the artist, and that's when I get to say, 'Thank you.'

You can't deny RCA's past and its history. I was also on Capitol Records, so I have that past history.

I'm one of those guys who has to have a constant something going inside and in front of my face. If not, I get in trouble.

I try to do my best.

You know Nashville, there's people that are ten times more talented than me, ten times better singer than me, song writer than me, but for some reason you get the ball and now - and now you run with it. And you do the best you can.

We're just a real dirty band. We're raw, and we're rough. None of us are top-scale, top-line musicians. But I tell you what, you get your top-line musicians and see if they can entertain like us.

Your band members? Your band members don't want to be tied to a machine. They want to be playing. That's what the Beatles did. And the Beatles' stuff is timeless. That's what I would suggest. Just get back to sweating, playing hard, hammering, and having a blast.

I'd like to think a baseball picture is somewhere in my future.

If I have any talent at all it's from God, and my mom, who was on Capitol Records also.

I believe in the 'Wal-Mart' school of business. The less people pay, the more they enjoy it.

I'm a big movie fan. After a show, if I'm on the bus or a plane, it's often hard to get to sleep, so I'll watch a film. An action film can even relax me.

I got an offer in 1992 to buy a major-league team. I turned down the offer because I don't want my love of the game to involve business.

I like to follow my favorite team and talk sports with my band or fans. You won't believe how many musicians are sports fans. We have so much time on tour that we need these outlets for relaxation.

I wouldn't mind producing a movie with a music storyline, but acting in one is too close to home.

It would have been fun to have played Tim Robbins' role in Bull Durham.

While I'm playing baseball, I'm still writing songs and having tapes sent to me. I'm sure I'll spend a lot of time in the whirlpool resting these tired bones, so I'll be thinking of music then.

The guys have told me not to quit my day job.

I love being a part of country music. I love going out and... doing things for the first time for country music. I always enjoy that.

There's a difference between knowing what's on the page in a history book and actually feeling that page have curves and valleys.

I remember in the '80s, Randy Travis was my guy. He's the reason I moved to Nashville, and I just loved him. But at some point when he was winning everything, you find yourself pulling for other people.

My hardest thing was to let go, to be happy for everybody and just to enjoy. And go back to being what you were before you became an artist, and that was just a fan.

The most important days, more than any Grammy award thing or anything, is the day that you're responsible for snacks after the game.

If we see too much of one person, even though we like that person, we start to kind of pull for other people.

In our house, everyone's opinion is welcome. I grew up in a house where everything wasn't when it came to politics or religion.

How many songs in your life were your favorite songs but never were singles on albums?

The hardest part about this business is accepting the back end with the same love that you accepted the front end.

I don't care if people remember Garth Brooks.

I go home, and I'm a blob. I just lay there and don't do anything - lay by the pool with the other husbands while the wives work. It's fantastic. It's really good. That's kind of our life at home.

Be with someone who is kind. I think that's it. Just to love one another was the thing I would want to do. It's a thing that you can't stop doing.