Sometimes, you just don't like what someone is all about. It's one thing not to like what someone does, to not be fan of their work. It's another thing entirely to find them deplorable as a person, to dismiss their values. This appears to be the case between Garth Brooks and Waylon Jennings before he passed in 2002.
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Most notably, people know what Waylon allegedly said about Garth Brooks. Given what Jennings' music brings to the country music industry and what Brooks does, it's not hard to imagine the inherent disconnect. One is an outlaw who thrives on the stories and the hardened exterior. The latter represents the grand commercialization of country for all of its aesthetics. It's no wonder Jennings scoffs at the Friends in Low Places singer. He says, "Garth Brooks did for country music what pantyhose did for finger f***ing."
However, Waylon and his alleged issues with Garth apparently goes farther than just a musical disconnect. It seems to seep into the philosophical, with Jennings disliking Brooks for his core values.
Waylon Jennings Didn't Like Garth Brooks as a Person in Addition to His Music
Author Bruce Feiler details this issue in his book Dreaming Out Loud: Garth Brooks, Wynonna Judd, Wade Hayes, and the Changing Face Of Nashville. There, he recalls a quote from Waylon Jennings where he views Garth as a slimy phony. "He's the most insincere person I've ever seen," he remarks. "I remember a few years ago an old buddy of mine who worked with Ernest Tubb was giving him an old record. He tried so hard to cry, but he just couldn't do it. He thinks it's going to last forever. He's wrong."
Conversely, Garth says he's never met Waylon Jennings. Regardless, he does suspect why there's an inherent disconnect between the two. Moreover, Brooks keeps his own thoughts incredibly neutral and nondescript. "Yeah, I was definitely the guy that he targeted. And it's funny kinda being the non-traditionalist then, and now everyone looks at you like, 'Your stuff is as country as it gets.' So that's kind of a weird view. It was tough for me because he was a country legend and for some reason I was the guy that got the brunt of it," Garth says of Waylon. "I never took it that personal. I just think he was addressing the different sound in country music and the changing of the guard. That's tough for anybody to handle. The guy's a legend and deserves nothing but respect."
