Beyond the Season

Beyond the Season
Studio album by
Garth Brooks
ReleasedAugust 25, 1992
StudioJack's Tracks (Nashville, Tennessee)
Genre
Length33:48
LabelLiberty
ProducerAllen Reynolds
Garth Brooks chronology
Ropin' the Wind(1991) Beyond the Season(1992) The Chase(1992)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
About.comStarStarStarStarStar[1]
AllMusicStarStarStar[2]
Christgau's Consumer Guide(dud)[3]
Entertainment WeeklyC+[4]
QStarStarStar[5]
The Rolling Stone Album GuideStar[6]

Beyond the Season is the first Christmas album by American country music artist Garth Brooks. It was released on August 25, 1992, by Liberty Records, and peaked at number 2 on both of Billboard magazine's Billboard 200 and Top Country Albums sales charts that year. Beyond the Season was also the best-selling Christmas/holiday album of 1992 in the United States with sales of 1,542,000 copies for the year according to Nielsen SoundScan.[7] As of November 2014, the album has cumulative sales of 2,650,000 copies in the U.S. and is the seventeenth best-selling Christmas/holiday album in the U.S. during the entire SoundScan era (March 1991 – present).[8]

Background

Brooks commented on the album, saying:

"Beyond The Season hands down, without a doubt, is the most fun record that I've ever made. You always cut Christmas albums it seems in the middle of summer for some reason to have them prepared in time for Christmas. And we did this one in June and July of '92. I remember Mark Miller the engineer, had strung Christmas lights all through the studio, put the fake snow and turned the air conditioning down. It was a blast. This album I would make every day of my life if I could. Totally no pressure, you're singing about what counts and that's the feeling of Christmas. Which in my opinion should be shared everyday of the year, instead of just one day of the year. I hope you like it."[9]

Commercial performance

On November 15, 1995, Beyond the Season was certified Triple Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America for shipment of 3 million copies in the United States.[10]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Go Tell It on the Mountain"Traditional3:30
2."God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen"Traditional2:34
3."The Old Man's Back in Town"Garth Brooks, Larry Bastian, Randy Taylor2:34
4."The Gift"Stephanie Davis4:43
5."Unto You This Night"Rex Benson, Steve Gillette3:16
6."White Christmas"Irving Berlin2:55
7."The Friendly Beasts"Traditional3:32
8."Santa Looked a Lot Like Daddy"Buck Owens, Don Rich2:29
9."Silent Night"Traditional3:46
10."Mary's Dream"Mark Casstevens, Bobby Wood0:50
11."What Child Is This?"Traditional3:27
Total length:33:36

Chart performance

Beyond the Season peaked at #2 on the U.S. Billboard 200, and on the Top Country Albums. In November 1995, Beyond the Season was certified 3 x Platinum by the RIAA.

Singles

Year Single Peak positions
US Country
1998 "Santa Looked a Lot Like Daddy" 41
1999 "Go Tell it on the Mountain" 72
2000 "White Christmas" 65
"God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" 69

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[18]2× Platinum 200,000^
United States (RIAA)[19]3× Platinum 2,650,000[8]

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Personnel

  • Garth Brooks – lead vocals, harmony vocals (3, 8, 9), acoustic guitar
  • Bobby Wood – acoustic piano, keyboards
  • Joey Miskulin – accordion (4)
  • Mark Casstevens – acoustic guitar
  • Chris Leuzinger – acoustic guitar (1–9), electric guitars (1–9)
  • Bruce Bouton – steel guitar (3, 5, 8)
  • Mike Chapman – bass (1–9)
  • Milton Sledge – drums (1–9), percussion (1–9)
  • Rob Hajacos – fiddle (3, 8)
  • Charles Cochran – string arrangements (10, 11)
  • Cynthia Reynolds Wyatt – harp (10, 11)
  • Bob Mason – cello (10)
  • Gary Vanosdale – viola (10)
  • Carl Gorodetzky – violin (10)
  • Pamela Sixfin – violin (10)
  • The Nashville String Machine – strings (11)
  • Christ Church Choir – choir (5)
  • Landy Gardner – choir director (5)
  • Trisha Yearwood – harmony vocals (5, 9)
  • Allen Reynolds – harmony vocals (9)
  • Jim Rooney – harmony vocals (9)

Backing Vocals (Tracks 1 & 11)

  • Bob Bailey, Johnny Cobb, Gary Chapman, Vicki Hampton, Emily Harris, Yvonne Hodges, Jana King, Donna McElroy, Donna Morris, Howard Smith and Dennis Wilson

Production

  • Allen Reynolds – producer
  • Mark Miller – recording, mixing
  • Matt Allen – recording assistant
  • Carlos Grier – digital editing
  • Denny Purcell – mastering at Georgetown Masters (Nashville, Tennessee).
  • Virginia Team – art direction
  • Jerry Joyner – design
  • Beverly Parker – photography
  1. ^"About.com review". Archived from the original on March 13, 2007. Retrieved November 4, 2006.
  2. ^AllMusic review
  3. ^Robert Christgau Consumer Guide
  4. ^"Entertainment Weekly review". Archived from the original on December 18, 2009. Retrieved April 14, 2013.
  5. ^Album reviews at CD Universe
  6. ^Brackett, Nathan; Christian Hoard (2004). The Rolling Stone Album Guide. New York City, New York: Simon and Schuster. p. 105. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. rolling stone garth brooks album guide.
  7. ^Paul Grein (October 29, 2013). "Chart Watch Extra: What Will Be This Year's Top Christmas Album?". Chart Watch. Yahoo.
  8. ^ ab"The Gifts That Keep on Giving: Biggest Radio and Album Hits of the Holidays". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. December 1, 2014. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
  9. ^"GARTH'S CD'S". Angelfire.com. Archived from the original on June 11, 2001. Retrieved November 9, 2025.
  10. ^"RIAA Searchable Database". Recording Industry Association of America. Archived from the original on December 3, 2014. Retrieved December 2, 2014.
  11. ^"Garth Brooks ARIA chart history to April 2025". ARIA. Retrieved May 18, 2025 – via Imgur.com. N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column represents the release's peak on the national chart.
  12. ^"Garth Brooks Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
  13. ^"Garth Brooks Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
  14. ^"Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1992". Billboard. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
  15. ^"Top Country Albums – Year-End 1992". Billboard. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
  16. ^"Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1993". Billboard. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
  17. ^"Top Country Albums – Year-End 1993". Billboard. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
  18. ^"Canadian album certifications – Garth Brooks – Beyond the Season". Music Canada. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
  19. ^"American album certifications – Garth Brooks – Beyond the Season". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
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