Garth Brooks’ ‘Friends in Low Places’ songwriter Larry Bastian dead at 90: ‘Greatest of all time’

Larry Bastian, who worked pinch Garth Brooks connected deed songs for illustration “Friends successful Low Places” and “Rodeo,” has passed away. He was 90.

The legendary state songwriter’s son, Nick, announced nan sad news connected Facebook and confirmed that Bastian passed distant connected Sunday, April 6, successful California.

“The Lord called Dad location past night,” Bastian’s boy wrote, per The Mirror. “He taught america astatine a very young property weapon safety, on pinch school america hunting and fishing. He fto america beryllium boys, which seems to beryllium a dying point these days.”

“Thank you Dad for inspiring successful really I raised my kids,” nan tribute continued. “I took them to activity pinch maine and raised them to beryllium free scope state kids and now they are raising their’s nan aforesaid way. I emotion you Dad.”

Brooks, 63, celebrated nan songwriter backmost successful 1995 erstwhile he called Bastian 1 of “music’s top writers of each time.”

“If 1 looks down nan database of music’s top writers of each time, I couldn’t ideate nan database being complete without nan sanction of Larry Bastian,” nan state euphony superstar said.

Besides deed songs for illustration “Friends successful Low Places,” “Rodeo,” and “The Dance,” Bastian besides helped pen nan hugely celebrated deed “Unanswered Prayers” pinch Brooks and chap songwriter Pat Alger successful 1991.

Brooks was truthful impressed pinch Bastian that he included a communicative astir nan songwriter and “Unanswered Prayers” successful nan liner notes of his 1994 compilation album, “The Hits.”

“Pat Alger and I worked connected this opus rather a agelong clip without a hook, without nan line. We passed it by Larry Bastian, and it was arsenic if it was meant to be,” nan state crooner wrote. “Larry, his wife, Myrna, and I were taking a locomotion down 18th Avenue, and he looked astatine maine and said, ‘Oh, that’s simple. This opus should beryllium called ‘Unanswered Prayers’ because immoderate of God’s top gifts are unanswered prayers.'”

“This is astir apt nan truest opus I person ever been progressive pinch arsenic a writer,” Brooks continued. “This really happened to my woman and maine erstwhile we went backmost location to Oklahoma. Every clip I singing this song, it teaches maine nan aforesaid lesson…happiness isn’t getting what you want, it is wanting what you’ve got.”

The Post has reached retired to Brooks’ reps for remark regarding nan songwriter’s passing.

Besides Garth Brooks, Bastian besides wrote songs for state euphony superstars for illustration Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Conway Twitty, Reba McEntire, and Buck Owens.

“That type of drive, first off, you person to cognize that you tin do it,” Bastian explained during an interview on “The Paul Leslie Hour” in 2020. “There was nary uncertainty successful my mind that I could constitute a song. I deliberation you person to beryllium that driven to succeed, and past there’s a batch of luck.”

“They person a saying, ‘You can’t get retired of nan measurement of a deed song,'” he added, “and that’s truthful right.”

Bastian’s decease this period came arsenic Brooks remains dogged by intersexual battle allegations launched by his erstwhile constitution artist.