In the world of country music, there are friendships, and then there are bonds that run deeper than fame. One such bond was that between Chris LeDoux and Garth Brooks.
Before Garth Brooks became a household name, he idolized LeDoux. He would watch Chris’s electrifying performances, absorb his cowboy grit, and even sing about him in the breakthrough hit “Much Too Young (To Feel This Damn Old)”. That one line, “a worn-out tape of Chris LeDoux,” not only immortalized the rodeo legend but also sparked a friendship that would shape both men’s lives.
As Chris’s health began to decline in the early 2000s, Garth made frequent visits. They talked, laughed, and more than once, dreamed about recording an album together. According to close friends, they had even picked out a few songs and planned a “cowboy duet” that would blend their styles into one powerful tribute to the rodeo life they both cherished.
But time was not on their side.
Chris’s liver complications, followed by a cancer diagnosis, moved faster than anyone expected. Despite a successful transplant, his body began to weaken again. Still, he refused to dwell on it. “When I get better, let’s do it,” he told Garth in one of their last phone calls.
But that day never came.
When Chris passed away in 2005, Garth was devastated. He spoke in interviews about the pain of losing not just a mentor, but a friend. “There was so much more we were going to do,” Garth admitted. “He didn’t just inspire me—he taught me how to be real.”
Fans continue to imagine what that duet might have sounded like: two cowboys, one microphone, and decades of shared passion poured into every lyric.
And though the song was never recorded, the echo of that promise still lingers.
Garth Brooks and Ned LeDoux – Whatcha Gonna Do With A Cowboy Cheyenne Frontier Days 2021