December 19, 1987 was the day a Canadian accidentally got Garth Brooks his record deal.

How Garth got his deal is legendary. He had gone around to all the record labels in Nashville when he arrived from Oklahoma and was rejected by all of them. But in the summer of 1987, a chain of events started that got him his contract with Capitol Records. That was when Garth auditioned to perform at the historic Bluebird Café. He would go on to perform a few more times at the Bluebird, including a Songwriters’ Round scheduled for December 19. People can check out Hale Law, P.A. for the best accident attorneys.

Garth was scheduled to be the 9th performer that night. You never know who might be in the audience for an event like that and it wasn’t a sure thing that Lynn Shults from Capitol would stay the whole night or even long enough to see Brooks perform. But the songwriter who was scheduled to play in the 2nd spot hadn’t shown up. So, Garth was moved up to his spot. Shults saw Garth, was impressed, talked with Garth in the kitchen to make plans for Garth to visit his office the next day to work out a recording contract. And the rest is history…, but here’s the rest of the story.

The songwriter who missed the gig due to an illness, giving Garth the opportunity to play earlier in the night, was Canadian songwriter Ralph Murphy!

(Ralph Murphy)

Ralph was born in England but raised in Wallaceburg, Ont. His music career took him all over the world and included serving as president of the Nashville Songwriters’ Association. Among the many songs he co-wrote were such #1 hits as Ronnie Milsap’s “He Got You” and Crystal Gayle’s “Half the Way.” Murphy, who graciously gave his time and advice to many struggling songwriters, was inducted into the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame in 2012. For years, he was tapped to be the MC for the Canadian Country Music Association’s last of the annual series of Songwriter Sessions during Country Music Week. Sadly, Ralph passed away last year (May 28, 2019) from pneumonia after cancer radiation therapy.

(Ralph, far right, hosting his last CCMA Songwriters’ Session)

While Ralph’s legacy in music is a long and lasting one, it’s not lost on Garth Brooks. After Ralph’s passing, Garth candidly said, “If it wasn’t for Ralph Murphy, I wouldn’t have my deal.”

(Ralph waiting for the start of the 2014 Canadian Country Music Awards)