Anthony Michael Arata (born October 10, 1957) is an American singer-songwriter. His best known song is "The Dance", a number-one U.S. country hit for Garth Brooks in 1990 which was nominated at the 33rd Grammy Awards for Best Country Song. He also wrote the 1994 No. 1 U.S. country hit "Dreaming with My Eyes Open" recorded by Clay Walker. Other artists who have recorded his songs include Suzy Bogguss, Lee Roy Parnell, Patty Loveless, Trisha Yearwood and Emmylou Harris Arata was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2012.[1]
Arata was born and grew up in Savannah, Georgia, attended the Georgia Southern University, and moved to Nashville in 1986.[2] During that time, he released an album called Changes for MCA Records and Noble Vision.
He recorded for Noble Vision Records in 1984, charting two singles on the Hot Country Songs charts.[3] He also released an album, The Change. In 2000, Arata released his album, Way Back Then.[4] He released a further album Such Is Life, in 2005.
Other top-20 U.S. country hits written or co-written by Arata include "I'm Holding My Own", a No. 3 hit for Lee Roy Parnell in 1994, "Here I Am", a No. 4 hit for Patty Loveless, released in 1994, "The Man in the Mirror" (#17, Jim Glaser, 1983), and "The Change" (#19, Garth Brooks, 1995).
| Title | Album details | |
|---|---|---|
| Changes[5] |
| |
| Way Back When |
| |
| Such Is Life |
|
| Year | Single | Peak positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | |||
| 1984 | "Come On Home" | 76 | rowspan="2" |
| 1985 | "Sure Thing" | 65 | |
| 1986 | "Same Old Story"[6] | — | Changes |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||
| Title | Written by | Notable Releases | Release Date | Chart Peak | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Man In The Mirror | Tony Arata | Jim Glaser | 1983 | Billboard Hot Country #17 | |
| The Dance | Tony Arata | Garth Brooks | Apr 30, 1990 | Billboard Hot Country #1 | |
| Same Old Story | Tony Arata | Tony Arata | February 10, 1986 | ||
| Garth Brooks | Aug 27, 1990 (No Fences Album) | ||||
| Ronna Reeves | 1991 (Only The Heart Album) | ||||
| Tanya Tucker (Recorded Dec 2, 1987) | Oct 18, 1994 (Self-Titled Box Set) | ||||
| Face To Face | Tony Arata | Garth Brooks | Sep 14, 1992 (The Chase Album) | ||
| Kickin' and Screamin' | Tony Arata | Garth Brooks | Aug 31, 1993 (In Pieces Album) | ||
| Anonymous | Tony Arata, Jon Schwabe | Garth Brooks | Aug 31, 1993 (In Pieces Album) | ||
| I'm Holding My Own | Tony Arata | Lee Roy Parnell | Jan 3, 1994 | Billboard Hot Country #3 | |
| A Handful of Dust | Tony Arata | Michael James | Feb 15, 1994 | ||
| Patty Loveless | Aug 17, 1994 | ||||
| Don Williams | Oct 27, 1998 | ||||
| Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris (Recorded 1993) | Sep 9, 2016 (Complete Trio Album) | ||||
| Dreaming with My Eyes Open | Tony Arata | Clay Walker | May 27, 1994 | Billboard Hot Country #1 | |
| Here I Am | Tony Arata | Patty Loveless | Nov 12, 1994 | Billboard Hot Country #4 | |
| What Else Can I Do | Tony Arata, Scott Miller | Patricia Conroy | Jan 1995 | ||
| The Change | Tony Arata, Wayne Tester | Garth Brooks | Mar 30, 1996 | Billboard Hot Country #19 | |
| Satisfied Mind | Tony Arata | Hal Ketchum | May 7, 1996 (The Hits Album) | ||
| Nothing but Love | Tony Arata | Patty Loveless | May 21, 1996 (Compilation Album) | ||
| Ty England | Mar 31, 2006 (Alive & Well Album) | ||||
| You Can't Get There From Here | Tony Arata | Lee Roy Parnell | Feb 18, 1997 (Every Night's... Album) | Billboard Hot Country #39 | |
| Long Stretch of Lonesome | Tony Arata, Gary Scruggs | Patty Loveless | Sep 30, 1997 (Album; title track) | ||
| That's The Way I Remember It | Tony Arata, Tony Sims | Garth Brooks | Sep 28, 1999 (Chris Gaines Album) | ||
| Why Ain't I Running | Tony Arata, Garth Brooks, Kent Blazy | Garth Brooks | Mar 8, 2003 | Billboard Hot Country #24 |
|-|1991|"The Dance"|Best Country Song||}
|-|1991|"The Dance"|Song of the Year||-|}
|-|1991|"The Dance"|Song of the Year||}