Garth Brooks went to some pretty unusual lengths to make sure his The Hits collection would never be re-released.

The superstar has always been selective of how and when his music is distributed — you won't find him on iTunes or YouTube. In fact, when he does release new music or a re-packaged collection of greatest hits, it's usually only available for a limited time.

In 1995, Brooks took some particularly extreme precautions to make sure The Hits album was never available again. When his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame was revealed on June 30, 1995, he shared that the masters to the record were buried deep in concrete below it. The greatest hits collection made history on Aug. 13, 1995, when it became the first album by a country artist to be certified for selling seven million copies. It went on to sell 10 million copies, but it will never reach 11 million.

If you're tempted to retrieve the tapes, remember that they're not only packed in concrete beneath a 300-pound star, but they're also on the heavily-traveled Vine St. in Hollywood. Most thefts of stars have occurred during construction, when the markers were being repaired or moved. It would be an act of insanity to try the heist in daylight — and no, that isn't a challenge.

Brooks eventually relented after years of not allowing his music to be available for digital download, however. Since his objection was to the business model that iTunes, YouTube and others employ, he made an end run around them by starting his own digital service, GhostTunes, just after he released Man Against Machine. He folded that service into Amazon Music Unlimited when he released Gunslinger in 2016, and Amazon Music Unlimited remains the only way to get his music digitally.

What Is Country Music? Just Ask Garth Brooks

The Wackiest Shirts in Garth Brooks' Closet