NEW YORK — Country music superstar Garth Brooks is coming only to a Wal-Mart near you.

Brooks, the top-selling country singer, agreed to sell his music exclusively through Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's biggest retailer. His recordings will be available online and at all Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stores, the company said in a statement yesterday.

Brooks adds star cachet to Wal-Mart at a time when retailers including Target Corp. and Sears Holdings Corp. have signed celebrities including Isaac Mizrahi and Ty Pennington. Wal-Mart is adding more expensive items, such as plasma televisions, and trying to make its merchandise more distinctive to shoppers.

Wal-Mart, based in Bentonville, Ark., may have signed Brooks to get him to lend his name to other merchandise, said Michele Holmes Van Dyke, who helps manage $16 billion, including Wal-Mart shares, for BB&T Asset Management in Raleigh, North Carolina.

"You have people like J.C. Penney and Kmart who took a celebrity like that and made them a brand in other departments," she said. "There's got to be something else that's brewing with him."

Wal-Mart didn't say whether Brooks will release new music under the agreement or distribute his catalog of songs. Financial terms also weren't disclosed.

Brooks, 43, was one of the top recording stars in the 1990s, appealing to country and pop music fans with albums including "No Fences" and "Ropin' the Wind."

Billboard magazine reported the deal earlier today. Brooks in June ended his licensing agreement with EMI Group Plc's Capitol Nashville label after 16 years.

Brooks owns the master recordings of his work, Billboard said, allowing him to sell wherever he wishes.