The man. The myth. The legend.
Pretty much the only thing on Nashville's Music Scene for the past week has been Garth Brooks. He rolled into town last Thursday, performed 9 shows, and now is probably headed back to Oklahoma. (Although I saw Trisha's house on HGTV's Christmas decorating show; they might want to hang out there for the holidays.)
There is so much one could say about Garth Brooks, but I am going to sum my experience up with this one sentence: Even though I hadn't seen him in at least 12 years and he's been "retired" for 10, he hasn't missed a beat.
Nope, not one beat.
The last time I saw Garth was in 1997, when he performed 6 nights of sold-out shows at Cooper Stadium in Columbus (Thanks, Google!). My brother, who stood in line for what seemed like days to get the tickets, went to two shows, and I went to one. It was the most amazing show I have ever seen before, and I have seen some pretty amazing shows. I've seen all of the current country artists who put on big production shows: Kenny Chesney, Reba, Brad Paisley, Keith Urban... OK, I lied. I hear rumors Rascal Flatts are "big production." I also hear rumors that I would run over my own head in the parking lot with my car if forced to go to their concert. But, of all the artists I've named, none of them can truly hold a candle to Garth Brooks. If I had to order them: I'd say Brad, then maybe a toss-up between Keith and Kenny. Not sure about Reba's show today, but the last time I saw it, it was pretty amazing. Definitely in the top 5 as far as entertainers.
But Garth is really so far at the top of the top 5 that it's not even fair to group him with all these other people. Because, you see, Garth's big production show this past week, wasn't big production except that probably 200,000 people went to the shows. Completely packed every night, to see Garth, some staging, a few spotlights and his band sing a few songs. No big slideshows or flashing lights. No fancy guitars. He even sang several numbers a capella.
I don't remember everything he sang, in part because last night he actually took requests from the audience during the encore, singing songs like "She's Every Woman," "Wild Horses," "More than a Memory" and "What She's Doing Now." But all of his biggest hits were there: "Friends in Low Places," "Unanswered Prayers," "The Thunder Rolls," "Ain't Goin' Down ('Til the Sun Comes Up)," "Shameless" and "Two Pina Coladas" were some of the highlights.
He ended both encores with Billy Joel's "Piano Man," which was apparently how he ended his songs back in the bar days. Something about 20,000+ people singing along to that song, especially at the end of the last show last night, when Garth clearly had no voice left. But how could he? He ran around like a crazy man, screaming at the top of his lungs for about 18 hours over the past six days.
His lovely wife (and my all-time favorite singer), Miss Yearwood, came out and sang a few songs. Of course, they did "In Another's Eyes" together, which is still as hot and sultry now as it was when they first sang it together all those years ago. Even though they've officially been a couple for a long time now, you get the feeling that every day is like a first date with them. That passion that was so obvious to all of us (even when it wasn't supposed to be) is still there after all these years.
She also sang "She's in Love with the Boy" and "How Will I Live," which was dedicated to the troops who will get to watch the concert on Armed Forces Television. In the encore, she came out and sang "Walkaway Joe," and Garth singing back-up could possibly be as good as Don Henley singing back-up on the recording of that song. Awesome.
It was a night of records. The most people an artist has ever played to in Tennessee in one tour (beating Michael Jackson at Neyland Stadium). The most money earned by Nashville's tourism industry in a December EVER. I'm guessing the most amount of sold-out shows at the arena and probably the most amount of money raised for flood relief in one sitting (I am not getting into the politics of that).
What is so amazing about Garth is that he hasn't done a show like that in years, and it's like he didn't miss a beat. In fact, in some ways I think he was more humbled that he can still fill an arena nine times after not having a concert for more than a decade. Not to mention that every person there knew every word to every song, and I'm pretty sure I saw kids who could not have been alive when he "retired." It was even more amazing to me that he did this 13 years later than it was that he did it at the height of his career.
The rumor is that Garth is positioning himself to come out of retirement when his youngest daughter turns 18 in four years. That wouldn't surprise me; that's what he said 10 years ago when he left Nashville. And it's clear that he misses being out on the road. He said more than once last night that he wishes he could do it every night, but being a parent has to come first. And that's good advice for any musician. You can be the biggest thing in the world in Nashville, but wouldn't you rather be the superstar in your kids' lives? I would. I thought he was crazy when he walked away, and, as a fan, this has been a long-time coming and I've missed him. But if he puts half the effort into parenting that he puts into entertaining, his kids are pretty freaking lucky.
Last night wasn't a fluke. If he came out of retirement, we'd all be waiting for our wristbands and filling arenas every single night like we did in the 1990s. What Garth gives you, you can't get from any other artist. He's not the most talented person out there, but he connects with people on an intimate level that normally would not exist in a huge arena. Maybe I'm just falling for his hype, but he doesn't seem scripted and he seems to genuinely care about each and every person who has taken an interest in his career. That's what I love about Brad Paisley too. I often say if anyone's live show compares to Garth, if anyone's dedication to his craft compares, it's Brad's. He just also happens to be the best guitar player I have ever seen in my life.
Speaking of excellent guitar players, I almost forgot to mention Steve Wariner and a little Western Swing action at every single show. He came out and played "Long Neck Bottle" with Garth. I guess at some shows he sang his own songs, but I didn't get to see that. That's OK though, because he might've song "Holes in the Floor of Heaven," which was probably my least-favorite country song until God invented Rascal Flatts and Laura Bell Bundy.
I really could go on and on about Garth Brooks and the show and the state of country music, but I'm sure you're all sick of me by now. I will just say this: I hope that other artists got a chance to see his show, because a lot of them could learn from him. Not everyone will have his personality, but I wish more people had his heart. Garth does what's right where his fans are concerned.
Remember when he went 24 hours without any breaks to sign autographs at Fan Fair? When was the last time any of the big artists signed one autograph at Fan Fair? Hell, some of them don't even sign autographs at their fan club parties.
Garth only charged $25 a seat for these concerts and managed to make $3.5 million to give to charity. Now, I know not everyone has the resources to donate all their profits (and merch sales) to charity, and I am not asking them to. But ticket prices are insane. Insane. People charging $100 for a show that's not half as good as Garth's. All the bells and whistles are nice, but imagine what an artist could do for a fan by looking at their poster with the name of a hit he's long forgotten and just singing it. For a couple of them, he just sang because he didn't remember all the chords. Who else would do that?
But that's what makes him one of the top entertainers of all time. In fact, I think this past week has cemented his status of Entertainer of the Year to infinity and beyond.
There is so much one could say about Garth Brooks, but I am going to sum my experience up with this one sentence: Even though I hadn't seen him in at least 12 years and he's been "retired" for 10, he hasn't missed a beat.
Nope, not one beat.
The last time I saw Garth was in 1997, when he performed 6 nights of sold-out shows at Cooper Stadium in Columbus (Thanks, Google!). My brother, who stood in line for what seemed like days to get the tickets, went to two shows, and I went to one. It was the most amazing show I have ever seen before, and I have seen some pretty amazing shows. I've seen all of the current country artists who put on big production shows: Kenny Chesney, Reba, Brad Paisley, Keith Urban... OK, I lied. I hear rumors Rascal Flatts are "big production." I also hear rumors that I would run over my own head in the parking lot with my car if forced to go to their concert. But, of all the artists I've named, none of them can truly hold a candle to Garth Brooks. If I had to order them: I'd say Brad, then maybe a toss-up between Keith and Kenny. Not sure about Reba's show today, but the last time I saw it, it was pretty amazing. Definitely in the top 5 as far as entertainers.
But Garth is really so far at the top of the top 5 that it's not even fair to group him with all these other people. Because, you see, Garth's big production show this past week, wasn't big production except that probably 200,000 people went to the shows. Completely packed every night, to see Garth, some staging, a few spotlights and his band sing a few songs. No big slideshows or flashing lights. No fancy guitars. He even sang several numbers a capella.
I don't remember everything he sang, in part because last night he actually took requests from the audience during the encore, singing songs like "She's Every Woman," "Wild Horses," "More than a Memory" and "What She's Doing Now." But all of his biggest hits were there: "Friends in Low Places," "Unanswered Prayers," "The Thunder Rolls," "Ain't Goin' Down ('Til the Sun Comes Up)," "Shameless" and "Two Pina Coladas" were some of the highlights.
He ended both encores with Billy Joel's "Piano Man," which was apparently how he ended his songs back in the bar days. Something about 20,000+ people singing along to that song, especially at the end of the last show last night, when Garth clearly had no voice left. But how could he? He ran around like a crazy man, screaming at the top of his lungs for about 18 hours over the past six days.
His lovely wife (and my all-time favorite singer), Miss Yearwood, came out and sang a few songs. Of course, they did "In Another's Eyes" together, which is still as hot and sultry now as it was when they first sang it together all those years ago. Even though they've officially been a couple for a long time now, you get the feeling that every day is like a first date with them. That passion that was so obvious to all of us (even when it wasn't supposed to be) is still there after all these years.
She also sang "She's in Love with the Boy" and "How Will I Live," which was dedicated to the troops who will get to watch the concert on Armed Forces Television. In the encore, she came out and sang "Walkaway Joe," and Garth singing back-up could possibly be as good as Don Henley singing back-up on the recording of that song. Awesome.
It was a night of records. The most people an artist has ever played to in Tennessee in one tour (beating Michael Jackson at Neyland Stadium). The most money earned by Nashville's tourism industry in a December EVER. I'm guessing the most amount of sold-out shows at the arena and probably the most amount of money raised for flood relief in one sitting (I am not getting into the politics of that).
What is so amazing about Garth is that he hasn't done a show like that in years, and it's like he didn't miss a beat. In fact, in some ways I think he was more humbled that he can still fill an arena nine times after not having a concert for more than a decade. Not to mention that every person there knew every word to every song, and I'm pretty sure I saw kids who could not have been alive when he "retired." It was even more amazing to me that he did this 13 years later than it was that he did it at the height of his career.
The rumor is that Garth is positioning himself to come out of retirement when his youngest daughter turns 18 in four years. That wouldn't surprise me; that's what he said 10 years ago when he left Nashville. And it's clear that he misses being out on the road. He said more than once last night that he wishes he could do it every night, but being a parent has to come first. And that's good advice for any musician. You can be the biggest thing in the world in Nashville, but wouldn't you rather be the superstar in your kids' lives? I would. I thought he was crazy when he walked away, and, as a fan, this has been a long-time coming and I've missed him. But if he puts half the effort into parenting that he puts into entertaining, his kids are pretty freaking lucky.
Last night wasn't a fluke. If he came out of retirement, we'd all be waiting for our wristbands and filling arenas every single night like we did in the 1990s. What Garth gives you, you can't get from any other artist. He's not the most talented person out there, but he connects with people on an intimate level that normally would not exist in a huge arena. Maybe I'm just falling for his hype, but he doesn't seem scripted and he seems to genuinely care about each and every person who has taken an interest in his career. That's what I love about Brad Paisley too. I often say if anyone's live show compares to Garth, if anyone's dedication to his craft compares, it's Brad's. He just also happens to be the best guitar player I have ever seen in my life.
Speaking of excellent guitar players, I almost forgot to mention Steve Wariner and a little Western Swing action at every single show. He came out and played "Long Neck Bottle" with Garth. I guess at some shows he sang his own songs, but I didn't get to see that. That's OK though, because he might've song "Holes in the Floor of Heaven," which was probably my least-favorite country song until God invented Rascal Flatts and Laura Bell Bundy.
I really could go on and on about Garth Brooks and the show and the state of country music, but I'm sure you're all sick of me by now. I will just say this: I hope that other artists got a chance to see his show, because a lot of them could learn from him. Not everyone will have his personality, but I wish more people had his heart. Garth does what's right where his fans are concerned.
Remember when he went 24 hours without any breaks to sign autographs at Fan Fair? When was the last time any of the big artists signed one autograph at Fan Fair? Hell, some of them don't even sign autographs at their fan club parties.
Garth only charged $25 a seat for these concerts and managed to make $3.5 million to give to charity. Now, I know not everyone has the resources to donate all their profits (and merch sales) to charity, and I am not asking them to. But ticket prices are insane. Insane. People charging $100 for a show that's not half as good as Garth's. All the bells and whistles are nice, but imagine what an artist could do for a fan by looking at their poster with the name of a hit he's long forgotten and just singing it. For a couple of them, he just sang because he didn't remember all the chords. Who else would do that?
But that's what makes him one of the top entertainers of all time. In fact, I think this past week has cemented his status of Entertainer of the Year to infinity and beyond.
posted by Laura at 8:12 AM
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