Nov
29
Garth Brooks photo by Mark Tucker, courtesy of Pearl Records.
During this week in 1990, Garth Brooks had a pretty impressive run going on the national country charts with two songs in the Top 20 at the same time. “Friends In Low Places” was at No. 17 in Billboard on its way down after peaking at No. 1, and “Unanswered Prayers” bolted to No. 8 after just eight weeks on the chart.
Two decades later, Garth still remembers one of the lessons he drew from those two songs, which cast ex-romances in very different atmospheres. “Low Places” is a drunken intrusion into the black-tie reception of an ex-girlfriend, while “Prayers” is a thoughtful note of thanks that an old flame flickered out. “Low Places” is still an iconic song for country fans, and it was a pretty smart move to not follow it up with something that had the same sort of party spirit.
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Apr
27
Garth Brooks is all smiles as he announces his new one-man show at the Wynn in Las Vegas, Nev. during a press conference on October 15, 2009. Photo courtesy of garthbrooks.com.
It’s been four months since Garth Brooks launched his series of weekend shows at the Wynn Las Vegas, allowing him to still perform in a fairly intimate setting without actually touring until his daughters are raised.
When Garth shocked country fans by retiring from the road, he shifted his gears into parenting and planned to work on screenplays. But now that he’s been singing in a semi-regular routine again, he’s also discovered that some of the old creative juices have returned, and he’s got scraps of paper with shreds of lyrics lying around the Oklahoma house he shares with his three daughters and wife Trisha Yearwood.
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Apr
16
President Barack Obama talks with Garth Brooks, who was presented with the "Grammy on the Hill Award" for his leadership in advancing the rights of music makers, in the Oval Office, April 14, 2010. The President was also presented with the 2007 Grammy Award for best spoken word album for his book "The Audacity of Hope." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
Garth Brooks has been involved with the Obama administration since the very beginning, you could say. He sang “We Shall Be Free” on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the inaugural activities at the beginning of 2009, and he returned to Washington, D.C., this week for a series of events — not the least of which included a visit to the White House to exchange trophies with the president.
Garth picked up a Grammys On The Hill Award from Obama for his leadership in protecting the rights of music creators. In turn, Garth — who has won a pair of Grammy Awards — officially presented the president with his Grammy for Best Spoken Word Album, a companion to his book The Audacity Of Hope. It marks the second time Obama has won a spoken-word Grammy, which means he’s got as many of the annual trophies as Garth.
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Dec
29
Garth Brooks is all smiles as he announces his new one-man show at the Wynn in Las Vegas, Nev. during a press conference on October 15, 2009. Photo courtesy of garthbrooks.com.
#3 on GAC’s Top Stories of 2009 | View all »
As early as 1992, just three years into his skyrocketing career, Garth Brooks began publicly mulling retirement from the music business. The subject continued to come up frequently, though few believed anyone that successful could walk away from it all.
Garth did, in fact, go into hibernation following the release of an album in 2001, but many observers figured he would find a way to return to the spotlight. Periodically, he would emerge to promote a new compilation project or to do a charity gig, but he finally went back to performing regularly in December when he kicked off a scaled-down concert format in a surprisingly loose deal with Wynn Las Vegas. Garth essentially delivers a one-man show for 15 weekends annually over a five-year period, at which time he’s likely to begin touring once again. If either Garth or casino owner Steve Wynn is disenchanted with the arrangement, either is able to back out.
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Dec
14
Garth Brooks is all smiles as he announces his new one-man show at the Wynn in Las Vegas, Nev. during a press conference on October 15, 2009. Photo courtesy of garthbrooks.com.
It was supposed to be the end of Garth Brooks’ self-imposed retirement from live performing. And it was.
But now his five-year deal with Wynn Las Vegas is being hailed as a new way of doing business in America’s gambling capital.
Vegas is known for its glitz and over-the-top productions. That’s not what the audience got over the weekend. Garth showed up Friday in a hoodie and jeans, according to USA Today, kicking the show off with a cover of Merle Haggard’s “Mama Tried” and spending much of his two hours on stage by taking requests. Working without a band, he logged many of his own hits, including “Friends In Low Places,” “Much Too Young (To Feel This Damn Old)” and “The Dance.” As he often does in his solo acoustic gigs, he threw in covers of hits by such acts as George Jones, George Strait and Billy Joel. And perhaps the glitziest moment came with the introduction of a special guest — Trisha Yearwood, not much of a surprise since they live in the same house — leading to a collaboration on “Walkaway Joe.”
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