You Bet I Tried to See Garth Brooks in Las Vegas
Yes, I'm bitter. I'm angry. I'm jealous. But the strongest emotion in my heart right now is an overwhelming sadness. Garth Brooks will take the stage tonight (Dec. 11) in Las Vegas, and I won't be there. I tried to get tickets but was woefully unsuccessful. So there he'll be, at 8 p.m. Vegas time, on opening night of what is allegedly going to be a five-year run at the Wynn Resort. I'm sad because I know how special that will be. I saw him on the opening night of his Kansas City run back in 2007, and at the time I thought it would be my first and last chance to see him live.
I can only guess what the set list will be like because this gig is being billed as an acoustic thing -- just him and his guitar. Again, that only adds to my depression. All I can think is how great he'd sound doing his growl on "Rodeo," his introspection on "Unanswered Prayers" and/or his vibrato on "We Shall Be Free" when there's no backing band to bury his vocals. And I'm sure he'll do the thing where he plucks the first four notes of "Friends in Low Places" and sends the crowd into an absolute frenzy. I know it's corny but I like corny.
I'm also bummed that I'll be missing his sense of humor. Sometimes country artists have to fake that, and a few even sound like they have someone else coming up with little stage jokes for them. But Brooks' brand of comedy always comes off as genuine and heartfelt. So if you go to tonight's show, please report back here afterward. It'll hurt, but I'll want to hear every single detail.
Photo credit: Ethan Miller/Getty Images
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lee says:
Guess what i didn’t hehe.
Jack Wishna says:
I saw history unfold tonight! Steve Wynn is a genius and GARTH will be here at least 5 years. Wynn came on stage, introduced Garth, and then it was OVER TWO HOURS of Garth and a guitar…except for the one song that Trisha Yearwood came out and sang Walkaway Joe with Garth backing her up. He kept us begging for more long after he left the stage. He is home here in front of an audience. He cried a few times…real tears….wonderful night we’ll always remember.
Robert Leffel says:
I’m going on January 1st!!!
Kathy G says:
Saw Garth last night! Was first time to see him and though I would have loved to have seen his traditional stage show with full band and high energy, this concert was truly all GARTH! It was like being with him in his living room reminiscing his life through music. He was genuinely moved by the audience response when he played his first hit single. We loved that he not only played his top hits but was nostalgic with how artists like George Jones, James Taylor, Bob Seger and Jim Croce influenced him. Go Garth!
Dean S says:
I will be in attendance tomorrow (Sunday the 13th). I am too excited!!!
Melissa M says:
I went. We had great seats not that it matters. You could have been sitting in the last row and wouldve had a blast.
All I can day is the show was intimate, humbling and epic!!! I felt like I was at a VIP event just getting a chance to hang with Garth in a relaxed setting. He was amazing and I would go again jn a heart beat
Michelle says:
Most amazing musical experience. He takes requests, tunes his guitar and plays songs off the cuff. Garth is a musical genius, warm, funny, incredibly talented. BEST SHOW IN TOWN!!! Way to go Steve Wynn. Thank you for bringing Garth to Vegas!
Jim says:
Alison,
Why didn’t you use your CMT Working Press credentials
to get in?
Loreen says:
At the early Saturday show on 12/12 there was a couple sitting a few seats away from us and a guy behind us who were able to purchase tickets on a whim that night. So I believe there are tickets available. All they did was walk up to the box office and ask if there were tickets available. And they were excellent seats. Great show!
classic country says:
don’t bother with garth he screwed up country radio and he would just have screwed up your evening.you are better off. give away his cd’s and go and spend some time with jamey johnson,merle,george and waylon. listen to “Mama’s table” by oak ridge boys written by jamey johnson great song
Mousemom says:
I have seen Garth live every time he came to Minnesota, years ago. Except for the year he was at the state fair and we couldn’t get tickets. We sat on a tiny patch of grass outside the grandstands and listened anyway. I have seen him from the last row of seats in an arena and I swear he was looking at and singing right to me. He has that kind of power in his show. He is incredible, I don’t go to many concerts now, I was spoiled by Garth and no one measures up. I’m going to Vegas in the next couple of months and I will do whatever it takes to get in to see him again. I love you Garth Brooks, I’ve been waiting for your return!
Jimmy James says:
How exactly did he ’screw up’ country radio, Classic Country?
JJ
Broken Trail says:
Flew to Vegas from Olympia, WA and attended Garth’s Friday night show:
The Encore Theater is beautiful - great place to see a show.
Bought tix online - waited for 2 hours for 2 seats. GARTH in VEGAS - the possibilities were endless. Thought the first show would be a BIG deal. We couldn’t have been more surprised and disappointed with the show. After all the hype and buildup, and after paying $143 per ticket, we are still scratching our heads in disbelief.
Nearly empty stage. Garth barely gave the audience a “hello” before starting his first cover song. Wore baggy Carrharts, dirty Romeos (or similar), hooded sweatshirt, and baseball cap. Looked so sloppy it could have been a mid-afternoon soundcheck. Seemed uncomfortable and unprepared.
Wireless headset mic sounded cheap - it popped and cracked and sounded thin all night.
Made jokes about being older, more forgetful, out of shape, a soccer dad, and “this is what happens after several years of retirement.” This is $143 in Vegas??
While there were a few moments of excitement, the overall emotion of the evening was confusion and boredom. Stumbled musically many times, forgot words, stopped and restarted a few songs to find the correct key, and admitted that he doesn’t always play guitar on his songs. He laughed it off and asked the audience to forgive him, but I found myself repeatedly thinking this is not a $143 Vegas show. He acted like a local bar singer, but I heard 8-10 better performers during NFR week in Vegas. Can’t think of any other Vegas Headliner that would present themselves this way. Seemed like he wasn’t committed to it - as if he didn’t really want to be in Vegas - it was a quick paycheck before he jumped back on new private jet and went home to Oklahoma.
This was a chance for Garth fans to see him put on a great show in an intimate setting. It should have been an amazing opportunity, but instead was a disappointment.
Highlight was Trisha Yearwood sing “Walkaway Joe.” They sound really good together. I know she wasn’t feeling well, so unfortunately, they only did one song together.
Show lasted less than 2 hours with encore, and half the show was cover tunes. I really hope he comes up with a better Las Vegas show for his fans soon. This is something I would expect to see in a small club in Seattle for $20. Please, Garth - this is not a $143 Las Vegas Headliner ticket from the biggest selling solo artist in music history.
Stephanie says:
I went to the concert on opening night and I hate to say it but I was very disapointed. I will have to say that Garth has a awesome voice but I wished he would of played longer. He started out his show with 45 minutes of others people’s music that inspired him. I wish he would of stuck to his music that is why I went to the concert. I still love Garth just wished for more of his music. Keep this in mind if you spend the money to go to the show in Vegas!!!
Country girl says:
What songs did he sing? And what songs did trisha sing?
garthgirl says:
I am going to see Garth on Jan. 23rd and I am so excited! We have two front row seats, and it can’t come fast enough. Has anyone read any reviews about the last couple shows. I think his first couple shows he was stil trying to figure some things out. I really think as the weekends go by he will figure out a way to make his show an amazing event for everyone. It will probably just take a while to figure some things out. Also, was the audience loud or were they kind of quiet because it is in such a small setting? Can’t wait, this is going to be the event of a lifetime!!