Garth Brooks Announces Return to Music
Vegas-bound Country Music Superstar Ready to Play Live Shows
Oct 15, 2009
America's top-selling music artist of the 20th century held a brief press conference at Nashville's Grand Ole Opry on Oct. 15, 2009, to share the news that, after a self-imposed, nine-year retirement, he's ready to return to the performance arena.
In announcing that he will soon retire his initial retirement plans that were enacted in October 2000, country superstar Garth Brooks said, "We're going to take the retirement roof off over our head, and I already feel taller."
Country Star Ends Concert Retirement After Nine Years
Brooks originally decided to retire following news of his pending divorce from first wife, Sandy Mahl Brooks. The couple, who are the parents to daughters Taylor, August and Allie Colleen, separated in 1999 and announced they would divorce in fall 2000. Following their decision to end the marriage, the Oklahoma-born performer opted to leave his hit-music career behind in favor of being present in his children' lives versus on the road touring and recording--something he had done since his career's initial launch and country-radio breakthrough in 1989.
Regarding the news that Brooks will once more return to the country arena as an active performer, Patsi Bale Cox, a longtime friend and author of the 2009 book titled The Garth Factor, said in an Oct. 15 interview online, "Garth Brooks stayed off the road for nine essential years of his daughters' lives. They've grown into tremendous young women and I know how proud he is of them. Now he has found a way to play his music, without going out on the road. It will be a perfect solution to spending time with his two great loves: family and music."
Veteran country artist Tommy Cash, meanwhile, said in an Oct. 15 interview with Suite 101 that Brooks' decision to play live again isn't one that should catch country fans too off guard.
"I am not surprised that Garth is coming out of retirement. When singing and performing gets in your blood, it's there to stay," observed Cash, who's been touring for more than four decades. " No serious artist can ever really quit the stage!"
Garth Brooks Expected to Launch Live Shows at Las Vegas Casino
As for the "way" the cowboy singer can return to music without enduring the touring trail, word is that Brooks has made plans to play a series of extended engagements in Las Vegas; namely, at the Wynn Las Vegas. However, details related to this news were being kept under wraps until a 3 p.m. (CST) press announcement Oct. 15--the same day as his Music City announcement--by Brooks from the Vegas casino.
Nevertheless, the 47-year-old singer-songwriter, who married country star Trisha Yearwood in 2005, has made it clear that live shows will be in his future once more, albeit via the Sunset Strip. Recording, however, is not something he has committed to just yet.
Country Singer Says Recording a New Album Not in His Immediate Plans
During his Nashville meeting with media, Brooks indicated that it may be five years or more before he returns to the studio to create a new album, suggesting that he would like his youngest daughter, now 13, to be into young adulthood before he commits to such a project.
The last studio album that the crossover artist released was 2001's Scarecrow. Although the CD did not have the benefit of Brooks' touring in its support, because he had already retired, the record performed well on the charts, securing the No. 1 spot on both the U.S. country and pop charts, according to the Recording Industry Association of America, which estimates he's sold some 128 million units to date.
- Readers interested in this story may also find favor with Country Q&A: Garth Brooks Chats on the Record by Suite 101 Feature Writer Lisa L. Rollins.
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