Garth Brooks - Makes a triumphant return to London

*****

Well worth the wait!

Garth Brooks ***** has not played in London for over thirty years, so there is quite some anticipation for his performance. And I have to say I have been waiting since I was a kid to see him play live, so this was a show I did not want to miss. The UK have been on a big Country Music buzz for a while now, so there are a lot of older fans and newer fans that just couldn't wait to see the Country icon live in Hyde Park. With over seventy thousand tickets sold for the event, and the concert being totally Sold Out!!! months in advance. 

This was always going to be a legendary performance, on the Great Oak stage that has seen The Rolling Stones, Black Sabbath and Neil Young, amongst others, perform on it. And he starts the show off the way you would have wanted him to, with his popular song 'Rodeo', which makes the whole crowd feel American Country music has arrived in London. 

One of the highlights in the set is his cover of Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band song 'Night Moves', which is a request by a fan in the crowd who put to play it on a massive sign. Garth Brooks moves around the stage like a Rockstar / Preacher using a Madonna-style microphone so he is not static in one place, this works so well for him. Because it means he can get a connection with more of the audience, and that he is more able to put on a spectacular show.

Hyde Park and the fact that it could rain at any time is the perfect setting for the 'Thunder Rolls'. Which feels so big and is a moment that no one at the show will ever forget, it echoes around the park in the centre of London like it was born to be there. This is backed up with beautiful versions of 'Unanswered Prayers' and 'If tomorrow never Comes', both songs that, in the UK, we never thought we would hear live.

I think the best section in Garth's set is when he takes things up a few paces with 'Callin' Baton Rouge' and 'Ain't Goin' Down ('Til the Sun comes Up)', which are so big and played with fun and determination. I think both are moments that will not be forgotten. I hope they recorded these so we can see and hear them again. I think when you are talking about these songs, you should really not forget 'Papa loved Mama', which has a similar vibe to it.

He ends the set with a heartfelt version of 'The Dance', a song that Garth, over the years, has really made his own. I think we all had a tear in our eyes for this beautiful song, which we have all loved for the majority of our lives. The short encore consisted of a nice version of 'Piano Man' by Billy Joel and, of course 'Friends in low Places' which is always a great closure.

The only low point in his set for me was when he spent ages introducing his band, and one of his backing singers sang The Isley Brothers hit single 'Shout'. I think it was a little bit unfair to spend so much time out of his set doing this, when he didn't play songs like 'Standing outside the Fire' and 'The Red Strokes'. People had paid from £100 - £450 pounds for these tickets, and I personally didn't think it was fair to waste time in such a way. Saying all this, this was a concert of a lifetime. A concert that I will never forget, and I will be making sure to see him next time he performs in the United Kingdom.

Review and Photos by Dan Devour

Garth Brooks - Setlist
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Rodeo
Two of a Kind, Workin' on a Full House (Dennis Robbins Cover)
The Beaches of Cheyenne
Two Piña Coladas
Night Moves (Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band Cover) (Sign Request)
The River
Papa loved Mama
The Thunder Rolls
Unanswered Prayers
If tomorrow never Comes
That Summer
Callin' Baton Rouge (The Oak Ridge Boys Cover)
Ain't Goin' Down ('Til the Sun comes Up)
Shameless (Billy Joel Cover)
Change the World (Sung by Gordon Kennedy at Garth's request, written for Eric Clapton)
Shout (The Isley Brothers Cover)
The Dance (Tony Arata Cover)
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Piano Man (Billy Joel Cover)
Friends in low Places (Dewayne Blackwell Cover)

Check Out! the lyric Video for 'Thunder Rolls' Below...