Garth Brooks Unretires for Shows at Wynn Las Vegas

Garth Brooks, who announced recently that he was coming out of retirement, has sold out his first 20 shows at the Wynn Las Vegas resort in less than 24 hours, according to a report from the Associated Press.

Brooks retired in 2001 and said that he'd promised his daughters -- then 4, 6 and 8 -- to make his family the top priority in his life. When he was approached by Steve Wynn, Brooks was skeptical. "I said he couldn't afford me," Brooks said. "I was wrong." The deal got the approval of his wife, country singer Trisha Yearwood, and his daughters Taylor, August and Allie, writes blogger Randy Lewis for the Los Angeles Times:

Brooks is a believer in democracy at home as well as in politics, and described regular family meetings where "we sit and we talk about anything and everything" and where each member of the family can freely air complaints or concerns.

"We started talking about the Vegas deal," said Brooks. "I said 'Guys, here's the opportunity that's come up, here's where we’re at.' And when I explained it to them, all they did was look at each other, then Taylor said, 'Can we go?' I said 'Yep,' and they were in. That was it.

"The truth is," Brooks said, pausing briefly, "I'm halfway through what I retired to do. And this last half might be even more important than the first half. So I'm not going to let anything screw that up. So I've got a guy here who's been sweet enough to make it easy for me to do this.

"And if it doesn't work, we'll quit doing it. And again, I have to now think, am I supposed to be doing this because I'd be stupid to pass it up?" His eyes glance skyward. "We'll just give it a shot and see."

Brooks, the best-selling solo musical act in history, has a five-year deal with the casino to play 15 weeks of shows a year in the 1,500-seat Encore theater. Shows begin Dec. 11.

Music · Las Vegas · 2010/10/26 · 0 COMMENTS · Link