When Garth Brooks walks onto the Great Oak Stage in Hyde Park on June 27, he'll be doing something he hasn't done in more than 30 years: playing a full concert in mainland England.
For British fans, this isn't just another tour stop. It's a once-in-a-generation event.
That's why the setlists from his two Summerfest shows in Milwaukee this week have been scrutinised so closely. While no two Garth Brooks shows are ever exactly the same, the concerts offered some intriguing clues as to what Hyde Park audiences can expect when 65,000-plus fans descend on London later this month.
The good news is that the staples are almost certainly coming.
Songs such as ‘Rodeo,' ‘The Thunder Rolls,' Callin' Baton Rouge,' ‘The River,' Two Piña Coladas,' That Summer,' Friends In Low Places' and ‘The Dance' have remained fixtures of Brooks' live shows for years and would be considered near-certainties for Hyde Park.
The concern? Covers and some really deep, surprising cuts!
Anyone who has followed Brooks' recent Las Vegas residency or his live performances over the past few years will know that he loves paying tribute to the artists who influenced him. Bob Seger's ‘Against The Wind' and ‘Turn The Page' appear regularly, while songs associated with Bonnie Tyler (‘Mom'), Keith Whitley (Don't Close Your Eyes) , Steve Goodman (You Don't Even Call Me By My Name) George Strait (‘Trobadour') and Eric Clapton (Change the World) all featured in the set in Milwaukee just this week. We haven't paid money to see Garth sing Geroge Strait songs, surely?
Here's the Milwaukee night 2 setlist:
- Rodeo
- Two of a Kind, Workin' on a Full House
- The Beaches of Cheyenne
- Two Piña Coladas
- The River
- Ain't Goin' Down (‘Til the Sun Comes Up)
- Turn the Page
- The Thunder Rolls
- Mom
- Unanswered Prayers
- That Summer
- Callin' Baton Rouge
- Shameless
- Change The World
- Friends in Low Places
- The Dance
Encore:
17. Troubadour
18. Don't Close Your Eyes
19. You Never Even Call Me by My Name
20. Standing Outside the Fire
In Las Vegas, that makes perfect sense. The intimate nature of the residency allowed Brooks to tell stories, explain his influences and take fans on a musical journey through the songs that shaped his career. The entire concept was built around spontaneity and celebrating music in all its forms. In Milwaukee it also made sense as he was playing to a crowd that might well have had plenty of chances to see him live over the past few years since his comeback.
Hyde Park should be different.
This audience has waited more than three decades for a proper Garth Brooks show. Many fans have never had the chance to see him live at all. Others travelled to Ireland for the Croke Park concerts but never imagined they would get the opportunity to see him on English soil. For those fans, this isn't the night for a lengthy detour through his record collection. This is the night for the songs that made Garth Brooks one of the biggest artists in music history.
If you're standing in Hyde Park, you want to hear ‘If Tomorrow Never Comes,' ‘Much too Young,' and other classic Garth songs like ‘Fever,' ‘The Red Strokes,' ‘We Shall Be Free,' ‘What's She Doing Now,' ‘to Make You Feel My Love,' ‘The Change,' ‘That Ol Wind' and “More Than A Memory”.
You want the songs that have soundtracked people's lives for the last 35 years.
Of course, one or two covers would be understandable. Brooks has always worn his influences proudly and the crowd would undoubtedly sing along to ‘Turn The Page' or ‘Shout'. But every minute spent on a cover or deep cut is a minute taken away from a catalogue that is arguably deeper than any artist currently working in country music.
If the Milwaukee shows proved anything, it's that Brooks still has an embarrassment of riches to choose from. The challenge for Hyde Park isn't finding enough great songs. It's finding enough time to play them all and after a 30-year wait, British fans would surely agree on one thing: the more Garth Brooks songs, the better.
