Fans who attended the opening show of the Garth Brooks World Tour with Trisha Yearwood at the Save Mart Center on Friday night were not disappointed. Brooks said it was the best opening show he had ever been a part of in any city in all his years of performing.
After 19 years, Brooks and company returned to Fresno with a bang. The 55-year-old wasted no time pumping up the crowd as he ran, jumped, danced and skipped all over the stage from band member to band member, opening his part of the show with his hit song “Rodeo.”
“Fresno, y’all are serious,” Brooks said in response to the crowd loudly and enthusiastically singing every word to every song.
Brooks rocked the Save Mart Center with his top hits including “Friends in Low Places,” “Two Piña Coladas” and “Ain’t Goin’ Down (‘Til the Sun Comes Up)” and what he said is his favorite song to perform ,“Callin’ Baton Rouge.” He also performed songs that he expected fans might not know all the words to, but there was no fooling them when it came to songs like “The Thunder Rolls” and “The Beaches of Cheyenne.”
Halfway through the show, Brooks and his wife and fellow performer, Trisha Yearwood very intimately performed Brooks’ song “In Another’s Eyes.” The chemistry between the two was undeniable. Brooks exited the stage while Yearwood sang a four-song set to a quieted, yet very energetic, crowd.
Yearwood was so impressed by the exuberance of the crowd that she said, “Honey, we may need to move to Fresno.”
After singing her hit songs “How Do I Live” and “She’s in Love With the Boy,” Yearwood announced a landmark accomplishment for Brooks.
He was already on stage to play guitar in one of Yearwood’s’ performances, when she announced that her husband had won his seventh Diamond award, an award given to artists who have sold 10 million or more copies of a single album.
At seven Diamond awards, Brooks surpassed The Beatles, putting himself in a league all his own.
Despite his unfathomable success and undying catchy songs, it is apparent why Garth Brooks is considered one of the best performing artists the world has ever seen given his nonstop energy of an 18-year-old kid on stage, his genuine humor and remarkable humility.
“You know, this thing isn’t actually on. I just use it to cover up my gut,” Brooks said in reference to his acoustic guitar.
Paying tribute to great artists who laid the foundation for him and country music, Brooks performed songs by Merle Haggard, Billy Joel and Keith Whitley.
Brooks ended his concert in his usual fashion by taking song requests from signs in the crowd playing songs solo such as “The Lonesome Dove” and “The Red Strokes.”
The show ended with an energetic performance from the entire band of “Standing Outside the Fire” as Brooks held up the number seven with his fingers further indicating the historical night the crowd experienced with him.
Brooks and Yearwood finished their four-show stint in Fresno on Sunday.
There was not a fan who could walk out of the concert disappointed, as with Garth Brooks you get so much more than the opportunity to hear the third verse of “Friends in Low Places” live. With Garth Brooks, you get an unforgettable performance from a lively country boy who connects with every fan in the room.
The fans are not watching the performance, they are a part of the performance. Brooks realizes this and feeds off of it.