Garth Brooks unifies hits, passion for memorable kick off at Bridgestone Arena

“Scream it,” Garth Brooks prodded frenzied fans Saturday, night one of his seven-night run at Bridgestone Arena. Brooks was plowing through his wildly popular up-tempo “Ain’t Going Down ‘Til (the Sun Comes Up)” and at the nudge, his sold-out crowd sang even louder – and they didn’t stop for the next two hours. 

Nashville is the last stop on Brooks three-year, 400-plus show comeback tour. The Garth Brooks World Tour with Trisha Yearwood launched in September of 2014, and Brooks consistently said that because he had played flood relief concerts in Music City in 2010, his new hometown would come near the end of the tour’s run. Saturday night he apologized to his band and crew for saving the best for last. 

“This is by far the best opening night I’ve been a part of,” Brooks told fans. The energy in the room was electric. “We’re all going to try way too hard way too early because this is the town that means the most.”

Brooks and crew did try hard – but he looked like he was having the most fun in the room. The singer spent the night bouncing across the stage, his eyes dancing as thousands of people sang the words to his biggest hits – many of which are more than two decades old – at a volume that exceeded his own. Fans wrapped around the stage and craved each note with an intensity that built over the course of the night.

“I’ve seen more Garth Brooks shows than anyone here and you all are starting up way too fast,” he told the enthusiastic crowd with mock seriousness. “You really think you can keep that up all night?”

Brooks set the tone for the evening with a blast, ejecting from underneath the stage onto the platform to launch the night with “Baby Let's Lay Down and Dance,” the lead single from his 2016 release “Gunslinger.”

“Everybody, hands up,” he demanded. His hands balled into fists and his arms spread wide, he yelled, “Hello, Nashville! Thanks for letting us come back home to the home of country music.”

The first song wasn’t indicative of the vintage of the night’s set list – it was one of two new songs out of more than 20 that he played. He charged through “Rodeo” and “Two of a Kind, Workin’ on a Full House” before he briefly slowed the pace for “The Beaches of Cheyenne,” complete with twin fiddles at the front of the stage. 

“Try to remember, I’m like 84 years old,” he told fans. “They only way I’m going to make it through seven shows is if you pick me up and carry me.”

Brooks’ self-deprecating humor is seeded in the knowledge that with six entertainer of the year titles under his belt, he’s got nothing to prove to anyone. With 6.4 million tickets sold, his tour is the top-selling American tour in history. He just charted his 20th No. 1 hit with “Ask Me How I Know” and has sold more than 148 million albums.

He also knows he has one of country music’s richest musical legacies and that for many of his songs, the music is bigger than himself.  Brooks is the engaging, impassioned conduit that delivers cultural staples including “The Dance” and “Friends in Low Places” to the eager masses.  He turns nearly each song into a singular event with stories and commentary, further engaging the audience and building more anticipation with the passing minute.

“Let’s see who knows the words to the old stuff,” he said, his fans filled with excitement. Fans chime in singing on the first note of “The River,” holding their cellphones in the air, illuminating the inside of the arena as if it were a Christmas tree.

“Two Pina Coladas,” “Papa Loved Mama,” “Unanswered Prayers,” “That Summer” and “Thunder Rolls”  followed before Yearwood joined him on stage for their duet “In Another’s Eyes” and stayed to anchor her own impeccable set. Yearwood’s crystalline voice soared on “XXX's And OOO's (An American Girl)” and “How Do I Live,” before she paused her set to honor husband Brooks and singer/songwriter and the tour’s opening act (singer/songwriter) Mitch Rossell for having the No. 1 song on country radio “Ask Me How I Know.” The song is Rossell’s first cut as a songwriter. At Yearwood’s direction, confetti cannons exploded metallic confetti and hundreds of balloons were supposed drop, but handlers struggled to get the balloons released. She closed her set with “Wrong Side of Memphis” and “She’s in Love with the Boy” as the “kiss cam” zeroed in on couples in the audience for a little public PDA. 

Brooks back on stage, he launched the second half of the show with an intense version of “Shameless” that left sweat trickling down the side of his face. The portion of the show also included what Brooks calls “housekeeping.” During the segment, fans hold up signs requesting songs and Brooks picks through the audience’s handy-work and settles on “What’s She’s Doing Now,” “She’s Gonna Make It” and “To Make You Feel My Love.”

“You don’t get it, guys,” Brooks told fans, who continued to cheer. “I’ve wanted to play this gig my whole life.”

The singer wound the show down with covers of Keith Whitley’s “Don’t Close Your Eyes” and George Strait’s “Amarillo by Morning” then ended his hours-long hit parade with “Standing Outside the Fire.”

Fans were still screaming song lyrics.

Brooks has concerts scheduled at Bridgestone Arena through Dec. 23. Tickets are available through Ticketmaster, 1-800-745-3000.

Reach Cindy Watts at 615-664-2227 or at ciwatts@tennessean.com.