Las Vegas Weekly

December 13, 2009 · 11:27 AM

Garth Brooks premiere a hit thanks in big part to Steve Wynn

By Robin Leach

Garth Brooks performs at Encore Theater in the Wynn on Dec. 12, 2009.

Photo: Henry Diltz

“It would never have happened if it wasn’t for the plane,” hotel mogul Steve Wynn told me last night in his office at the Wynn. “Garth hadn’t expected he’d have to fly back and forth between Memphis and Las Vegas because of his daughter’s soccer games, but it all worked according to plan, although we were all a little worried the weather might cause things to run late.

“It didn’t, and everything was to time, albeit it right down to the wire. Garth only had a few minutes to shower and change from getting off the plane and going onstage.”

Photo: Henry Diltz

Garth Brooks performs at Encore Theater in the Wynn on Dec. 12, 2009.

Country superstar Garth Brooks flew into Las Vegas on late Friday afternoon from his Oklahoma ranch to the Wynn for the first of his four premiere weekend shows. He and I chatted one on one, and we’ll have that conversation on Tuesday, along with his other observations at the media meet-and-greet. Right after the first show, he jumped aboard the jet again, this time to Tulsa to pick up his daughter, and the entire family flew to Memphis to watch not one but two soccer games.

“I was cheering from the sidelines,” Garth said. That meant a down-to-the-last-minute flight back to Las Vegas, and then after yesterday’s 10:30 p.m. second show, he jumped on the jet again to return to Memphis for the finals soccer game today. Then Garth flies back here for tonight’s show again at the Encore Theater.

Photo: Henry Diltz

Garth Brooks performs at Encore Theater in the Wynn on Dec. 12, 2009.

“It’s one of the busiest weekends of my life, but a fantastic one,” said Garth, who celebrated his fourth wedding anniversary on Thursday night with country singer wife Trisha Yearwood, who joined him onstage to sing -- and kiss -- at the Friday and Saturday debuts. Two of his three daughters were on the marathon flights, too, and he expects his third daughter to return to Las Vegas tonight after her game today.

Then they will all be back home in Stillwater, Okla., for Christmas and the holiday school break before they are here for the New Year for the second set of concerts. Garth will perform 15 weekends a year here over the next five years. He says the Las Vegas solo acoustic shows are a warm-up for a world tour he’ll start in 2015.

Actor Sylvester Stallone, wife Jennifer Flavin and longtime New York Yankees and now Los Angeles Dodgers manager Joe Torre were Steve Wynn and new lady friend Andrea Hissom’s guests last night for the second show. Steve’s former wife Elaine was there for the first show last night.

Photo: TVT

Sylvester Stallone, Andrea Hissom and Steve Wynn on Dec. 12, 2009.

Sly told me: “I’m a big country music fan, and it doesn’t get any better than Garth. He is the king, and I am really enjoying this rare, close-up treat.”

I watched the first show last night and found it an extraordinary tour de force. One man, one guitar, one stage and spellbinding purity. His voice is crystal clear, and as Steve told me, you could hear pins drop in the audience as they gently breathed in every note and nuance of the vocals and lyrics.

Tomorrow, our Editor Don Chareunsy and I will detail more about the concert right here at Vegas DeLuxe. Meantime, our Senior Editor John Katsilometes also wrote about the country king today, and our Las Vegas Weekly colleague Joe Brown reviewed Brooks’ performance.

Be sure to return to Vegas DeLuxe on Tuesday for the full interview with Garth.

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.

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