Garth Brooks at Encore Wynn Las Vegas

My husband came home last Thursday night with a copy of a brief, two-paragraph memo. It seems we were invited to a performance at Encore on Monday evening by an unnamed, “surprise” guest. “Mum’s the word,” the memo said. No further information was given. Except that the attire would be casual; jeans were acceptable, encouraged even.

“It’s Garth!” I replied. “It has to be!”

It had just been a week since R-J columnist Norm Clarke reported that Garth Brooks had dinner with Steve Wynn at SW at Wynn Las Vegas. Norm queried whether Garth might be returning to Las Vegas with a show deal. The next day however, Norm reported a flat-out denial by Garth’s publicist that any deal was in the works.

My initial certainty about the mystery performer’s identity gave way to doubt over the ensuing weekend, realizing that it was probably wishful thinking on my part (I’m a long time country music fan). Garth’s retired, after all, and there was also that public denial in the newspaper. My husband and I discussed other possibilities. Perhaps it was Larry King or maybe even Beyonce working in a practice run before their upcoming gigs. Maybe it was a new talent that was hoping to earn a spot in the now-empty Encore showroom. But nothing else made sense besides Garth: not the timing, not the secrecy, and certainly not the reference to denim attire.

When we walked in the Encore Theater last night, I knew I had gotten it right: each empty seat held a souvenir black cowboy hat.

Steve Wynn, wearing jeans and a t-shirt, introduced Garth Brooks without any fanfare, simply explaining that when he had dinner with Garth and Trisha Yearwood (a.k.a. Mrs. Brooks), he had been impressed by Garth, his personal story and his love for his family.

And with that, Garth Brooks walked out on stage, wearing jeans, an old t-shirt and a baseball cap worn backwards, as casual in his attitude and demeanor as he was in his attire. We were treated to an almost-two-hour performance that could best be described as “Garth Brooks Deconstructed.” It was just Garth with his guitar and a microphone. No trademark black cowboy hat. No button-down shirt. No band behind him; just a stool, a bottle of water and some stage lights.

The performance was part concert and part auto-biography. Garth joked about himself and told stories about his family and growing up in Stillwater, Oklahoma. He talked about his musical influences over the years and sang bits and pieces of songs by Merle Haggard, George, Jones, James Taylor, Cat Stevens, Bob Seger, Dan Fogelberg, George Strait, Billy Joel, Randy Travis, and Keith Whitley.

Garth sang many of his own songs too, weaving in stories about how some of them were pitched to other artists but were turned down (“The River” for James Taylor; “Friends in Low Places” for George Strait). He talked about which song he won’t let his daughters listen to when it comes on the radio (“That Summer,” a song about a “lonely-widowed woman” with “a hunger that even a boy could recognize”). Garth didn’t get around to all of my favorites including some like “Two Pina Coladas,” “Longneck Bottle” and “Two of a Kind;” there just wasn’t time for all of his great songs.

There was a poignant moment when Garth performed his song about unexpected good-bye's, “If Tomorrow Never Comes.” Garth never mentioned Danny Gans but I suspect many in the audience were thinking about him in that moment; Danny Gans opened the Encore Theater in February and performed on that stage until his untimely death in May, 2009 from what is now said to be a toxic reaction to a pain killer.

All in all, it was an intimate, casual evening that was more like a conversation with an old friend than a formal entertainment event. Garth was funny and friendly. He was clearly at ease and enjoying himself on stage, saying at one point, “This is easier than breathing.” During the show, Garth mentioned that he’d like to bring his band back with him to “try the room out” with them. This was met by enthusiastic applause from the audience as a whole, and with an audible and emphatic “Yes” by Steve Wynn himself.

After Garth sang his traditional closing song “The Dance,” he asked for the house lights to be turned up so that he could take requests or answer questions from the audience. He graciously talked with the audience for ten minutes or so, sang a few more songs, then thanked everyone for coming and walked off stage, leaving us wanting more.

I hope that won’t be the last time we see him here in Las Vegas. I had a great evening and it appeared the rest of the audience did too.