Seventeen years had passed since Garth Brooks performed in Boston; for about half of them, he was retired from music. At the end of January, he triumphantly returned to give us six sold-out (or nearly sold-out) shows at TD Garden.

Garth Brooks

One look at Garth’s face tells you all you need to know – that he was thrilled with the reception he received!

He took the stage on the last night of the six-night run to thunderous applause and a standing ovation. Most of the crowd stayed on its collective feet for the entire two-hour and twenty-minute show.

Garth Brooks

I have to admit that I do not know his music; I knew his reputation and that I needed to see him perform. Here is the setlist; it is similar but not identical to the other Boston shows.

Garth Brooks

He started the show with the title track of his 2014 release, Man Against Machine. Many people knew this song, although not as many as knew the rest of the setlist!

Garth Brooks

After that, he dug deep into his extensive catalog to play songs that spanned his entire career. He referred to this throughout the show as ‘going old school.’

Garth Brooks

The staging was fantastic; it was not over the top but was enough that we felt he was truly ‘putting on a show.’

Drummer

Garth Brooks

Garth Brooks

In the middle of his set, he welcomed his wife Trisha Yearwood to the stage to perform several songs of her own. She impressed me at least as much as Garth did; her voice is fantastic and I really liked her songs (including ‘She’s in Love with the Boy’, which I had heard before).

Trisha Yearwood

For the third encore, Garth and Trisha took the stage alone and performed a couple of duets. This might have been the highlight of the show for me! It is so clear that they have great love for each other and I for one could feel it from my seat.

Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood

Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood

I have not been able to find the names of his band members, many of whom have been with him for nearly his entire career. They supported him well, regardless of whether he played electric or acoustic guitar. The keyboard player, sporting a Tim Wakefield (Boston Red Sox) jersey, thrilled the crowd!

Garth Brooks and his band

One of his backup singers, Karyn Rochelle, played a short opening set to the delight of the audience. I liked her songs and she related well to the crowd.

Garth Brooks with Karyn Rochelle

Almost everyone in the audience – excluding me – sang audibly to every song, which was the one negative to the show. I could hear the audience better than I could hear him. It’s possible that his voice was a little tired doing his sixth show in four days or that the sound mix was not great. I enjoyed the show despite this; I just need to listen to his albums so I can become familiar with his songs!

Garth Brooks

It was so obvious how much he enjoyed himself, despite how tired he had to have been. He gave us his best, and the crowd gave him the love right back. He is a true performer and I am so glad I saw one of these shows. I doubt it will be another seventeen years before he returns to Boston!