The King of Country Music George Strait casually entered the stage at 9:40 PM last saturday night in his Wrangler jeans, black cowboy hat and carrying his signature guitar. He played an impressive 30 song set that started with “Twang.” He belted out tune after tune until 11:30 PM. Strait stuck with the basics that have carried him through a 30 year career and 57 number one hits. The stage was square and set up “in the round,” in the center of the arena, for maximum viewing. George worked his way around the stage, pleasing everyone. If his back happened to be to you, there were several overhead video screens, so you did not miss a thing. Various video clips and vintage footage were also shown on the screens throughout the performance. His “Ace In The Hole” band was set up in the center of the stage. The 11 piece band, plus George on guitar, made for a dozen top notch musicians on one stage. With fire blazing on the video screens, Strait introduced the band following “Fireman,” which was nearly half way through his set.
The crowd sang and danced during the entire show, even nearly drowning him out as he performed “Check Yes Or No.” Okay, maybe not drowning out, but they were singing pretty loud! He also mentioned Merle Haggard before performing “Seashores Of Old Mexico,” and he told the audience that his son, George Harvey Strait Junior, wrote “Arkansas Dave.” He finished up his set with “Troubadour” and “Unwound” before exiting the stage. Of course, he came back for encore, including a cover of Johnny Cash’s Folsom Prison Blues, where his Ace in the Hole band really shined as each musician performed a mini solo. The final song was befitting as he “wrapped” up a very satisfying performance with “The Cowboy Rides Away.”
George Strait Set List:
Twang
Ocean Front Property
Honk If You Honky Tonk
I Can Still Make Cheyenne
I Hate Everything
Wrapped
Run
Seashores of Old Mexico (Merle Haggard Cover)
Check Yes or No
The Fireman
Heartland
Texas
She’ll Leave You With A Smile
Arkansas Dave
Where Have I Been All My Life
How ‘Bout Them Cowgirls
The Breath You Take
River of Love
The Chair
I Gotta Get To You
I Saw God Today
Amarillo By Morning
Living For The Night
Give It Away
Troubadour
Unwound
Encore:
High Tone Woman
All My Ex’s Live In Texas
Folsom Prison Blues (Johnny Cash Cover)
The Cowboy Rides Away
We would like to thank Tracey Mancini from the HSBC Arena for helping BackstageAxxess to review the show.
