Garth!

By BRIAN WALKER

Staff Writer

SPOKANE — The Inland Northwest is making Garth Brooks sweat.

And, for the Country Music Association's 2017 Entertainer of the Year, that's perfect.

"When I first heard that there were seven concerts here, I was scared," Brooks told a raucous sold-out crowd of 12,000 at the Spokane Arena during opening night on Thursday. "But, after tonight, I'm not sure seven shows will be enough.

"I rolled into town on empty, but you know how to fill an artist all the way up. Tonight, within 5 seconds, I got the feeling that I'm among family."

Within three hours of going on sale, 84,000 tickets were evaporated to sell out all of the shows.

The night after collecting CMA's top award in Nashville, Brooks responded Thursday night with a thunderous, no-nonsense performance here for the first time in 19 years. He fed off screaming fans the entire concert.

"This is one of the greatest opening nights that I've gotten to be a part of," he said. "We apologize. We should've come back a helluva lot sooner than (19 years). Since we saw you, the older (songs) have gotten older than a lot of you."

A few times Brooks, ringing wet in sweat, even had to bend over to catch his breath from electrifying the crowd on all sides.

On Friday, moments before a press conference, Brooks was joined by his wife and fellow country star Trisha Yearwood as the two teamed up for concerts this weekend at the Arena.

"This is not seven shows," Brooks said of the Spokane concerts. "This is seven parties. Let's all relax and have fun."

Brooks is in the middle of 15 shows in 14 days.

"This is a normal pace for him," Yearwood said. "He goes on a different level. I'm not doing nearly what he's doing on stage."

Brooks has been touring for almost three years with Yearwood. The frantic-paced tour will end in December after 383 shows.

"It's a gift from a higher power," Brooks said of how he keeps up with the schedule.

Yearwood said the two will take January to relax before ramping up for an international tour.

"We're not slowing down; just changing it up a bit," she said.

Yearwood said the couple, who have been married 12 years, are fortunate to spend time together on the road.

"We laugh a lot and enjoy each other's company," she said. "We're lucky because most of the folks on the tour are leaving their families home."

Yearwood said Spokane was a natural stop, not only because it's been a while since Brooks was here, but it feels like home.

"This place knows its country music, and we got to talking about places we've been to and enjoyed," she said.

Brooks' respect for both country artists of yesteryear and those up and coming is evident. He played songs from Don Williams, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Keith Whitley and George Strait to Mitch Rossell, Karyn Rochelle and Ashley McBryde. Rossell and Rochelle opened for Brooks on Thursday.

"It's all about having a dream," he said, referring to his heart for those making the country music climb.

Brooks said opening for the likes of Reba McEntire and Kenny Rogers helped catapult him into one of the hottest-selling artists of all time.

Susie (Trubey) Cupp, who dated Brooks for five months while the two were athletes at Oklahoma State University, caught up with him backstage before Thursday's concert.

"He's the epitome of an all-American boy," she said, adding that he's never let the glitz of being a mega-star get in the way of being humble.

Cupp, who lives in Colorado, was a gymnast at OSU while Brooks threw the javelin in track.

Post Falls resident Glen Barber will attend Brooks' Tuesday show, which is the final one on the Spokane stop. It will be Barber's fifth Garth Brooks concert, but the first since the singer's return.

"I feel, out of all the concerts I've gone to, this by far is always the most entertaining," Barber said. "He is a true entertainer and crowd pleaser. I always wanted to go see him in Vegas because it was a cut-down personal show — just him and his stories — but never could."

It will be Barber's wife Dawn's first Brooks concert and one on her bucket list.

Local resident Neil Uhrig, who plans to attend the Sunday concert, said he believed a Brooks concert was too good of an opportunity for his family to pass up.

"This is a pretty unique opportunity to see a great country artist locally," Uhrig said. "I never thought he'd come to our town again after his retirement. I'll be making lots of memories this weekend with my family."

Yearwood has good reason that she doesn't keep up with Brooks on stage. She is also known for her lifestyle empire that includes cookbooks, furniture and home accessories, the "Trisha's Southern Kitchen" show and a weekly "T's Coffee Talk" Facebook Live show.

She said Brooks, when home, is a "jack of all trades."

"He's a really good cook and, if I'd ask, he would be able to buy me the perfect dress," she said. "He's also a lot neater and cleaner than me (on the homefront)."