'Ireland blew us away': Garth Brooks says he could have sold out two more nights in Croker
Garth Brooks performing at Croke Park. Picture: Mark Stedman
US country music star Garth Brooks has revealed he would have sold out another two concerts here following the end of hugely successful five gigs at Croke Park.
Brooks and his wife Trisha Yearwood returned to the US last Sunday after packing the Dublin venue with “408,000 people”, according to 'The River' singer.
Wearing his trademark Irish logo baseball cap and speaking on his social media channel Inside Studio G in the early hours of Tuesday morning Irish time, a hoarse Brooks said: ”Peter Aiken said that if we had stayed here another night or two nights (we would have them).
“The opportunity came up about a year ago to play again and I didn’t think it would ever happen after the regulators pulled the plug on the five concerts in 2014 and swept the whole thing out from under our feet. How many times do you get to sell 400,000 tickets twice — but they blew through them twice.
“Everyone showed up in great force, they are so proud of their country and the love in that country is amazing. The weather was fantastic — all five nights. I was blessed. I kept losing it (crying). I was toast.”
“I’m happy but I’m sad, it’s like winning the Super Bowl, but now it’s the crash but it could not have gone better. Ireland blew us away.”
The father of three explained that he felt like he was “running into church” each night he played a gig in Croke Park and “all they wanted to wallow in the words. They just wanted me to sing, it was fabulous.”
I’m not from here, but you make me feel like I so belong here! I LOVE YOU, IRELAND 🇮🇪 !!!!! love, g #GARTHinIRELAND pic.twitter.com/cncBZTKV8J
— Garth Brooks (@garthbrooks) September 17, 2022
The multi-grammy award winner said he knew he was looking bad but continued to wax lyrical about his two weeks in Ireland.
The 60-year-old added: “Man I know what I look like and I feel like it too. A totally different time zone. I can speak on behalf of Ms Yearwood [his wife, Trisha], the band and crew, the Irish people are the sweetest, sweetest people on planet. It was so good, man. What a great, great way to end the stadium tour.
“The entertainer could leave the stage and nobody would even know it, they were just doing their own thing. The River was sung and the stadium was lit like I’ve never seen it before.”
The Oklahoma native said that he and his wife spent their first day back in the US since leaving Ireland two days ago sleeping and that Trisha lazed “wallowing around with her dogs” recovering after their transatlantic flight back to the US but that they would celebrate her turning 58-years-old this coming weekend for her birthday, which was yesterday.
He also revealed they sold some of their concert equipment rather than ship it back to the US.
Last April Brooks announced that his stadium tour, which ended with his string of Dublin concerts, would be his last but said that “people will go nuts when they see” the documentary from his time in Ireland.
The couple and their band spent their free time travelling around the country visiting Wicklow, Limerick, and Kerry.
