Photo gallery: Garth Brooks’ big week
Country music star Garth Brooks appears at a news conference in Nashville, Tenn., Thursday, Oct. 15, 2009. Brooks announced that he’s coming out of retirement. He retired in 2000 to spend more time with his three children, and since then has appeared occasionally at special events, awards shows, and charity events. (Associated Press photo)
Oklahoma superstar Garth Brooks experienced a busy and happy few days last week.
On Thursday, he announced in a Nashville press conference that he was coming out of retirement after nine years of staying mostly off the road and out of the recording studio.
Later that day, he traveled to Las Vegas, where he and casino owner Steve Wynn announced in another press conference that Brooks is becoming the resident performer at the Encore Theater at Wynn Las Vegas, starting in December.
On Saturday, Brooks, along with football great Barry Sanders and baseball star Robin Ventura, was inducted to the Oklahoma State University Alumni Hall of Fame during OSU’s homecoming festivities.
Here are some memorable moments from Garth’s big week:
Garth Brooks mimics a fiddle player as he answers questions at a news conference in Nashville, Tenn., Thursday, Oct. 15, 2009. (AP photo)
Garth Brooks appears at a news conference on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, Tenn., Thursday, Oct. 15, 2009. (AP photo)
Garth Brooks and his wife, fellow country star Trisha Yearwood, leave the Grand Ole Opry House after Brooks held a news conference in Nashville, Tenn., Thursday, Oct. 15, 2009. (AP photo)
Wynn Resorts Chairman and CEO Steve Wynn, right, and country music star Garth Brooks speak during a news conference in Las Vegas, Thursday, Oct. 15, 2009. (AP photo)
Garth Brooks smiles as he fields questions about his new Vegas gig during a news conference in Las Vegas, Thursday, Oct. 15, 2009. (AP photo)
OSU Alumni Hall of Fame 2009 inductees Barry Sanders, Robin Ventura and Garth Brooks wave to the crowd during the walk to the stadium before the college football game between Oklahoma State Universityand the University of Missouri at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Okla. Saturday, Oct. 17, 2009. (Photo by Doug Hoke/The Oklahoman)
Robin Ventura and Garth Brooks get gifts from fans as they ride to a press conference following their “walk” with the football team OSU-MU game. (Photo by Steve Sisney/The Oklahoman)
Garth Brooks holds up a few of the gifts he received from fans during the homecoming festivities. (Photo by Steve Sisney/The Oklahoman)
Barry Sanders, Garth Brooks and Robin Ventura speak at a press conference before the college football game between Oklahoma State University and the University of Missouri at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Okla. Saturday, Oct. 17, 2009. (Photo by Steve Sisney/The Oklahoman)
Garth Brooks hoists the Alumni Hall of Fame Plaque during the OSU-MU game at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Okla. Saturday, Oct. 17, 2009. (Photo by Sarah Phipps/The Oklahoman)
Barry Sanders, left, Robin Ventura, center, and Garth Brooks, right, walk off the field after being introduced to the crowd during the OSU-MU game in Stillwater, Okla., Saturday, Oct. 17, 2009. (AP photo)
-BAM
Garth Brooks, Barry Sanders, Robin Ventura inducted into OSU Alumni Hall of Fame
Oklahoma State University celebrities Barry Sanders, Garth Brooks and Robin Ventura speak at a press conference before the college football game between Oklahoma State University and the University of Missouri Saturday at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater. (Photo by Steve Sisney, The Oklahoman)
Oklahoma State honored three of its greatest graduates Saturday, when Garth Brooks, Barry Sanders and Robin Ventura were added to the OSU Alumni Hall of Fame.
Country music star Brooks is the No. 1-selling solo artist in U.S. history. Sanders is a Heisman Trophy winner who became a premier running back in the NFL with the Detroit Lions. Ventura is a third baseman who became a college hitting-streak record holder and went on to play professional for the Chicago White Sox, New York Mets, New York Yankees and L.A. Dodgers.
My colleague Nathan Poppe covered a press conference Saturday featuring the honorees: He reports that Brooks called himself the “old guy” and recalled memories of seeing Sanders on the football field and Ventura on the baseball diamond. Sanders said he remembered Brooks being a legend in Stillwater before he got to OSU, but Brooks said that he was overwhelmed by being next to Sanders and Ventura.
Brooks also chatted about his decision, announced last week, to come out of retirement after spending nine years out of recording and touring. Fans have a lot to do with him returning to music, he said.
“The sweetest love in the world is somebody that looks at you, doesn’t know you, but believes in you almost as much as your mom did,” Brooks said.
Brooks said his family also is excited about him performing again.
“I’m (bothering them) all the time,” Brooks said. “So, they are going to be happy that I’m out of town.”
Brooks said it’s a challenge keeping up with his three teenage daughters, and he’s looking forward to getting more sleep while he is on the road.
The superstar will begin playing Dec. 11 at the Encore Theater at Wynn Las Vegas. Brooks said he doesn’t know for sure what will happen to his career after playing at the Wynn, where he reportedly has signed a five-year deal.
Click here to read the rest of Nathan’s great story about what the honorees had to say.
-BAM
Garth Brooks, Barry Sanders, Robin Ventura joining OSU Alumni Hall of Fame today
Garth Brooks chats with fellow OSU alum Boone Pickens recently at OSU. (Photo by Chris Landsberger/The Oklahoman)
The Oklahoma State University Alumni Association today will be induct into the OSU Alumni Hall of Fame three of the most celebrated and famous names in OSU history.
Garth Brooks, Barry Sanders and Robin Ventura will be added to the hall of fame during halftime of the OSU-Missouri football game, which kicks off at 8:15 p.m.
In addition, they will serve as grand marshals of the Sea of Orange Homecoming parade at 2 p.m. in downtown Stillwater. The OSU Band will perform special music to honor the three OSU greats.
A press conference also is scheduled for today, and Brooks is sure to get plenty of questions about his announcement Thursday that he is coming out of retirement and embarking on a new venture as a Las Vegas headliner.
Here is more information on the 2009 honorees, who are all superstars in their respective career fields:
Garth Brooks, who was born in Tulsa, raised in Yukon and lives in Owasso, graduated from OSU in 1984 and is now certified by the Recording Industry Association of America as the No. 1-selling solo artist in U.S. history. Brooks has sold in excess of 128 million albums and has received every accolade the recording industry can bestow on an artist. His body of work – including the groundbreaking “No Fences,” “Ropin’ The Wind,” “The Hits” and “Double Live” – propelled country music as a genre to the front pages of newspapers and magazine covers worldwide.
Brooks is currently in retirement, but when called upon by events greater than his own self-interest, he returns to the stage. The latest of these was when the president himself requested that he be a part of President Obama’s Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial. He performed as a crowd of more than 300,000 attended the historic event and did the “wave” to Brooks’ performance of “Shout” while the president sang along. Brooks also performed for President Obama’s first late-night TV appearance on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.”
When the governor of California asked for Garth’s help, he responded by performing five concerts in two days, selling out all five shows (83,000 tickets) in less than an hour and generating more than $6 million for victims and firefighters of California wildfires in a single weekend. Portions of the live concerts were shown as a TV special titled, “Garth Brooks: Live in L.A.,” in which viewers donated to the organization Fire Intervention Relief Effort (FIRE).
Barry Sanders waves to the crowd at a 2007 OSU football game. (Photo by Matt Strasen/The Oklahoman Archives)
Barry Sanders of Detroit, Mich., is one of the most electrifying running backs in the history of college and professional football. In 1988, Sanders had the greatest individual season in the history of college football on his way to winning the Heisman Trophy. He rushed for 2,628 yards, scored 39 touchdowns, rushed for more than 300 yards in four games, and established 34 NCAA records in 11 regular season games.
After his record junior season at OSU, he joined the Detroit Lions and became one of the most thrilling players in the history of the NFL. The Wichita, Kan., native rushed for more than 1,000 yards in each of his 10 NFL seasons, making him the first running back to do so. In 1997, he became just the third person to gain more than 2,000 yards in a season. He finished his NFL career rushing for 15,269 yards and 99 touchdowns.
A first- or second-team All-Pro all 10 of his NFL seasons, Sanders became the first NFL running back to record five 1,500-yard rushing seasons, in addition to being the only back to do so in four consecutive seasons (1994-1997). He is a member of both the Pro Football Hall of Fame and College Football Hall of Fame.
Robin Ventura (Associated Press photo)
Robin Ventura of Santa Maria, Calif., was one of college baseball’s greatest players and an All-Star major-league third baseman. Ventura had a remarkable three-year run at OSU from 1986-88. Baseball America named him Player of the Decade, the starting third baseman on its all-time team, and he was third in its Player of the Century poll. He was elected into the inaugural class of the College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2006.
He was named All-America all three years at OSU and was Player of the Year his sophomore year in 1987. He still holds college baseball’s hitting-streak record at 58 games and had a .428 career batting average. He holds seven OSU batting records, including the highest single season average at .469.
Ventura was drafted by the Chicago White Sox following his junior year and spent 16 seasons with the White Sox, New York Mets and New York Yankees. He was a Gold Glove winner and All Star. In 1995, Ventura became the eighth player in major-league history to hit two grand slam home runs in one game.
-BAM
College football for Oct. 17, 2009
OSU quarterback Zac Robinson (Photo by Nate Billings/The Oklahoman)
It’s a huge weekend for Oklahoma college football fans.
My alma mater, Oklahoma State University, is celebrating homecoming with events including the 2 p.m. Sea of Orange Parade in downtown. This year’s OSU Alumni Hall of Fame inductees – Garth Brooks, Barry Sanders and Robin Ventura – will be the grand marshals of the parade.
They also will be recognized during halftime of the OSU-Missouri football game. Kickoff is set for 8:15 p.m. at Boone Pickens Stadium. The game will air on ESPN2.
This weekend also marks one of the biggest and most contentious rivalries in college football history: OU-Texas.
The University of Oklahoma Sooners will play the University of Texas Longhorns at 11 a.m. in the Cotton Bowl in Dallas. The game will be carried on ABC.
The reigning national champions the Florida Gators will try to stay undefeated when they take on the Arkansas Razorbacks at 2:30 p.m. in Gainesville, Fla. The game will air on CBS.
The University of Florida, where my husband started his college education, also is celebrating homecoming.
-BAM
What to do in Oklahoma on Oct. 17, 2009
A float moves through downtown Stillwater as part of the 2007 OSU Homecoming Parade. (Photo by Matt Strasen/The Oklahoman Archives)
Today’s featured event:
STILLWATER – Take in the homecoming festivities at Oklahoma State University, including the Sea of Orange Homecoming Parade at 2 p.m. in downtown.
This year’s OSU Alumni Hall of Fame inductees – country music superstar Garth Brooks, football great Barry Sanders and baseball star Robin Ventura – will be grand marshals for the parade.
For more information, go to www.okstate.edu.
For more events, go to www.wimgo.com.
-BAM
Shiny Toy Guns representing Oklahoma at Dallas show; Jeremy Dawson talks new album
Shiny Toy Guns (Photo by Benjy Russell)
From Friday’s Weekend Look section of The Oklahoman.
As football fans make their annual trek to Dallas for the Red River Shootout, lifelong Sooners fan Jeremy Dawson and his band Shiny Toy Guns are fighting their own battle in conjunction with the Oklahoma-Texas rivalry.
The Grammy-nominated electronica/rock band is representing the Sooner state at the Red Bull Sound Clash at 8 tonight at AT&T Plaza outside American Airlines Center in Dallas. Shiny Toy Guns, which has its roots in Shawnee, will engage in a musical face-off tonight against The Cannabinoids, featuring Texas native and multiple Grammy winner Erykah Badu.
“It’s like metaphorically representing OU-Texas,” said bassist/keyboardist Dawson in a phone interview from Costa Mesa, Calif. “I thought it was just going to be like a rock show, like, OK, we’re gonna play a show and Erykah Badu’s going to play a show. I didn’t realize how in-depth of craziness it was. … But it’s good to have something quirky and weird to pop up in the craziness of everyday music stuff.”
At the Sound Clash, Shiny Toy Guns will play part of a track, then stop and let Badu and her group take over in mid-song. The bands, who will perform on crimson and burnt orange stages, then will switch roles. In addition, both sides will participate in a Michael Jackson tribute by covering Jackson 5 hits.
“Erykah Badu is sort of like Sade with real kind of street-driven lyrics, real jazzy, very, very chilly, dubby, down-tempo R&B and hip-hop. Completely nothing like us in any way. Not even anywhere close. You can’t really compare the two,” he said. “I don’t know who’s going to ‘win’ because it’s all based on the audience … whoever gets the greatest volume of the crowd wins.”
The show, which is limited to about 3,000 fans, is free but tickets are required. After, Dawson will be the disc jockey at party for University of Oklahoma fans at the W Dallas-Victory Hotel’s Ghost Bar.
The festivities lead up to the OU-Texas game at 11 a.m. Saturday at Dallas’ Cotton Bowl. The Oklahoma native is predicting a triumphant weekend for his band and his Sooners.
“It’s gonna be fun,” he said. “I think it is gonna be a victory.”
Dawson and singer/guitarist Chad Petree formed Shiny Toy Guns in 2001 in Los Angeles, but the pair grew up in Shawnee. Though he now makes his home in Hollywood, Dawson spends about two weeks a month writing and brainstorming in Oklahoma with Petree, who lives in Nichols Hills with his wife and daughter when the band isn’t touring.
The new wave revivalists lately have been touring in support of their latest album, “Season of Poison,” the follow-up to their Grammy-nominated 2006 record “We Are Pilots.” Released last November, “Season of Poison” was the band’s first album with new singer Sisely Treasure, who replaced Carah Faye Charnow about two years ago.
On Dec. 15, Shiny Toys Guns will release their new album “Girls Le Disko,” a remix record including 16 of their most popular songs, which have bee revamped by dance music artists from all over the world, from Australia and Iceland to Belgium and the United States.
“We let them do their thing. We had final say-so at the end. But it’s always super, super exciting to give someone all the pieces of a song that you wrote … and then they turn around and rebuild it and reinterpret in their style and then send it back to you. They add and take away and change keys, slow things down. It’s really cool,” Dawson said.
And an EP tentatively titled “Three,” featuring five new songs, is planned for spring.
In the meantime, the rockers can be heard on TV and in theaters. Their covers of Peter Schilling’s “Major Tom” and Blue Oyster Cult’s “Burnin’ for You” are featured in commercials for Lincoln cars, their original songs “Season of Love” and “Ghost Town” were on the TV shows “Gossip Girl” and “90210,” respectively, and their anthem “Le Disko” made the soundtrack for the horror flick “Sorority Row.”
“That kind of stuff’s really good when you’ve got record companies nowadays spending little if anything on promotion. There’s never a dull or a lull in the advertising business; in fact, it’s incredibly profitable for everybody,” he said. “You get paid a premium for this kind of stuff, and Lincoln-Mercury spent millions and millions of dollars airing this stuff … and you can’t pay for that kind of promotion. That’s just priceless. It’s very important that we have that between records.”
While Dawson appreciates the exposure of such multimedia showcases, he prefers live shows like tonight’s Sound Clash.
“When you get to go out in front of thousands of people and then turn your amps all the way up and hear this thing that you’ve created just come screaming out, it’s kind of like the icing on everything, it makes it all worth it, makes it fun,” he said.
Going on
Red Bull Sound Clash: Shiny Toy Guns vs. The Cannabinoids featuring Erykah Badu
When: 8 tonight. Gates open at 7 p.m.
Where: AT&T Plaza at American Airlines Center, 2500 Victory Ave., Dallas.
After-party: 10 tonight at the W Dallas-Victory Hotel’s Ghostbar, 2440 Victory Ave.
Information: www.redbullsoundclashusa.com.
-BAM
Toby Keith discusses his “weird connection” to OU and OSU
University of Oklahoma Sooners football fan Toby Keith cheers on the bench during a 2005 game at The Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, in Norman. (Photo by Jim Beckel/The Oklahoman Archives)
It’s no secret Toby Keith is a huge University of Oklahoma fan: In the fall, the country superstar and Norman resident often can be seen on the sidelines at the Sooners’ home football games.
An experience in the OU locker room inspired the singer-songwriter to pen the blues-rocker “If You’re Tryin’ You Ain’t,” one of the tracks on his new album “American Ride.”
In the press materials, Keith tells the story of how the song came about:
It was halftime, I was in the University of Oklahoma football locker room and there is a great guy who works there who always has these big rolls of athletic tapes on his belt. His job is to keep the players all taped up. They were in a dogfight with somebody and he was just sweating, wrapping ankles and trying to get the guys ready for the second half. He had a bunch of injured soldiers over there and was going at it. I went over and he said “How you doin’?” And I said, “Good, are you tryin’ to get everybody healthy?” He said, “If you’re trying you ain’t.” In my spare time I wrote this blues song. The whole song is about if you ain’t getting it done, at some point you can’t try you’ve just gotta get the job done.
In an interview last week, Keith told me that despite his fervent OU fandom, “there was every reason in the world for me to have been more of an OSU fan than an OU fan,” referring to OU’s in-state rival (and my alma mater), Oklahoma State University.
Keith, who will open up the National FFA Convention Oct. 21 in Indianapolis, said his favorite class in high school was agriculture, or ag class.
“I had FFA every year I could have it. Ag class is what we called it. … To me, it was my favorite class in school. They really taught me. They taught me how to weld in ag class in high school. I can go down here today and turn my welder on, put my hood on, get my gloves on and I can build you (something). I built all the service gates out here at my house.”
His love of all things agricultural would have made him a prime candidate for OSU, originally known as Oklahoma Argricultural & Mechanical College.
“That’s what my world was: I mean, I worked for a rodeo company, I was in ag, if I would have gone to college and pursued a degree, instead of going to work in the oilfield, I’d've had to go to OSU to get my degree because it would have been some kind of ag related to degree,” he said.
But he grew up watching OU Coach Barry Switzer and football greats like Billy Sims and Joe Washington.
“I started selling Cokes at OU when I was 13; I grew up in Moore and Norman; I was right here in the shadow of this stadium, so it’s really weird my connection with OU and OSU,” he said.
Despite his very public loyalty to OU, Keith’s first hit, 1993’s “Should’ve Been a Cowboy” is often played at the OSU Cowboys’ football games.
“I went up there (to Stillwater) and watched OU play OSU two or three years ago … and OSU beat the fire out of them. And every time they scored, they played it. Then, at the end of the game, as we were leaving the stadium, they had it on a loop,” he said with a laugh.
“I bet it played 20 times in a row, just over and over and over and over, and the irony of getting your butt kicked and walking out there and hearing your song play was pretty crazy.”
This year, OU and OSU will play their bedlam matchup Nov. 28 in Norman.
-BAM
College football for Oct. 10, 2009
Zac Robinson (Photo by Sarah Phipps/The Oklahoman)
In Oklahoma, it’s been a tough college football season so far.
My Oklahoma State Cowboys (3-1), who were off last weekend, are opening Big 12 play at 11:30 a.m. today at Texas A&M. The game will be broadcast on Fox Sports Network.
But the Cowboys will be without All-American receiver Dez Bryant, who was ruled ineligible by the NCAA this week after he apparently lied about his relationship with former NFL star Deion Sanders.
The injury-plagued Oklahoma Sooners suffered a heartbreaking second loss to Miami last weekend in Florida, but got some much-needed good news this week: Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Sam Bradford will get to play today after hurting his shoulder in OU’s season opener. The Sooners play Baylor at 2:30 p.m. in Norman.
The game will be televised on ABC.
The Florida Gators, who also were idle last week, are still undefeated and ranked No. 1. But the Gator Nation, which counts my family as members, anxiously awaits news of Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Tim Tebow, who suffered a concussion in Sept. 26 win in Kentucky.
Coach Urban Meyer has said whether Tebow will play will be a game-day decision, and if Tebow does play, all eyes are sure to be on him and his noggin.
The Gators kick off against SEC rival LSU at 7 p.m. in Baton Rouge. The game will be shown on CBS.
Good luck to all three teams. The way things have been going, they sure need it.
-BAM
Shiny Toy Guns to represent Oklahoma at Red Bull Sound Clash during OU-Texas weekend
Shiny Toy Guns
Grammy-nominated electronica band Shiny Toy Guns, originally from Shawnee, will represent Oklahoma at the Red Bull Sound Clash in Dallas Oct. 16.
That’s the weekend of the annual football showdown between the University of Oklahoma and Texas, and the neighboring-state rivalry will be the theme of the concert, too.
Along with Shiny Toy Guns, The Cannabinoids, featuring Texas native and multiple Grammy-winner Erykah Badu, will perform at the Red Bull Sound Clash.
Described in a news release as “an unparalleled, live music conversation and performance between two bands with diverse sounds, styles and creativity,” the show will begin at 8 p.m. Oct. 16 at AT&T Plaza outside American Airlines Center, 2500 Victory Ave. in Dallas. Gates will open at 7 p.m.
The Red Bull Sound Clash is free, but due to the demand, you must have a ticket to attend.
Tickets will be distributed at these locations in Norman:
Wednesday - Guestroom Records, 125 E. Main Street, from 6 to 7 p.m.; Bison Witches, 211 E. Main Street, from 7 to 9 p.m.
Thursday - Louie’s Campus Corner, 301 W. Boyd Street, from noon- 1 p.m.
For more information, go to www.redbullsoundclashusa.com.
-BAM
Toby Keith remembers friend Wayman Tisdale on new album
Toby Keith performs Willie Nelson’s “Angel Flying Too Close to the Ground” at a memorial service for Wayman Tisdale May 21 in Tulsa. (Associated Press photo)
Toby Keith pays tribute to his friend Wayman Tisdale on “Cryin’ for Me (Wayman’s Song),” a touching jazz-tinged track on his new album “American Ride,” out today.
Tisdale, an University of Oklahoma and NBA basketball standout who later became a respected jazz bassist, died in May from complications related to bone cancer.
In an interview last week, Keith told me, “I never at any time ever had a closer celebrity friend than Wayman.”
Tisdale’s sudden passing clearly took many of his family and friends by surprise, and Keith was no exception. In the press materials for “American Ride,” the Oklahoma country music star says that Tisdale called him on a Thursday evening with plans to lease a couple of a Keith’s buses to take on the road. The next day, the athlete-turned-musician died.
Keith recalled for me going to visit Tisdale in the hospital after the former basketball player had his cancerous right leg amputated.
“I’m thinking, ‘Man, he ain’t gonna be in no mood, he just got his leg cut off, he ain’t gonna be in no mood for no visitors. I go up there, he’s all high-fiving, and he looks like he’s just got a tooth filled,” Keith said.
“I sat with him in all his hospital stuff a lot. He would say, ‘You better come up here and see me’ and I would. He talked a lot of hours about life and the music business and just got really close. So, losing him was very sudden.”
Jazz stars Dave Koz and Marcus Miller, who were good friends of Tisdale, and one of Tisdale’s bandmates, Arthur Thompson, are featured on “Cryin’ for Me.”
Read more about Keith’s new CD and his thoughts on Tisdale Friday here at BAM’s Blog.
-BAM
