Voice of Country | Brooks & Dunn- The LAST Last Rodeo

Brooks & Dunn- The LAST Last Rodeo

If you were going to be in Nashville on Thursday night, September 2nd, 2010, there is NO WAY you were going to skip the last ever Brooks & Dunn show. Still, traffic was a nightmare, as the Titans football team were playing a big game nearby and the Opry was also in session two minutes away from the B&D gig.

The horrendous scheduling was due to Ronnie Dunn being put on vocal rest earlier this summer, pushing back the date of the Nashville gig.

So, my master plan was to get downtown and park three and a half hours early, which seemed to do the trick. Eating some bar-b-que at the Hilton and doing some CD shopping at Ernest Tubb's helped pass the hours till showtime.

When the curtain finally came up (or more precisely, was pulled down), opening act Tyler Dickerson came on for a brief support slot. The poor kid started the tour with a single in the charts and an album on the way. Then midway through the summer, Disney decided to shutter the Lyric Street label and Tyler has been left high and dry , for the moment at least.

Although only sixteen years old, Tyler seemed totally unfazed by playing a packed arena, and it must be said his vocals were powerful and spot on. So with any luck one of the (few remaining!) record labels in Music City will snap him up.

So how were Brooks & Dunn on their final night as a duo? Well, in a nutshell:

1. The performances were great. Even Kix Brooks' voice sounded strong (!).

2. The audience loved every minute of it.

3. Contrary to expectations, there was no parade of celebrity pals showing up on stage. Reba came out for about 45 seconds to do a few lines on "Cowgirls Don't Cry", then promptly disappeared. (Why couldn't they have done "If You See Him/If You See Her"?)

4. If there was any doubt about the relationship between B&D, this last show didn't do anything to dispel those doubts. For much of the time, they seemed like two solo performers sharing the stage. Numerous times one of them would step forward onto an extended walkway that jutted into the audience, while the other guy stayed back with the band. They did occasionally play up front together, but, at least from where I was sitting, there was very little to no interaction between the two of them.

This, of course, is consistent with two men who have hardly written songs together in years, travel on separate tour buses, and aren't known for socializing together much. True, it's been a long road for the act, but look at Mick and Keith in the Rolling Stones...they're still pals even though they're both in their 90's (well, they will be in two shakes, anyway!)

What was the set list like, you ask? Pretty darn good, with most of the hits present and accounted for. "Play Something Country" was the spiky opening number and the show ended with encores of "Boot Scootin' Boogie" and then "Brand New Man" (their first single).

Now, for every VoC listener who wished they could have been at the show, but couldn't, we're going to bring you a taste of what it was like with "The Last RADIO Show", a VoC special featuring the entire set list from the last Brooks & Dunn show played in order. Keep your eye on the VoC website for details, and then give it a listen. You won't be able to say you SAW the last B&D gig, but you will be able to say you heard it (kind of!)