Brooks & Dunn
With Jason Aldean and Tyler Dickerson
Cruzan Amphitheatre, West Palm Beach
Saturday, June 12, 2010
They could have just gone their separate ways, traveling that red dirt road into the sunset.
But instead, Brooks & Dunn chose to take fans one more time down memory lane, and a capacity crowd at West Palm Beach's Cruzan Amphitheatre on Saturday received country music's top-selling duo with open arms.
The much-anticipated Last Rodeo Tour is a love letter to those who have followed Brooks & Dunn for two decades, a fruitful collaboration that has outlasted many marriages. Ronnie Dunn, fresh from a trip to New Mexico and sporting a new tattoo, reminded everyone why the duo has generated more than 20 number-one hits with his strong vocal performances on some of their most memorable songs, from dance favorites "Play Something Country" and "Boot Scootin' Boogie" to ballads "It's Getting Better All the Time" and "Believe."
Kix Brooks, on the other hand, seemed to get lost in the shuffle at
times. Despite his clearly excellent musicianship, his voice sounded
weak on songs like "Last Rodeo." One fan, who has seen the duo live
several times, put it this way: "He looks so old."
Both of the band's opening acts injected a fresh perspective into the
show and kept it from getting mired in nostalgia. Jason Aldean, known
for the songs "Big Green Tractor" and "She's Country," joined the duo for a
performance of "How Long Gone," a song he sang recently during a televised
Brooks & Dunn tribute show that was attended by Nashville's top
recording artists. And teen up-and-comer Tyler Dickerson put a new twist
on the classic "Neon Moon."
While some in the audience probably left hoping to have heard more of
Brooks & Dunn's older songs, others are eager to see what each
performer's future solo career will bring. The Last Rodeo comes to an
end August 10 in Nashville.
-- Lady Hereford
