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WINNIPEG - No doubt about it, George Strait is the real deal.
An old-school cowboy, the kind who wears a white hat and his jeans real high, Strait can always be counted on to play straightforward, no-frills country music — free of the new-Nashville trappings of the typical CMT crowd.
So it’s not too surprising that last night’s show at the MTS Centre was a straightforward, no-frills affair, characterized by the same thank-you-ma’am ethos Strait has long been known and loved for.
Of course, no surprises means no disappointments, and if the frenzied response from the 12,000 fans (many of whom sported white hats of their own) was any indication, the familiarity of Strait’s catalogue was breeding anything but contempt.
Playing on an open-sided stage that afforded every seat in the house a prime vantage point, Strait kicked things off with Honk If You Honky Tonk, letting his down-home demeanour set the scene for the string of classics that were still to come.
He’s got a quarter-century’s worth of material to choose from (and upwards of 50 Number One hits, at last count), and last night’s set list was stacked with winners — Amarillo By Morning, Run, and I Just Want To Dance With You in the first 15 minutes alone.
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Strait isn’t a flashy performer — he prefers to play things, well, straight — but the timeless nature of his tunes, coupled with a presence devoid of any showbiz arrogance, more than makes up for the lack of theatrics.
And it’s easy to see why people keep snapping up those albums. His songs are catchy but not cloying, simple but not bland, and best of all, country without being cliched.
With just a guitar, that gleaming white hat, and the equally laid-back accompaniment of his Ace In the Hole Band, Strait proved last night that nice guys sometimes do finish first.
Opening act Tracy Lawrence skewed a bit more contemporary than Strait, but still managed to toe an authentic honky-tonk line on hits like Better Man, Better Off, I See It Now, and Paint Me A Birmingham.
Additional opener Miranda Lambert took an even more present-day approach, receiving a warm welcome for her pop-infused country (and displaying smart classic-rock breeding with a cover of The Band’s Up On Cripple Creek).