Garth Brooks Marks Central Park Show 25th Anniversary With Talkshoplive Special

Garth Brooks will mark the 25th anniversary of his free concert in Central Park, New York, and its record-breaking cable TV special, with streaming highlights on the talkshoplive network on Sunday (7).

Brooks will appear live from Studio G in Nashville during the event on the social selling and online network, offering his own observations as his favorite moments from the August 7, 1997 spectacular – often affectionately known as “Garthstock” among his fans – are shown. “Time is a friend to all things good, and the Central Park Concert will forever remain a GREAT chapter in our story,” says Brooks in a statement.

Record-breaking ‘Garthstock’

The live concert drew a largest-ever, estimated audience to Central Park of one million, and the subsequent HBO special, Garth: Live From Central Park, was the most-watched special on cable television that year, with 14.6 million viewers. The program was nominated for six Emmy Awards.

Footage from the concert had a commercial outing in 2006, as part of Brooks’ five-disc video album The Entertainer, which was sold exclusively at retail, at Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club stores.

In June, the country superstar confirmed that The Anthology, Part II, in his retrospective book and CD series about his life and career, is due later this year. Subtitled The Next Five Years, the new volume addresses the 1996-2001 era, a period in which his Trisha Yearwood says Brooks became “the captain of his own ship.”

Featuring the same cover image as that used for his 1994 release The Hits, it covers the sessions for such albums as Fresh Horses, Double Live, and Sevens, and his celebrated 24-hour signing sessions during Fan Fair 1996. It also features the voices and reminiscences of Bob Dylan, fellow country staples Keith Urban and Steve Wariner, longtime writing and production collaborator Allen Reynolds, and session musicians the G-Men.

More information about the talkshoplive event is at Garth Brooks’ website.