Live: Eric Church Returns to Madison Square Garden for Sold-Out Show

By Annie Reuter

Eight years ago, Eric Church graced New York’s Madison Square Garden stage for the first time as an opener for Rascal Flatts. As legend has it, he played too long and as a result was kicked off the tour making him an outsider for several years in the country community. He’d go on to hone his sound in bars and clubs to a loyal following that continued to grow in number.

Last night (Oct. 17), was his redemption, and he didn’t hold back one bit.

Church took the stage shortly after 9:00 p.m. for his first time headlining the Garden. Not only was he the headliner this time around, but he sold out the show. This fact was not lost on him as he referred to that fateful night years ago several times throughout his over two-hour set.

“We played this stage eight years and three days ago and I told you guys we’d be back,” Church said six songs into his set. “We come from the bars and the clubs and you don’t get to a place like this without people that believe in you. We’re gonna play till they don’t let us play. We’re gonna keep going.”

Gallery: Eric Church Performs at New York’s Madison Square Garden

The energy never wavered throughout his 26-song set. Whether it was heavy rockers like show opener “The Outsiders” and “That’s Damn Rock & Roll’,” stoner anthems like “I’m Gettin’ Stoned” and “Smoke a Little Smoke,” or the poignant “Carolina” and new single “Talladega,” Church showed as much intensity on the heavy hitters as the ballads and moved effortlessly between each. At times he could be seen with his fist in the air and others, his arms outstretched, as if he was conducting the venue in a sing along. Either way, the crowd hung on every word.

Redemption was a theme throughout Church’s performance. During nearly 10-minute track “Devil, Devil (Prelude Princess of Darkness)” off his latest album The Outsiders, a massive devil-like float with glowing orange eyes arose from the back of the venue and spun around to point at each side of the Garden as Church sang it into oblivion. As the song came to a close, the devil deflated and Church segued into the fitting follow-up, “Country Music Jesus” off 2011′s Chief.

While the drinking songs were many, it was on the ballads that Church quieted the beer-swilling, rowdy concertgoers. This was seen on the acoustic driven “Sinners Like Me” where the Garden was illuminated with cell phones. And as Church finished the introspective track, he tipped his hat to the crowd as a big smile engulfed his face.

Eric Church performing “Sinners Like Me” at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 17, 2014. (Mike Coppola/Getty Images for EB Media PR)

The night was his this time and he embraced it. Additional highlights included “These Boots,” off his debut album Sinners Like Me, where the audience took off their boots and held them above their heads. Church then grabbed two boots toward the song’s end and signed them before he threw them back to their rightful owners.

Two hours in, Church began to sing Bruce Springsteen’s hit “Born in the U.S.A.” before he segued to his ode to the Boss, “Springsteen.” Halfway through the song, he walked towards fans at the edge of the catwalk where he once again reflected on his first time performing at Madison Square Garden.

“There’s a line in this song, about when a melody and a memory connect with each other. You strip away everything else and that’s what music is about, it’s about a connection to that emotion,” he said. “When I was 16-years-old that happened to me at an amphitheater in Charlotte, North Carolina. To this day, when I hear that song I’m 16-years-old again. I’m right back at that amphitheater. I can smell the grass. That’s what tonight’s about. It’s not about yesterday or tomorrow. It’s about right here, right now.”

He added: “Eight years ago something happened to us that changed our course forever and I wouldn’t trade one single minute of it or have it any differently than to be right here with you right now. So thank you, Madison Square Garden for having a memory.”

Related: Interview: Eric Church on ‘The Outsiders’ & the Album-Making Process: ‘It’s Brutal’

As the sold-out crowd sang the remainder of “Springsteen” word for word, Church didn’t have to pick back up the mic. But he did, for one more chorus and a quick departure before he came back for a one-song acoustic encore solo for “Lightning.”

“I dreamed many nights of doing this song in this room,” he said of the track off his debut Sinners Like Me. A tale of redemption, where a man finds himself on death row after unfortunate circumstances, Church closed the show with the moving tale. As he transported the sold-out crowd at Madison Square Garden to a jail where the narrator reaches his final resting place, it was a proper metaphor. For Eric Church, eight years and three days ago his career took a drastic turn. But last night, it all came full circle where he once again was the star of the show.

Related: Eric Church Extends The Outsiders World Tour

Earlier in the evening, Dwight Yoakam performed an hour set before Church took the stage which included well-known hits like “Honky Tonk Man,” “Guitars, Cadillacs” and “Ain’t That Lonely Yet” as well as a brand new song he tested out on the audience called “Second Hand Heart.” A set that was heavy in rockabilly yelps, Yoakam’s signature dance moves, fringe and sequins, the country artist’s blend of rock and traditional country was impressive. Whether it was the more rock leaning “Fast As You,” cover of Elvis Presley‘s “Little Sister” or the classic ballad “A Thousand Miles from Nowhere,” the country singer turned actor proved he still can charm. An artist who saw immense success in the 1980s and ’90s, his captivating set energized the crowd, many of which skipped the fringe trend and showed up in flannel.

Brandy Clark opened the show for a moving 30-minute set. Her performance showcased songs like first single “Stripes,” “Hold My Hand” and “Crazy Women,” all off her excellent debut album 12 Stories, released last year, as well as the hits she has written for other artists.

“I am just honored to be here on The Outsiders Tour with Eric Church and Dwight Yoakam,” she said during her performance. “While I was making this record some folks that are bigger than me recorded my songs. I’m going to play you my versions of them.”

Her medley included The Band Perry‘s “Better Dig Two” and Miranda Lambert‘s “Mama’s Broken Heart,” both of which went to No. 1 on the country charts.

Eric Church at Madison Square Garden set list:

The Outsiders
Creepin’
Guys Like Me
Carolina
I’m Gettin’ Stoned
Talladega
Pledge Allegiance to the Hag
Drink in My Hand
The Hard Way
Jack Daniels
Cold One
That’s Damn Rock & Roll
Give Me Back My Hometown
Homeboy
Dark Side
Devil, Devil (Prelude: Princess of Darkness)
Country Music Jesus
Smoke a Little Smoke
Sinners Like Me
Over When It’s Over
Like a Wrecking Ball
Roller Coaster Ride
Lotta Boot Left to Fill
These Boots
Born In The U.S.A (Bruce Springsteen cover) –> Springsteen
Encore:
Lightning