Is it the end of the road for Rogers?

FOR KENNY ROGERS, it’s time to fold ‘em. The singer of The Gambler (1978) and more than 120 other hit singles, including 24 No. 1s, is playing his final hand, making one last swing through the US, with a current end date in April. At 78 he’s achieved nothing less than superstardom, and Rogers figures that this is as good a time as any to, as the song says, know when to walk away.

“I’ve done everything I set out to do,” Rogers explained. “Every goal I’ve set, I’ve done that, and there’s a point where you have to say, ‘I’ve had my turn. Let someone else have it.’ And that’s kind of where I am.

“It’s not that I dislike music,” he said. “It’s just that I can’t keep doing this and do what I want to do, which is spend time with my family.”

Rogers’ 12-year-old twin sons with fifth wife Wanda Miller, whom he married in 1997, are, in fact, the reason he cites for retiring.

“I have two older boys,” he said, “and I didn’t get to spend this time with my older boys, and I resent it because it’s a very special time in a kid’s age. My boys are playing football this year, and we went to watch a game and they were so excited about us being there, and that’s the kind of thing that, as a parent, you want to be part of as much as you can.”

“It all feels like a long, long time ago, because so much has happened in the meantime,” Rogers said.

“If you don’t do anything for a year, it kind of comes and goes, but if you’re busy doing a lot of little things, then your year goes by pretty quickly, and there’s been so many years of that for me that I guess it does seem like a long time ago.”

The Houston native did not start his career in country. He sang doo-wop with the Scholars as a teenager, before releasing his first single, That Crazy Feelin (1958). When he went solo in 1976, Rogers felt that the most fertile ground was in country. “The First Edition wasn’t set up as a rock-’n’roll act,” he explained. “It was just set up to be contemporary for the times. We had a lot of success, and most of those records that were successful were successful in the country market too – Reuben James (1969), Ruby. So, when the First Edition broke up, I didn’t know where to go, and country music welcomed me in.”

Not everyone was welcoming, Rogers acknowledged. “I wasn’t typical country, but I think I did invite people into country music that wouldn’t have been there otherwise,” Rogers said.

What Rogers will do in retirement remains to be seen. He has no plans for more recording. Much more family, and many more football games, are on the horizon, but for now Rogers is concentrating on his long goodbye. He admitted that he’s been surprised by the emotions he’s experiencing.

“I thought it was going to be easy,” the singer said, “because I’m so tired and it’s not as easy for me to get around. I’m not as mobile as I used to be. “I’ve changed the show totally,” he continued. “The show’s about an hour and a half long, and I go through a chronological look at my life that includes all my music ... For me to go back and recap my First Edition experience, the group I was with called the Scholars and my jazz period with Bobby Doyle is very exciting for me.

“I think what has really served me well is that the live performance is usually better than the recorded performance,” Rogers concluded. “I’ve hopefully gotten more professional, and I’ve constantly tried to have something unique to offer people when I come into their town.

“So that’s what I want to keep doing until I’m finished.”

It’s not that I dislike music. It’s just that I can’t keep doing this and do what I want to do, which is spend time with my family.” Kenny Rogers