GEORGE STRAIT RIDES OFF INTO THE SUNSET!
Why cowboy king is retiring after seven-concert tour
COWBOY king George Strait is doing one final tour before hanging up his guns — and calling it quits on a historic career.
Now GLOBE has the intimate inside story behind his brave farewell — and how country music’s all-time hitmaker has struggled against tragedy, pain and losing his golden voice.
“George says it’s time,” spills a pal.
“He grabbed for the brass ring and got it, but there’s been a lot of heartache along the way as well. He’d rather leave his fans with great memories and live out his days out of the public eye.”
Texas native George, 66, is set to perform just seven concerts this year — beginning in Las Vegas this month and ending on Nov. 22 in Fort Worth. In another dramatic move, George and his wife of 47 years, Norma, have put their 8,000-squarefoot estate in San Antonio on the block for $10 million. They plan to retire to their 2,200-acre ranch near the Texas/Mexico border.
Although George has scored a world record 60 No. 1 hits in his career, including his trademark song All My Ex’s Live in Texas, he “feels the business has left him in the dust,” says a pal.
His 2015 single, Cold Beer Conversation, only reached No. 36 on Billboard’s country music charts. His most recent song, Codigo, even crack the Top 50.
“George knows he could play 200 concerts a year and his fans would still pack the arenas. But if he only plays old hits, he’d feel like a human jukebox,” says a source.
“Besides that, age has affected his golden voice to the point where he feels he can’t give his best on stage.
“George also has aches and pains from his life as a roper and a cattleman. Touring can be physical agony.”
Behind his amazing career, George has suffered crippling heartbreak, including losing daughter Jenifer in a fatal 1986
didn’t car accident and his brother Buddy’s death of a suspected drug overdose in 2009.
His father, John — who raised George as a single dad — passed away in 2013, and last year, his band’s drummer and closest friend, Mike Kennedy, was also killed in a car crash.
“George feels every one of those losses, but he counts his blessings. His son, Bubba, has given him and Norma grandchildren, and they dote on them,” adds the source.
“George admits he was never going to be on the road forever. After this last go-around, he’ll just walk away.”