American Idol judge, peanut farmer and occasional country music performer Luke Bryan has returned to Las Vegas to get his “country on” at Resorts World, and we were there to take in all of what the night had to offer.
Resorts World Theatre once again played host for the Nashville-based star. From the moment he kicks off the show with “That’s My Kind Of Night,” the audience is on their feet. The seats are more of a suggestion than a rule.
The music is only half the show. Luke’s hilarious and almost anarchic sense of humor had the audience rolling. “I did not even attempt dry January,” Luke exclaimed to the audience in his first stop to the music. “You cannot duck hunt all day and come home and not drink a beer. I don’t give a sh**!” He handed his drink to someone in the audience to confirm what he was drinking was, in fact, alcohol. It was.
Speaking of duck hunting, he was just at it the day prior and he found himself feeling under the weather, and worried about the next day’s show. His mom picked up his spirits with a joke. “Do you know what the cheapest meat is? It’s deer balls. They’re under a buck”. (Ba-dum, tss)
The music continued to entertain the crowd (check out the entire setlist below) before he took some more time out for a monologue. “Brutal ass conditions out here,” he said of Las Vegas’ dry conditions while downing a water. “If you go to sleep with a hang nail [in Las Vegas] it looks like you’ve been attacked in the morning”.
Luke Bryan takes time out to brag a little…
He took a little time out to toot his horn (and bust the proverbial marbles of his country music brothers) about his success. Summoning the names of country legends Ronnie Millsap (with 41 number 1 songs), Alabana (with 45 number 1’s), Conway Twitty (45 number 1’s) and George Strait (60 number 1’s). He pointed out he’d been to most of their concerts, and he was pissed that they didn’t play all of their top-charting hits. Then… told the audience he wouldn’t be playing his 30 number 1 hits. The crowd booed, and Luke responded “every time I get booed, you make me feel like Blake Shelton“. The crowd roared. He then pointed out that he had 1 more number one song than Blake. “Wikipedia that sh**. I do it every 3 months”. That led to a medley of some of his biggest number 1 hits.
He then pulled up a bench to a piano and had some solo time with the audience, playing covers (sometimes badly) alongside his own songs. He reflected upon the fact that he grew up listening to Lionel Richie (after performing “Stuck On You”. “The American dream is about growing up as a kid loving Lionel Richie,” Bryan said. “Now when I call him be picks up the damn phone. Never in my little dumb ass life would I ever imagine that would happen.” Luke now judges alongside Richie and his Resorts World sister Katy Perry.
Not a bad seat in the house…
On Luke’s encore performance, the “cheap seats” became the best seat in the house, as a contraption dropped from the ceiling allowing Luke and his incredible band to get up close and personal with the back of the room.
Without question, if you’re down for a great night out, you’ve got to make it a night with Luke Bryan. And you might want to make it a Wednesday. “I have Thursday off which means Wednesday night is my get crunk night,” Luke warned the audience. “If you ever become a country singer, don’t take a night off in Vegas”.
Luke Bryan Las Vegas Setlist for his Triumphant Return to Resorts World
- “That’s My Kind Of Night”
- “All My Friends Say”
- “One Margarita”
- “Knockin’ Boots”
- “Sunrise, Sunburn, Sunset”
- “Roller Coaster”
- “Waves”
- “What Makes You Country”
- “Huntin’, Fishin’ and Lovin’ Every Day”
- “Kick The Dust Up”
- “Rain Is A Good Thing”
- Number Ones Medley
- “Drunk On You”
- “Crash My Party”
- “Down To One”
- “Someone Else Calling You Baby”
- “Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye”
- Piano Solo
- “Stuck On You” by Lionel Richie
- “Neon Moon” by Brooks & Dunn
- “Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off” by Joe Nichols
- “Someone Like You” by Adele
- “Strip It Down”
- “Do I”
- “Country On” (acoustic)
- “Drink A Beer”
- “Move”
- “Play It Again”
- Encore
- “Country Girl (Shake It For Me)”
- “I Don’t Want This Night To End”
