S.A. star Strait plans final tour



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Say it ain't so, George.

Country music superstar George Strait says his upcoming tour will be his last. He is not retiring, though, and will continue to make records and may play occasional concerts.

“I've decided I'm not going to tour any more after these next two years,” Strait said Wednesday at a news conference at the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville.

“The Cowboy Rides Away” farewell tour begins next year in Lubbock. Strait will play his hometown of San Antonio — perhaps for the last time — on June 1.

Looking every bit the country music king, Strait was cheerful at the news conference, but the decision to stop touring was a difficult one, he said.

“I kind of always had it in the back of my mind that when I turned 60 it might be the time to start thinking about it,” said Strait, who turned 60 on May 18.

He also said he didn't want to stay on the road so long that one day he would “book a tour and nobody came.” And he wants to spend more time with his new grandson.

More Information Calendar: Find musical acts coming to the San Antonio area

Strait will begin recording a CD in October in Nashville. And he held out the possibility he might play a concert or two after 2014 — but no more structured tours.

Is there a chance he'll change his mind?

“In 2016 I might say, ‘What a dummy.' I might reconsider,” he said. “But at this particular time, I'm pretty sure I won't.”

Country star Martina McBride will join Strait for the first 20 dates of his tour, including the San Antonio stop. The show's star teased that there will be surprises.

“No telling who might show up,” he said.

Kent Finlay's Cheatham Street Warehouse in San Marcos has been a songwriter training ground and live Texas music bastion for almost 40 years. Strait and his band first played there Oct. 13, 1975.

“It seems like it was two weeks ago,” Finlay said. “George is a real cowboy and the nicest guy in the world. Sometimes the good guys do win. George Strait saved country music back in the '80s.”

KKYX disc jockey Jerry King was the first to spin George Strait — “Unwound,” by George Strait and the Ace in the Hole Band, in 1981. King still owns that vinyl record.

“It's a bittersweet ending,” he said. “I'm not wanting to see a guy of his stature ever get off the road.

“I'd still get on my hands and knees and crawl to see George Jones, and George Strait is pretty much in the same category. But going out on top is probably a good thing. I can't help but wish him the very best, but I can't imagine the guy laying his guitar down.”

Staff Writer Jim Beal Jr. contributed to this report.