George Strait Breaks Grateful Dead’s U.S. Concert Attendance Record

Country artist George Strait has set the record for the largest ticketed single concert in U.S. history, which had previously been held by Grateful Dead since 1977.

The New Record

At Kyle Field in College Station Texas on Saturday night (June 15), Strait rallied 110,905 fans for a record-setting show, Billboard reports. He also broke the stadium's single event attendance record of 110,633, which was set on Oct. 11, 2014 at a Texas A&M University football game.

The country legend turned 72 a month ago and is set to release his 31st album, Cowboys and Dreamers, on Sept. 6.

In advance of the June 15 show, Strait shared a PSA, giving fans a heads up about the expected attendance, how to utilize entry and exit services and other recommended tips.

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Strait played a 31-song set, including a five-song encore that saw him play a cover of Tom Petty's "You Wreck Me." In addition to hits from a number of different albums, the country icon also covered Rodney Crowell, Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard, Townes Van Zandt and Terry Stafford.

The Old Record

For nearly 50 years, Grateful Dead's 1977 show at Raceway Park in New Jersey held the record as the largest ticketed single concert ever held in the United States. A whopping 107,019 fans turned out to watch the psychedelic rockers play 19 songs, including 10 covers.

At the time, they had just released their ninth album, Terrapin Station, which features classics such as opener "Estimated Prophet" and the 16-minute title track closer.