Chesney's Sun City Carnival comes to a close

That was after Sugarland's Jennifer Nettles coming out for When The Sun Goes Down..., Miranda Lambert on stage for She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy... Zac Brown Band covered Alabama's Dixieland Delight and Steve Miller's Space Cowboy,... and Wailer drummer Zeb romped through Three Little Birds... and No Shoes Radio Mark Tamburino played Girl Gone Wild...

"It's hard to believe we're putting this thing up on blocks," an emotional Chesney said after the sold-out show at Lucas Oil Stadium. "The response from the fans, out in the crowd and the internet, it makes feel like people understand... and that they know we're not gone for good, it's just a breather..."

"And I hope people understand, I've never been an all or nothing kind of guy. This doesn't mean there will be no shows or no music. It means I'm not going to be staging a major tour - I'm not going to take two weeks off and be meeting with people to build a stage, to start thinking about how we can do the lights different an what the video's gonna be."

"This isn't just a show," he said. "This is a major production... and it's not just decide what to play, rehearse for a couple weeks and get out there. I need a break from that, so I can get back inside from a fresh place - and I'm really looking forward to that, because I don't anyone who keeps their foot on the gas like this for eight years." Look for Chesney to be part of the Hard Rock Cafe's international Ambassadors of Rock next year, as well as continuing to record a new record for late spring release. With I'm Alive, Chesney's cross-genre duet with Dave Matthews, climbing the charts.

"There are all kinds of things to explore within the music," Chesney said. "I can't wait to take the time to see where some of this will take me, and where I might turn up, Because, you know, I now have the time to maybe get into some interesting places...We'll just have to figure it out."