The Cowboy Rides Away....

George Strait ain't retiring.

But he announced his final tour, kicking off early next year.

60-year-old George will play 21 dates in 2013, then 20 more in 2014 on The Cowboy Rides Away tour.

The first leg of the tour will kick off Jan. 18 in Lubbock, Texas, and end June 1 in San Antonio. Dates for 2014 will be announced later. Martina McBride will join Strait on tour in 2013.

George plans to continue recording music and making occasional live appearances. And he will be going into the studio in the next two weeks to record new music.

And he says, "I just don't want to go to the point where I show up and nobody else does, you know?

"It's been great. I've been doing it for 30-some odd years and I've loved it. Sometimes I've not liked it as much. And here lately it's just the walking out onstage part, that's all great. I'm still loving that. It's just the hectic part about touring and traveling and bam, bam, bam, bam. I just feel like it's time for me to try something else."

At the end of a press conference, Strait was asked was he would do after the tour. "Golf, fish and, you know, I have a new grandson."

Here are the dates for 2013...

THE COWBOY RIDES AWAY – 2013 TOUR DATES
JAN 18 | Lubbock, Texas | United Spirit Arena
JAN 19 | Oklahoma City, Okla. | Chesapeake Energy Arena
JAN 25 | Salt Lake City, Utah | Energy Solutions Arena
JAN 26 | Nampa, Idaho | Idaho Center
JAN 31 | Sacramento, Calif. | Power Balance Pavilion
FEB 1 | Fresno, Calif. | Save Mart Center
FEB 2 | Las Vegas, Nev. | MGM Grand Garden Arena
FEB 15 | St. Paul, Minn. | Xcel Energy Center
FEB 16 | Grand Forks, N.D. | The Alerus Center
FEB 22 | Buffalo, N.Y. | First Niagara Center
FEB 23 | Hartford, Conn. | XL Center
MAR 1 | Knoxville, Tenn. | Thompson-Boling Arena
MAR 2 | Lexington, Ky. | Rupp Arena
MAR 17 | Houston, Texas | Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo*
MAR 22 | Greenville, S.C. | Bi-Lo Center
MAR 23 | Greensboro, N.C. | Greensboro Coliseum Complex
APR 5 | Albuquerque, N.M. | The Pit
APR 6 | Las Cruces, N.M. | Pan American Center
APR 12 | N. Little Rock, Ark. | Verizon Arena

There will dates booked in 2014 as well...

~Charli
APR 13 | New Orleans, La. | New Orleans Arena