Billy Strings wrapped up his two-night stand at McHenry Outdoor Theatre in McHenry, Illinois on Thursday, the penultimate run of his Meet Me At The Drive-In Tour. The guitarist unveiled a Led Zeppelin cover halfway through the second set.
Billy kept things interesting by kicking off the show solo on the banjo with the bluegrass standard “Georgia Buck,” which saw the rest of the band trickling in with banjoist Billy Failing on guitar. Strings kept the grass classics rolling with The Stanley Brothers-popularized “Shout Little Lulie.” Billy then got into original material with “Highway Hypnosis” and “While I’m Waiting Here” from his 2019 album, Home, and his 2017 LP, Turmoil & Tinfoil, respectively. The latter led into Eric Von Schmidt’s “My Love Loves Comes Rolling Down” a song included on Doc Watson and Merle Watson’s 1978 album, Look Away. Strings then reeled off a trio of choice covers in Gordon Lightfoot’s “Cold On The Shoulder,” the Leftover Salmon classic “Down In The Hollow” and Jimmy Cliff’s “Sitting In Limbo.” Billy’s “Running” then headed into the set-closer, the traditional “Raleigh & Spencer.”
The second set got underway with a trio of old-time classics in Jimmy Reed’s “The Likes Of Me,” the Ella Fitzgerald-popularized “Airmail Special” and “Springtime Of Life” from legendary folk singer and banjo player Ole Belle Reed. Billy briefly returned to original material with Turmil & Tinfoil’s “On The Line” before getting back into covers with The Infamous Stringdusters’ “No More To Leave You Behind” followed by the debut of the Led Zeppelin IV deep cut “Four Sticks,” which saw Billy cranking up some distortion. Strings’ classic “Thirst Mutilator” then led into the Carter Stanley bluegrass standard “Going To The Races” followed by a pair of originals in “Home” and “Away From The Mire” ahead of show closer, “Let The Cocaine Be.”
Watch pro-shot video of Billy on banjo for “Georgia Buck” as well as an audience-shot clip of “Four Sticks” captured by slatsstrong below:
Four Sticks
https://www.instagram.com/p/CFQtAtYn8o6/
Georgia Buck
https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?v=339295947126038&ref=watch_permalink
Setlist
Billy Strings at McHenry Outdoor Theatre
Set 1
- Georgia Buck
- Shout Little Luly
- Highway Hypnosis
- While I’m Waiting Here My Love Comes Rolling Down Cold on the Shoulder
- Down in the Hollow
- Sitting in Limbo
- Running Raleigh and Spencer
Set 2
- The Likes of Me Air Mail Special
- Springtime of Life
- On the Line
- No More to Leave You Behind
- Four Sticks
- Thirst Mutilator Going to the Races
- Home
- Away From the Mire
- Let the Cocaine Be
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