Watch Billy Strings End Marathon Austin Concert With Unamplified ‘Will The Circle Be Unbroken’

Billy Strings and his band played a 34-song marathon concert at Austin’s Stubb’s Bar-B-Q on Thursday night. The quintet’s second ACL Nights 2022 show drew to a close with a second encore that saw the musicians assemble at the front of the stage using unamplified instruments for a singalong take on the traditional “Will The Circle Be Unbroken?”

See fan-captured footage of the memorable second encore below:

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Guitarist Billy Strings, bassist Royal Masat, fiddler Alex Hargreaves, banjoist Billy Failing and mandolinist Jarrod Walker returned to Stubb’s Bar-B-Q after an initial ACL Nights 2022 performance one week prior. The group played this year’s Austin City Limits Music Festival last Friday and hit the T-Mobile Stage in Austin’s Zilker Park again this evening at 7 p.m. CT.

Last night’s show was heavy on covers with 19 included in the setlist. The band kicked off their first set a bit late after a generator went out and opened with original “Pyramid Country.” Strings and his bandmates showed off their improvisational prowess in expanding the song beyond the 10-minute mark before swerving into Johnny Horton’s “Ole Slewfoot.” The group then paired originals “Highway Hypnosis” and “Love Like Me” with “Everything’s The Same.” Next up was a tribute to hometown hero Willie Nelson via the Billy Strings debut of “Things To Remember,” one of the earliest songs the outlaw country legend wrote.

The first set continued with takes on John Hartford’s “All Fall Down” and “With A Vamp In The Middle” ahead of the group’s renditions of Béla Fleck’s “Tentacle Dragon (Revenge Of The)” and Doc Watson’s version of “Cocaine Blues.” Billy and his ensemble capped the frame with originals “Show Me The Door,” “Know It All” and “Thunder.” The latter, featuring words by Grateful Dead lyricist Robert Hunter, featured a tease of Nirvana’s “All Apologies.”

Billy Strings and his bandmates made their way through 14 songs to form Thursday’s second set. “Fire Line” off 2021’s Renewal led into Townes Van Zandt’s “White Freightliner Blues” to start the frame. Next, Strings worked “Feel Like A Stranger” into the title track from his Grammy-winning 2019 LP, Home. A cover of Larry Sparks’ “John Deere Tractor” was then followed by originals “Hollow Heart,” “My Alice” and “Long Forgotten Dream.” Billy premiered “My Alice” at last month’s Renewal festival.

Last night’s second set rolled on with Strings’ rendition of Bad Livers’ “Lumpy, Beanpole & Dirt” and original “Bronzeback.” Hargreaves then starred on Bill Monroe’s “Uncle Pen” ahead of a “While I’m Waiting Here” that led into the traditional “John Hardy.” Next, the guitarist fronted the crew on Home standout “Taking Water” and closed the set with a take on “End Of The Rainbow” by Frank Wakefield.

The five musicians emerged for a rare six-song encore. Strings belted out the Pearl Jam classic “Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town” and then the group offered the beloved “Dust In A Baggie.” Another Willie Nelson cover followed in “On The Road Again” before Masat helmed Irving Berlin’s “Blue Skies.” Billy and his bandmates ended what turned out to be the first encore with Roy Acuff’s “Streamline Cannonball” and the traditional “The Old Mountaineer.”

Billy was well beyond curfew when his band offered up the singalong “Will The Circle Be Unbroken?” as their second encore. After today’s spot in Zilker Park, Strings and company head to Oklahoma City for a Saturday night concert. A free livestream is available for nugs.net subscribers.

Watch pro-shot video of last night’s “Pyramid Country” opener below:

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https://www.instagram.com/p/Cjs9TQJOxU6/?hl=en

Setlist (via BillyBase)

Set One: Pyramid Country > Ole Slewfoot, Highway Hypnosis, Love Like Me, Everything’s The Same, Things To Remember [1], All Fall Down, With A Vamp In The Middle > Tentacle Dragon (Revenge Of The), Cocaine Blues, Show Me The Door, Know It All, Thunder [2]

Set Two: Fire Line, White Freightliner Blues, Home [3], John Deere Tractor, Hollow Heart, My Alice, Long Forgotten Dream, Lumpy, Beanpole, & Dirt, Bronzeback, Uncle Pen, While I’m Waiting Here, John Hardy, Taking Water > End Of The Rainbow

Encore: Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town, Dust In A Baggie > On The Road Again > Blue Skies [4], Streamline Cannonball, The Old Mountaineer

Encore2: Will The Circle Be Unbroken [5]

• [1] FTP- Willie Nelson
• [2] All Apologies tease
• [3] Feel Like A Stranger tease
• [4] Royal Masat on lead vox
• [5] Unplugged with crowd sing along

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Source: JamBase.com