Billy Strings kicked off two nights at Jacobs Pavilion at Nautica in Cleveland, OH Tuesday night. Hot off a two-night stand in Indianapolis and currently in the midst of a whirlwind U.S. tour, Strings and his trusty band of Billy Failing, Royal Masat, Jarrod Walker, and Alex Hargreaves have been at the top of their game, and last night was no exception. The band threw down yet another heater leaning less on the bluegrass canon and more on Billy’s original tunes—an inspiring show of self-confidence after the bluegrass superstar admitted to fans in Indianapolis that he had struggled with anxiety to the point of having a panic attack before his previous show.
The first set opened with a tour through Strings’ discography with “Everything’s the Same” (off 2019’s Home), “Hellbender” (off 2021’s Renewel), and “Taking Water” (Home). The band then reached into its back catalog to give “Salty Sheep” its first taste of open pastures since summer 2022. The song off 2017’s Turmoil & Tinfoil recently took on added meaning after Les Claypool referred to Strings as “salty” because of his unique upbringing and the life experience that comes through in his music.
Billy Strings – “Everything’s The Same”, “Hellbender” [Pro-Shot] – 6/13/23
After the first covers of the night, “Stone Walls and Steel Bars” by The Stanley Brothers and “West Dakota Rose” by Chris Henry, one of the night’s major highlights arrived as Billy played a solo “Guitar Peace”, slipping in a tease of The Beatles‘ “Here Comes The Sun” before the band joined back in during a seamless transition to Pink Floyd‘s “Fearless” (a song he covered during his last trip to Cleveland back in March 2022). After completing the memorable sequence, the band capped set one with a fiery jam on “Meet Me at the Creek”.
Set two opened with a cover of “Freeborn Man” by Keith Allison but then proceeded with mostly originals including “Secrets” and a particularly jamming pair of “Running the Route” > “Running”. Two additional covers, “Ready for the Times to Get Better” by Allen Reynolds, and “Sophronie” by Jimmy Martin, gave way to an emotionally raw and beautiful “While I’m Waiting Here”—another improvisational highlight of the night for Strings’ musically discerning fans, whose appreciation of depth rivals their need for speed.
The band threw the audience for one more loop with a “Pyramid Country” fake-out before concluding the show with a sequence of “Must Be Seven” > “Pyramid Country” > “Spinning”, followed by one more cover, Doc Watson‘s “My Love Comes Rolling Down”, and a pairing of fan favorite “Fire Line” and the traditional “Reuben’s Train”.
Click below to view a collection of fan-shot videos from Billy Strings at Jacobs Pavilion at Nautica in Cleveland.
Billy Strings returns to Jacobs Pavilion tonight, Wednesday, June 14th. For a full list of upcoming shows and tickets, visit his website.
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Billy Strings – “Taking Water” – 6/13/23
[Video: Doug Heck]
Setlist: Billy Strings | Jacobs Pavilion at Nautica | Cleveland, OH | 6/13/23
Set 1: Everything’s the Same, Hellbender, Taking Water, Salty Sheep, Show Me the Door > Living Like an Animal > Long Forgotten Dream, Stone Walls and Steel Bars (The Stanley Brothers), West Dakota Rose (Chris Henry), This Old World, Guitar Peace (Billy Strings solo, with ‘Here Comes the Sun’ tease) > Fearless (Pink Floyd), Meet Me at the Creek
Set 2: Freeborn Man (Keith Allison) > Secrets, Running the Route > Running, Ready for the Times to Get Better (Allen Reynolds), Sophronie (Jimmy Martin), While I’m Waiting Here > Must Be Seven (with “Pyramid Country” fake-out intro) > Pyramid Country > Spinning > My Love Comes Rolling Down (The Doc Watson Family), Fire Line > Reuben’s Train (Traditional)
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