Billy Strings played the first of two shows at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, IL near Chicago Friday night and welcomed one of his most special musical collaborators, his dad Terry Barber, for a particularly wholesome bluegrass sit-in.
Bluegrass and string band jams have connected people for centuries as forms of folk music, and that cultural tradition runs deep in Strings’ family. The arena-grass phenom has discussed learning everything he knows from his dad, and in 2022, the father-son duo released an album, Me / And / Dad, which earned a nomination for Best Bluegrass Album at the Grammys. Last night, the pair took their combined talents to the big stage along with the rest of Billy’s band.
The sit-in came at the very end of the show, on night one of a two-night run marking the end of the band’s spring tour. Following a blazing trio of “Psycho” > “Pyramid Country” > “Ridin’ That Midnight Train”, Strings brought out his dad to join in for three tunes, “Mother’s Not Dead”, “On The Southbound”, which featured Barber on lead vocals, and “Little Cabin Home On The Hill”.
Check out fan-shot footage of the sit-in and other highlights below. The entire show is available to stream via nugs.net. Billy Strings’ spring tour concludes tonight with one more show at Allstate Arena. For a list of his upcoming shows and to purchase tickets, visit his website.
Billy Strings With Terry Barber – “Mother’s Not Dead”, “On The Southbound”, “Little Cabin Home On The Hill” – 5/24/23
[Video: MrTopdogger]
Billy Strings – “Hello, City Limits”, “Fire Line” – 5/24/24
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Setlist [via BillyBase]: Billy Strings | Allstate Arena | Rosemont, IL | 5/24/24
Set 1: Hello, City Limits, Fire Line, Running The Route, East Virginia Blues, Hellbender, My Alice, So Many Miles [1], Dealing Despair, Home [2], Sally Goodin, John Hardy
Set 2: On The Line, Train 45, Ruby, The Cuckoo, Long Forgotten Dream, Nothing’s Working, Heartbeat Of America, Pretty Daughter, Give The Fiddler A Dram [3], Whistling Rufus [3], Ragtime Annie [3], Catch and Release [4], In the Clear, Psycho, Pyramid Country, Ridin’ That Midnight Train, Mother’s Not Dead [5][6], On The Southbound [5][7][8], Little Cabin Home On The Hill [5][9]
SETLIST NOTES
[1] Billy Failing on lead vocals
[2] Billy Strings on his “Bride” Preston-Thompson D-SBA Custom guitar
[3] Billy Strings solo
[4] Billy Strings solo, seated center stage
[5] Full band w/ Billy Strings’ Dad, Terry Barber (guitar, vocals), single mic center stage
[6] Last Time Played 2022-10-31 | 146 Shows
[7] Terry Barber lead vocals
[8] Last Time Played 2021-11-06 | 259 Shows
[9] Last Time Played 2020-03-01 | 362 Shows
The post Billy Strings Brings Out His Dad, Terry Barber, For Wholesome Single-Mic Sit-In In Chicago [Photos/Videos] appeared first on L4LM.
