When founding Blackberry Smoke drummer Brit Turner passed away on March 3rd following a two-year battle with glioblastoma, a rare form of brain cancer, he left behind a lifetime legacy of music. On Friday in the band’s hometown of Atlanta, Blackberry Smoke scratched the surface of Turner’s impact on modern country-rock with a guest-filled tribute show.
The concert at Cadence Bank Amphitheatre at Chastain Park had intentionality from start to finish. Frontman Charlie Starr helmed the tribute as he powered the band through a career-spanning setlist from the opening “Sanctified Woman” off Blackberry Smoke’s 2009 sophomore effort Little Piece of Dixie through the set-closing “Little Bit Crazy” off the band’s latest album Be Right Here, the last release to feature Turner.
Blackberry Smoke — “Sanctified Woman”, “Good One Comin’ On” — 8/23/24
[Video: Andy Westbrook]
As the band members raged through their contributions to 21st-century Southern rock, a large projection screen behind them displayed iconography near and dear to Brit including motorcycles, fast cars, Western and Appalachian landscapes, and more. Throughout the show, the screen also played video tributes from Billy F. Gibbons, Warren Haynes, Jamey Johnson, and members of the Zac Brown Band.
“They were doing exactly what I wanted to do,” Johnson said of Blackberry Smoke in his video, per Rolling Stone. “Just rocking their ass off.”
Following the 19-song set, Blackberry Smoke returned to the stage for a special four-song encore filled with some of Turner’s favorite classic rock hits. Helping the band out was a parade of special guests, starting with Turner’s longtime friend Butch Walker, who lent his pipes to Van Halen‘s “Dance the Night Away”. Walker was at Blackberry Smoke’s first rehearsal and, as Starr explained, “He’s seen everything from the beginning.” Moving through the band’s early history, Walker was replaced by Jesse James Dupree (Jackyl), who produced the band’s 2003 debut Bad Luck Ain’t No Crime and took Smoke on the road in 2001. For his part, Dupree channeled his inner Brian Johnson for a glass-raising cover of AC/DC‘s “Have a Drink on Me”.
The intentionality of the concert came to a climax with the third and final special guest, Cheap Trick’s Rick Nielsen, who led a show-stopping take on his band’s hit “Surrender”. The performance was a loving nod to Turner seeing Cheap Trick at Atlanta’s Fox Theatre in 1979 for one of his first-ever live concerts.
Blackberry Smoke, Rick Nielsen — “Surrender” — 8/23/24
[Video: Jim Guess]
Check out a gallery of images from the Blackberry Smoke Brit Turner tribute show courtesy of photographer Emily Butler along with some fan-shot videos. Up next for the band is a two-night stand outside Asheville, NC on August 30th and 31st before heading overseas for a tour of the U.K. and Europe set to run into early October. Find tickets and a full list of tour dates on the band’s website.
Blackberry Smoke — “Shakin’ Hands With The Holy Ghost” — 8/23/24
[Video: Andy Westbrook]
Setlist: Blackberry Smoke | Cadence Bank Amphitheatre At Chastain Park | Atlanta, GA | 8/23/24
Set: Sanctified Woman, Good One Comin’ On, Hammer and the Nail, Waiting for the Thunder, You Hear Georgia, Pretty Little Lie, Hey Delilah, Let It Burn, Like It Was Yesterday, Dig a Hole, Sleeping Dogs [1], Azalea, Shakin’ Hands With the Holy Ghost, Whatcha Know Good, Run Away From It All, Ain’t Got the Blues, Up in Smoke, One Horse Town, Little Bit Crazy
Encore: Dance the Night Away (Van Halen) [2], Have a Drink on Me (AC/DC) [3], Surrender (Cheap Trick) [4], Ain’t Much Left of Me [5]
[1] “You Don’t Know How it Feels” interlude
[2] w/ Butch Walker
[3] w/ Jesse James Dupree
[4] w/ Rick Nielsen
[5] “Mississippi Kid” interlude
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