Night one of this two-night Red Rocks stand was high energy and drenched in exploratory jamming. Night two was rich with hard-driving bluegrass and nods to bluegrass and local legends intertwined with original material that leaned heavily on last year’s critically acclaimed Renewal.
The night kicked off with Strings original “Taking Water” that seamlessly blended into instrumental “Ice Bridges”, followed by the sauntering “Hellbender.” A gorgeous take on Norman Blake’s “Last Train From Poor Valley”, mellowed things the mood, and was followed by a short and tight “Dust In a Baggie.” Leon Payne’s “Psycho” and a cover of Dan Fogelberg original “Along the Road” sandwiched a nearly nine minute version of Renewal standout “Heartbeat of America”, followed by Roy Acuff’s hard-charging “Streamlined Cannonball” and a spirited “Love and Regret.”
“Well, you probably wanna hear some bluegrass now.” Strings lamented, before diving into Jimmie Skinner’s hard-driving “Doin’ My Time”, featuring extended breaks by Strings and mandolinist Jarod Walker. The breakout jam of the first set came with the fifteen minute set closer “Hide and Seek.” Known as a jam vehicle, this version wastes no time getting psychedelic, with the band dropping into an effects-laden, spacey jam less than five minutes into the song, that let into Strings, banjoist Billy Failing, and mandolinist Jarod Walker trading licks and taking extended solos, before bringing it back home and closing out the set.
The energy remained high throughout the second set, and leaned heavily into material from the band’s last two releases. The highlight of set two came when the band dropped into a nearly thirteen minute cover of Colorado jam legends The String Cheese Incident’s “Black Clouds.” A rare take on “One Tin Soldier”, the Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter original. “Freeborn Man” was first released by Keith Allison in 1967, and popularized in the bluegrass scene by Jimmie Martin. Strings and band nailed their version this night, with breakdowns from Billy Failing on banjo, Walker on mandolin, and a raucous solo from Strings. Frequent set closer “Meet Me at the Creek” brought things home.
A two-song encore featured The Rolling Stones’ “Wild Horses” and Stanley Brothers original “How Mountain Girls Can Love.”
Billy Strings, May 13, 2022, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Morrison, CO Setlist
Taking Water, Ice Bridges, Hellbender, Last Train From Poor Valley, Dust In a Baggie, Psycho, Heartbeat of America, Along the Road, Streamline Cannonball, Love and Regret, Doin’ My Time, Hide and Seek
Red Daisy, Thirst Mutilator, Running, Show Me the Door, Black Clouds, Home, One Tin Soldier, Everything’s the Same, This Old World, Freeborn Man, Meet Me at the Creek
Wild Horses, How Mountain Girls Can Love
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