Watch Billy Strings Debut Fitting Bob Dylan Cover In Mobile

Billy Strings concluded a two-night stand at Mobile Civic Center Arena in Mobile, Alabama on Saturday. The third show of Strings’ spring tour featured a geographically-fitting cover debut, as the guitarist led his band through Bob Dylan‘s “Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again” towards the middle of the second set.

Strings, bassist Royal Masat, fiddler Alex Hargreaves, mandolinist Jarrod Walker and banjoist Billy Failing launched the trek in Southaven, Mississippi on Thursday before bringing the excursion to Mobile on Friday and Saturday. The Mobile Civic Center Arena finale also featured the five-piece’s premiere version of Andy Statman’s “Little Addy” to kick off the closing stanza as well as a pair of covers Strings hadn’t played in years.

The quintet encapsulated “While I’m Waiting Here” within “Hide & Seek” to get Saturday’s concert underway. Next came the evening’s first cover — Ralph Stanley’s “A Robin Built A Nest On Daddy’s Grave” — along with the instrumental “Libby Phillips Rag.” Strings and company then looked to 2019’s Home for “Enough To Leave” and “Hollow Heart.” The latter gave way to “Dealing Despair.” From there, the ensemble paired the traditional “Cattle In The Cane” and John Hartford’s “All Fall Down” to close the first set.

Billy Strings and his band used their first cover of “Little Addy” to pave the way for the beloved “Dust In A Baggie” to kick off Saturday’s second set. The instrumental “Little Addy” was initially issued by American klezmer clarinetist Andy Statman on his 2013 album, Superstring Theory. After the ensuing “So Many Miles,” Strings dusted off the traditional Irish fiddle song “Paddy On The Turnpike” for the first and only other time since April 13, 2018 as per BillyBase.net’s stats.

Next, “Leaders” was linked to “Doin’ Things Right” ahead of an “In Case You Ever Change Your Mind” the quintet revved into “Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again.” Bob Dylan put out the song also listed as “Memphis Blues Again” on his iconic Blonde On Blonde album in 1966. Another rarity followed with Strings and company performing Doc Watson’s version of “Alabama Bound.” Billy last played the John Puderer-penned song on April 4, 2021 — a span of 221 shows. “Rank Stranger” then prefaced a typically expansive “Meet Me At The Creek” to cap Saturday’s second set. The group said farewell with a “Doin’ My Time” encore.

Billy Strings continues his spring tour tomorrow, Wednesday, April 18 at Tampa’s Yuengling Center. A free livestream is available for nugs.net subscribers.

Watch fan-shot video of Saturday’s second set and encore, including both cover debuts, below:

Setlist (via BillyBase)

Set One: Hide & Seek > While I’m Waiting Here > Hide & Seek, A Robin Built A Nest On Daddy’s Grave, Libby Phillips Rag, Enough To Leave, Hollow Heart > Dealing Despair, Cattle In The Cane > All Fall Down

Set Two: Little Addy [1], Dust In A Baggie, So Many Miles, Paddy On The Turnpike, Leaders > Doin’ Things Right, In Case You Ever Change Your Mind > Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again [2], Alabama Bound, Rank Stranger, Meet Me At The Creek

Encore: Doin’ My Time

• [1] FTP- Andy Statman
• [2] FTP- Bob Dylan