Billy Strings & Bryan Sutton Kick Off Tour At Bluegrass Hall of Fame & Museum

Guitarists Billy Strings and Bryan Sutton began a compact tour with a pair of shows at the Bluegrass Hall of Fame & Museum’s Woodward Theatre in Owensboro, Kentucky. The trio presented setlists that were largely built around bluegrass staples and other folk songs.

Royal Masat, who is a member of Strings’ band, is on board for the tour and was seated onstage playing electric bass alongside Strings and Sutton. Lead vocal duties were passed between Strings and Sutton. The pair mostly played acoustic guitars, with Sutton at times taking up the mandolin and Strings switching to banjo for a handful of songs.

Friday’s tour opener saw the trio running through traditional bluegrass songs that were staples of Doc Watson’s performance and recording repertoire, as well as his own “You Must Come In At The Door.” The first set included covers of Townes Van Zandt’s “If I Needed You” and Bob Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright.”

Set two started with Strings on banjo and Sutton on guitar for duo attempts at “Frosty Morn” and “The Cuckoo.” Strings then joined Sutton on guitar for “Give The Fiddler A Dram,” “Whistling Rufus” and “Ragtime Annie.”

Masat assumed his place between Strings and Sutton for the remainder of the show, which was filled in with additional traditional bluegrass tunes and a cover of Mississippi John Hurt’s “Talking to Casey.”

Saturday’s setlist consisted of considerable overlap from the first show, with some alternate song selections making it into each of the two sets. The second half began with Strings on guitar and Sutton on mandolin for duo versions of “What Does The Deep Sea Say?” and “Watson Blues.”

Billy Strings and Bryan Sutton’s tour with Royal Masat continues with concerts in Boone (North Carolina) on Thursday, September 11 and Friday, September 12; Nashville on Sunday, September 14 and Monday, September 15 and Chattanooga (Tennessee) on September 16. Livestreams of the entire tour, including on-demand replays, are available to nugs All Access subscribers.

Watch a series of fan-shot videos from Billy Strings and Bryan Sutton’s shows in Owensboro: