Billy Strings Keeps New Songs Coming In Tampa: Watch ‘Just A Rambler’ & ‘Nighthawk’

Billy Strings made his Benchmark International Arena debut in Tampa last night for the second stop of his spring tour. The guitarist and his band continued to roll out more new songs after debuting four during the three nights in St. Augustine that opened the tour.

The first of the two new songs played in Tampa, “Just A Rambler,” was performed by Strings and his band — banjo player Billy Failing, bassist Royal Masat, fiddler Alex Hargreaves and mandolinist Jarrod Walker — in the middle of their opening stanza. Billy Strings addressed the crowd to introduce the song he wrote, explaining:

“When I was growing up playing bluegrass all night, it was always a sure thing we’d start off the night with a lot of fast picking and fiddle tunes, just raging bluegrass, and then as people got drunker and drunker and the night went on you’d start getting sadder and sadder and slower and slower.

“Here’s a little song that I tried to come up with to resemble that a little bit. [It’s for] anyone who’s lost someone.”

The premiere of “Just A Rambler” was followed by a wild cover of John Hartford’s “All Fall Down” that spanned nearly 30 minutes. An uninterrupted sequence of “On The Line,” “Train 45” and “Ruby” brought the first set to a close.

Billy Strings kicked off the second set with solo versions of “Brown’s Ferry Blues” and “Catch & Release.” He then traded his guitar for a clawhammer banjo before Billy Failing joined him for a “Dos Banjos” duet. The rest of the band emerged for the subsequent “The Gold Rush,” their first cover of the Bill Monroe tune since August 24, 2024 — a 121 show gap.

A special moment came a few songs later when Billy Strings noted Jarrod Walker had just released “Nighthawk,” the title track and lead single from his forthcoming solo album. “I feel like if you want to, Jarrod, maybe we should play it for them,” Strings added to huge cheers.

Jarrod Walker stepped to the mic and said Wednesday was a serendipitous night for him as he was born in nearby Plant City. Walker then led the ensemble through the debut of the rollicking “Nighthawk.” Strings was back on lead vocals for “California Sober,” a song he wrote and recorded with Willie Nelson. A cover of Greensky Bluegrass’ “Reverend” followed before “Thunder” split “Meet Me At The Creek” to punctuate the evening.

Next up for Billy Strings is a two-night stand at Enmarket Arena in Savannah, Georgia tomorrow, April 10 and Saturday, April 11. Livestreams and replays of all of his spring concerts are available for nugs subscribers.

Watch Billy Strings roll out the two new songs and more from his Tampa show below:

Official Audio Recording (via nugs)

Setlist (via Billy Strings Facebook)