Michael Cleveland Joins Billy Strings In Louisville

Billy Strings rolled through Headliners Music Hall in Louisville, Kentucky on Friday night. Strings welcomed Grammy-winning fiddler Michael Cleveland for the entire second set.

To start things off, Billy returned to Grandpa Jones’ “Eight More Miles To Louisville” for just the second time since debuting the song at the same venue a year ago. A cover of Bela Fleck’s “Slipstream” came next ahead of originals “Enough To Leave” and “Running,” both from Strings’ 2019 album Home. A cover of Dan Fogelberg’s “Along The Road” followed ahead of Doc Watson’s “Streamline Cannonball.” Next up, banjo player Billy Failing’s “So Many Miles,” which contained Sanford & Son teases before heading into “Everything’s The Same” featuring the lyric change “I’m going to Louisville.” Jeff Austin’s “Run Down” came next ahead of Larry Sparks’ “These Old Blues.” Strings and company closed out the first set with “On The Line” into The Stanley Brothers’ “Train 45.”

With Cleveland — who went to school in Kentucky and is originally from just across the Ohio River from Louisville in Henryville, Indiana — the band kicked off the second set with Eck Robertson’s “Sally Goodin.” After “Must Be Seven,” “While I’m Waiting Here” saw the band stretching out a bit and jamming into “Pyramid Country,” — which contained a “Popeye” tease and a nod to “Let’s Go Band,” a song whistled by New York Rangers fans — before heading into Kentucky bluegrass legend Bill Monroe’s “My Rose Of Old Kentucky. Next up, a John Hartford section that included “Today” leading into “All Fall Down,” which saw Billy scratching on his guitar strings. The band then returned to Sparks with “John Deere Tractor” ahead of the title track to Billy’s 2017 debut album Turmoil & Tinfoil to wrap up the second set.

Billy Strings and his band along with Cleveland retook the stage to deliver another treat for the Bluegrass State audience in Bill Monroe’s “Kentucky Mandolin.” Check out video from the show captured by Music City Maven below:

Sally Goodin

Must Be Seven

While I’m Waiting Here

All Fall Down

John Deere Tractor

Setlist via Phantasy Tour

Set One: Eight More Miles To Louisville, Slipstream, Enough To Leave, Running, Along The Road, Streamline Cannonball, So Many Miles1> Everything’s The Same[2], Run Down, These Old Blues, On The Line> Train 45

Set Two: Sally Goodin[3], Must Be Seven[3], While I’m Waiting Here[3][4] > Pyramid Country[3][5][6] > My Rose Of Old Kentucky[3], Today[3]> All Fall Down[3], John Deere Tractor[3], Turmoil & Tinfoil[3]

Encore: Kentucky Mandolin3

• 1 – Sanford & Son teases
• 2 -“I”m going to Louisville, I’m going to Maine” lyric change
• 3 – w/Michael Cleveland
• 4 – w/jam
• 5 – Popeye tease
• 6 – Let’s Go Band tease