Listen To Ryley Walker Play 23-Minute ‘The Roundabout’ In Seattle

Ryley Walker played a 23-minute version of “The Roundabout” on Sunday night in Seattle. The performance was part of the guitarist’s opening set before the Drive-By Truckers show at Showbox.

Somewhat reminiscent of Walker’s 20-minute cover of Phish’s “First Tube” for JamBase’s Cluster Flies covers compilation, his approach to The “Roundabout” was to break out of the song’s structure into a free-form, sprawlingly psychedelic improvisation. Like his recording of “First Tube,” Walker’s set at the Showbox saw him accompanied by bassist Andrew Scott Young and drummer Ryan Jewell.

Walker began his set with the expanded “Roundabout,” which appears as a four-minute track on his 2016 album, Golden Sings That Have Been Sung. The rest of the performance consisted of “Rang Dizzy” and “Striking Down Your Big Premiere” from Walker’s 2021 album Course In Fable, as well as “Opposite Middle” from his 2018 album, Deafman Glance.

Taped by Justin Hoogerwerf, Ryley Walker’s 23-minute “The Roundabout” and full opening set for DBT at the Showbox in Seattle can be streamed below:

Setlist

Set: The Roundabout, Rang Dizzy, Striking Down Your Big Premiere, Opposite Middle