Tedeschi Trucks Band Plants ‘Wildflowers’ In Tribute To Dolly Parton
Watch Susan Tedeschi, Alecia Chakour and Gabe Dixon honor Parton with a song she recorded with Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt.
By Scott Bernstein Aug 31, 2026 • 10:08 am PDT
Tedeschi Trucks Band closed out a two-night stand at Wolf Trap in Vienna, Virginia on Saturday after using both concerts to honor Dolly Parton, who died last week at age 80. Susan Tedeschi and bandmates Alecia Chakour and Gabe Dixon debuted a cover of Parton’s “Wildflowers” on Friday and brought the song back for Saturday’s encore.
Parton wrote “Wildflowers” and recorded it with Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt for their landmark 1987 collaborative album, Trio. The song was later released as the album’s fourth and final single and reached No. 6 on the Billboard country chart. Parton drew on memories of wandering through fields as a child for the song, using wildflowers as a metaphor for her own restless spirit and dreams.
Tedeschi, Chakour and Dixon handled “Wildflowers” as a vocal trio Friday, with the debut following “Gin House Blues” and preceding “Anyhow.” The performance came three days after Parton’s death in Nashville on August 25. Tedeschi Trucks Band returned to the tribute Saturday, placing “Wildflowers” at the start of its two-song encore before closing the run with “Let’s Go Get Stoned.”
The Friday concert also saw TTB work Sly & The Family Stone’s “You Can Make It If You Try” into “Everyday People” and later link “Do I Look Worried” and “Shame” with a sequence that eventually landed on Frank Zappa’s “Willie The Pimp.” Support act Lukas Nelson and his band joined Tedeschi Trucks Band for the encore, contributing to covers of Neil Young’s “Helpless” and the Joe Cocker-popularized “Space Captain.”
Saturday brought another notable return when “They Don’t Shine” appeared for the first time since February 28, 2020. The song appears on the 2019 TTB studio album Signs.
TTB also paired The Rolling Stones’ “Loving Cup” with “Leavin’ Trunk,” offered a rendition of “Ohio” featuring a “Machine Gun” tease and worked “Love Has Something Else To Say” into “I Walk On Guilded Splinters” late in the set. Additionally, the 12-piece ensemble covered “Fire and Rain” one night before James Taylor began a three-show Wolf Trap engagement.
Lukas Nelson and his band opened both Wolf Trap concerts. The shows were part of Tedeschi Trucks Band’s Future Soul 2026 Tour, which continues tonight at Bethel Woods Center For The Arts in Bethel, New York.
Watch Tedeschi, Chakour and Dixon honor Dolly Parton with “Wildflowers” backstage and in concert below:
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