Last night, Billy Strings performed at the Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, N.Y., as part of his ongoing fall tour. During his performance at the nearly 12,500-person capacity arena, Strings’ debuted two classic covers: Bill Monroe’s “Ashland Breakdown” and “Cold Cold World” by Blaze Foley.

The quintet, comprised of Strings, Jarrod Walker on mandolin, Alex Hargreaves on fiddle, bassist Royal Masat and Billy Failing on banjo, opened their extensive set with The Seldom Scene’s “Old Train” before a sweeping “Turmoil & Tinfoil.” They continued their ignited picking with “Running the Route” before a cover of The Stanley Brothers’ “Stone Walls And Steel Bars.” Strings and his band continued with a pairing off his LP Renewal: “Fire Line” and “Running.” Next, Strings shared the live debut of Monroe’s 1976 song “Ashland Breakdown.” The classics kept on rolling with “The Train That Carried My Girl From Down” by Doc Watson and the traditional “Black Mountain Rag.” Next came the sweet-hearted “Love & Regret” before they played “Bronzeback” > “Must Be Seven.” They rounded the frame out with the ever-romantic “In The Morning Light” and “Everything’s The Same” to close.

String’s second set began with “Heartbeat OF America” and the traditional “Red Rocking Chair,” which is well known for Doc and Merle Watson’s interpretation. Next came “Hollow Heart,” “While I’m Waiting Here,” and “Pyramid Country.” They continued to make memorable moments by playing The Beatles’, “And Your Bird Can Sing” for the first time since the spring. He then dusted out another song that hadn’t been heard from Strings since the spring, “I’ve Been All Around This World.” After a few more songs and parings, including “The Fire on My Tongue” > “Air Mail Special,” Tony rice’s “Tipper, “Hellbender,” and more Strings brought the set to a close with “Dust In A Baggie.”

After a brief break, the second debut of the evening opened the encore, and the late Foley’s “Cold Cold World” came into the fray. They fleshed out the encore with two more songs by Monroe: Roll On Buddy, Roll On” and “The Gold Rush.” As the last song came on, Strings causally said to the crowd, “Y’all could go home now if you want to, we’re just jamming. The show is pretty much over.”

Billy Strings will perform next at Nassau Coliseum on Friday in Uniondale, N.Y.

Strings will continue his fall shows through Nov. 19  – catch the next one on nugs.net.

Billy Strings
Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, N.Y.
Nov. 9, 2022

Set I: Old Train (The Seldom Scene cover) > Turmoil & Tinfoil, Running the Route, Stone Walls and Steel Bars (The Stanley Brothers cover) Fire Line > Running, Ashland Breakdown (debut) (Bill Monroe cover), The Train That Carried My Girl From Town (Doc Watson cover) (>)Black Mountain Rag ([traditional] cover), Love and Regret, Bronzeback > Must Be Seven, In the Morning Light, Everything’s the Same

Set II: Heartbeat of America, Red Rocking Chair ([traditional] cover), Hollow Heart, While I’m Waiting Here> Pyramid Country > And Your Bird Can Sing (The Beatles cover), Been All Around This World ([traditional] cover), The Fire on My Tongue (>) Air Mail Special (Jim and Jesse cover), Hellbender, John Deere Tractor (Larry Sparks cover), Tipper (Tony Rice cover), Dust in a Baggie (Billy Strings & Don Julin cover),

Enc.: Cold, Cold World (debut) (Blaze Foley cover), Roll On Buddy Roll On (Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass Boys cover), Gold Rush (Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass Boys cover)