photo by Ant Braaten via Daniel Donato Facebook

On July 1-4 Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country and Molly Strings performed four nights of co-bills in Virginia and Pennsylvania. Over the course of those gigs, the two not only shared the billing but they also took the opportunity to share the stage as well.

During the opening night at Wolf Trap in Vienna, VA, Tuttle appeared at the close of the Cosmic Country set, joining Donato on vocals and contributing acoustic guitar to the traditional “Roll in My Sweet Baby’s Arms.” Donato later appeared during Tuttle’s performance for her tune “Dooley’s Farm,” which led into  Neil Young’s “Ohio” (which he originally recorded with Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young) and then back into “Dooley’s Farm.”

The next evening Ardmore Music Hall in Ardmore, PA, Tuttle collaborated with Donato’s group on “East Bound and Down,” the Jerry Reed composition that serves as the theme to the film Smokey and the Bandit in which Reed co-starred with Burt Reynolds, Sally Field and Jackie Gleason. Donato also returned for the “Dooley’s Farm” > “Ohio” > “Dooley’s Farm” combo.

On Friday at the Coves Amphitheater in Union Hall, VA, Donato emerged at the very end of Tuttle’s set to participate on a version of Jefferson Airplave’s “White Rabbit.” Tuttle reciprocated during a take on Carter Stanley’s “Riding That Midnight Train” with Cosmic Country.

On July 4th at the same venue Donato and Tuttle wrapped up their run with a version of the Grateful Dead’s “U.S. Blues.”

Molly Tuttle will join Chris Stapleton’s All-American Road Show later this week in California, while Donato will return to the stage on Thursday at the HI-FI Annex in Indianapolis, IN.