Billy Strings – Spark Arena: July 22, 2025 (13th Floor Concert Review)
Billy Strings was a pickin’, and we were a grinnin’ as he and his four compadres treated a nearly-full Spark Arena to nearly two and a half hours of primo Bluegrass music.
The Michigan native, now based in Nashville, has almost single-handedly made Bluegrass cool. And tonight’s show was a testimony to how that happened.
The two 2-hour + sets featured a mix of virtuosity, energy, passion, wit and wisdom that is rare for this specific genre.
The show started promptly at 8pm as Billy (on acoustic guitar) was flanked by double bass player Royal Masal and mandolin man Jarrod Walker to his right and banjo-playin’ Billy Failing and fiddle player Alex Hargreaves to his left.
With a few random-sounding notes plucked, they were off and running…starting with a 20-minute medley that included The Likes Of Me, Must Be Seven and Secrets.
Twenty-some minutes later, I was exhausted just listening to them, but Billy and his boys were just picking up steam.
“It good to be here”, Billy informed us…a man of few words, but many notes.
The first set continues with a mix of originals (Everything’s The Same, Nothing’s Working) and tasty covers…John Hartford’s I’m Still Here, Jerry Reed’s The Likes Of Me and, best of all, The Beatles’ I’ll Cry Instead.
In addition to his playing and singing, Strings is a master of dynamics…the set’s energy level and intensity raised and lowered as each band member got plenty of opportunities to show off their stuff.
But, ultimately, it was all about the song.
“Thanks for stickin’ around,” he deadpanned at the beginning of set two.
Set two picked up where one ended…more cool covers (Doc Watson, The Dillards…and The Moody Blues). I’ve gotta say, I’m not sure I needed to hear Nights In White Satin in this context, but it shows Billy is not afraid to push the envelope.
Better was the dueling banjos of Georgie Buck and Dos Banjos and, even better was the a cappella singing of Richard Petty and If Your Hair’s Too Long (There’s Sin In Your Heart)…gospel the way it was meant to be sung!
A late highlight was Turmoil and Tinfoil, the title track from Strings’ 2017 album that acted as a springboard for flights of instrumental fancy from each of the 5 players.
“We got a train to catch”, announced Billy and the pace picked up as they endevoured to squeeze as much music as they could play in the allocated time.
Apparently there was a curfew in place and so an abbreviated encore featured, appropriately enough, The Beginning Of The End and Train 45.
When that train had left the station it was all over.
But the crowd was buzzing…such pickin’, such playin’ has rarely been witnessed ‘round these parts and we all went home…grinnin’.
Marty Duda
Click on any image to view a photo gallery by Brenna Jo Gotje:
Billy Strings Setlist
Set 1:
- The Likes Of Me/Must Be Seven/Secrets
- Doin’ Things Right
- Everything’s The Same
- Nothing’s Working
- West Dakota Rose
- Stratosphere Blues/I Believe In You
- I’m Still Here
- So Many Miles
- Dealing Despair
Set 2:
- Hollow Heart
- Nothing To It
- Nights In White Satin
- Highway Hypnosis
- Georgie Buck
- Dos Banjos
- Richard Petty
- If Your Hair’s Too Long (There’s Sin In Your Heart)
- The Old Home Place
- Stone Walls And Steel Bars
- Turmoil and Tinfoil
- Tennessee
- The Beginning Of The End
- Train 45
