Hello (Austin) City Limits: Billy Strings Devotes Intimate Underplay To Traditional Bluegrass [Videos]

After Billy Strings and his band delivered seismic waves of psychedelia in Fort Worth on Thursday, the guitarist and his band traveled to Austin on Friday for a show that was rare for a variety of reasons. Before taking over the 16,223-capacity Moody Center on Saturday, Strings and company set up in the decidedly more intimate 2,750-capacity ACL Live at the Moody Theater—home of PBS‘ Austin City Limits. With that intimacy in mind, Strings decided to pull up a few chairs and treat the fortunate few to a night of traditional bluegrass music.

Billy took the stage alone but for his acoustic guitar and spoke with joy as he previewed the fun low-key vibe he had lined up for the crowd. Billy had a simple request of the audience, ”Get along with each other, settle in, and enjoy some Christmas spirit, some covers, some classics, and a ‘lil seasonal cheer.” His opener started as “Give The Fiddler A Dram” before morphing into “Whistling Rufus” and then finally settling into “Ragtime Annie”.

Laughing to himself, Strings decided to get a little old-time-y with some “talking bluegrass” on “Catch And Release” and its comical tale of fishing with Leftover Salmon’s beloved bandleader Vince Herman. The story, and its always useful message “Only break one law at a time,” is as true now as it was the first time he sang the tune. Doc Watson‘s “Nashville Blues” was up next, as Billy still sat, comfy and solo on acoustic guitar, showing off his sweet voice alongside his fretboard dexterity.

Billy Strings — ACL Live At The Moody Theatre — Austin, TX — 12/13/24 — Preview

An intricate, flowing take on the traditional “Groundhog” was served up next. Switching out his acoustic guitar for his trusty clawhammer banjo, the sharp discordant sound contrasted wonderfully with his honey-sweet vocals on “Georgia Buck”. Between songs, Strings waxed philosophical about the enduring themes of bluegrass before continuing with Dock Boggs’ “Country Blues”, restarting the song after realizing he was out of tune.

After “Reuben’s Train”, Billy, still on clawhammer, called his bandmate and nominally mandolin player Jarrod Walker who came out with an acoustic guitar and took up a seat next to Billy. After finishing their acoustic two-some, Billy welcomed the rest of his band for a seated hoe down, with bassist Royal Masat bucking the traditional atmosphere by favoring an electric bass guitar. Masat, rocking sunglasses and a “Terminator”-style leather jacket, cut quite the imposing figure compared to his far more chill bandmates.

With the band back together, it was time for a rousing musical question, “How Many Biscuits Can You Eat” before a visit to the “Shady Grove” that saw some lovely fiddle workflow from Alex Hargreaves. The night was chock full of songs written by and covered by the great Doc Watson and the entire show could easily have been billed as a dedication to the late superstar’s catalog. Reverent takes on traditional tunes “Crawdad Hole” and “Blue Eyed Boston Boy” followed a ripping take on The Seekers‘ classic “Open Up Them Pearly Gates”.

Hargreaves, after some prodding from Billy, pontificated on Texas’ rich fiddle history before launching “Texas Gales” on the appreciative audience. Closing out the first set with “Hold The Wood Pile Down“, Strings noted that if the food tunes had stirred up some pangs of hunger in the audience the venue had some “pretty good nachos” and plenty of tasty beverages to wash them down with before promising a rapid return.

Billy started the second set as he did the first, solo in front of the few thousand fans. This time he didn’t even come packing a guitar, choosing to sing Ralph Stanley’s “Am I Born To Die?” acapella into the single mic at the front of the stage as the hushed crowd sat in appreciative silence. That awed silence exploded into thunderous approval as Strings was handed an acoustic guitar and brought out mandolinist Jarrod Walker for a quick pick at “Feast Here Tonight (Rabbit In A Log)” and “Soldier’s Joy” before the rest of the band joined the duo for more front and center traditional work.

Bobby Davidson’s “If Your Hair’s Too Long (There’s Sin In Your Heart)” got the full band going before a razor-sharp take on “I’ve Been All Around This World” got the crowd up and dancing in the aisles. As the crowd rose from their seats, Billy and his bandmates returned to theirs and settled in for the main part of the second set, starting off with “Soldier’s Joy” before facing “Dreadful Wind And Rain” which saw some tasty, discordant banjo plucking from Billy Failing.

After defying the traditional edict “Don’t You Let That Deal Go Down”, Hargreaves and Strings did some lovely, lilting work on murder ballad “Tom Dooley”. Clearly in a groove, the five-piece bluegrass machine pressed on quickly, steaming through a few more traditional tunes like “Wagoner’s Lad”, “Jeff Sturgeon”, and “Little Saddie” with a mixture of effortless speed and heartfelt fretwork.

Now barreling toward the conclusion, Billy and the band ripped through tunes as only they can with “Pallet On Your Floor”, ”Blackberry Blossom”, and “The Train That Carried My Girl From Town”. Gaither Carlton’s “Look Up Look Down That Lonesome Road” and Gid Tanner & His Skillet Lickers’ “Down Yonder” ran down most of the remaining set time before a visit from “John Hardy” closed out the packed night’s main stanzas of music.

After enough time to stretch their legs and sip a few sips of their respective beverages, Bill and his band returned. Strings offered a few of his more trademark farewell odes, including the decidedly northern “Keep your stick on the ice” and his more widely known and loved “I’m Bill and it’s been a thrill” before they gave the crowd one last fiery call to hoedown with a perky “Y’all Come”.

The mix of reverence for the past—with trappings like acapella numbers and center mic traditional work—alongside the deep pack of traditional tunes are a towering testimonial to Billy Strings and his band’s devotion to the roots of bluegrass. Following such a relaxed night of picking it’s a near certainty that Saturday night’s show will surely be an evening of more modern tunes and originals to round out the Lone Star State sojourn.

That said, those lucky enough to be in the Moody Theatre for Friday’s love letter to bluegrass history witnessed something unique in the guitarist’s still-nascent history. In addition to delivering an engaging lesson on the mountain music songbook, Strings and company showed a side that—while often employed—is not nearly as often so thoroughly explored. It was a most welcome variation from the more volatile mix of songs typically displayed by the Billy String band and as such it will be a present that fans in attendance will long cherish.

Check out some videos of the show from Steam Powered Aerodyne. Livestreams of the upcoming Billy Strings show at the Moody Center (12/14) will be available to view for free for nugs.net subscribers. Not a nugs subscriber yet? Sign up here to access these and other subscriber-exclusive livestreams in addition to an extensive catalog of live concert recordings. [Editor’s Note: Live For Live Music is a nugs affiliate. Ordering your nugs subscription or purchasing a download/Billy Strings livestream via the links on this page helps support our coverage of the world of live music. Thank you for reading!]

Billy Strings — “Groundhog” (Doc Watson) — 12/13/24

Billy Strings — “Brown’s Ferry Blues” (Delmore Brothers) — 12/13/24

Billy Strings — “Down Yonder” (Gid Tanner & His Skillet Lickers) — 12/13/24

Billy Strings — “How Many Biscuits Can You Eat” (Traditional) — 12/13/24

Billy Strings — “Y’all Come” (Arlie Duff) — 12/13/24

Setlist: Billy Strings | ACL Live At The Moody Theatre | Austin, TX | 12/13/24

Set One: Give The Fiddler A Dram (Traditional) [1] > Whistling Rufus (Traditional) [1] > Ragtime Annie (Traditional) [1], Catch And Release [1], Nashville Blues (Doc Watson) [1], Groundhog (Doc Watson) [1], Brown’s Ferry Blues (Delmore Brothers) [1], Georgia Buck (Doc Watson) [2], Country Blues (Dock Boggs) [2], Reuben’s Train (Traditional) [2], Frosty Mom (Doc Watson) [3], How Many Biscuits Can You Eat (Traditional), Shady Grove (Traditional), Open Up Them Pearly Gates (The Seekers), Crawdad Hole (Traditional), Two Soldiers (Traditional), Texas Gales (Doc Watson), Hold The Wood Pile Down (Doc Watson)
Set Two: Am I Born To Die? (Ralph Stanley) [1], Feast Here Tonight (Rabbit In A Log) (Traditional) [3], Soldier’s Joy (Traditional) [4], If Your Hair’s Too Long (There’s Sin In Your Heart) (Bobby Davidson) [5], I’ve Been All Around This World (Traditional) [6], Muddy Roads (Doc Watson), Dreadful Wind And Rain (Traditional), Don’t Let Your Deal Go Down (Traditional), Tom Dooley (Traditional), Wagoner’s Lad (Traditional) [1], Jeff Sturgeon (Traditional) [4], Little Saddie (Traditional), Make Me A Pallet On Your Floor (Traditional), Blackberry Blossom (Traditional), The Train That Carried My Girl From Town (Traditional), Look Up Look Down That Lonesome Road (Gaither Carlton), Down Yonder (Gid Tanner & His Skillet Lickers), John Hardy (Traditional)
Encore: Y’all Come (Arlie Duff)

[1] Billy Strings solo
[2] Billy Strings solo on clawhammer banjo
[3] Billy Strings on clawhammer banjo, Jarrod Walker on guitar
[4] Billy Strings and Jarrod Walker
[5] Whole band minus Alex around single mic
[6] Whole band around single mic