Billy Strings Covers Phish, Pearl Jam, More During Monstrous ‘Meet Me At The Crypt’ Halloween Show [Photos/Videos]

Billy Strings took his already legendary series of Halloween extravaganzas to the next level at Baltimore’s CFG Bank Arena with an homage to the 1940s-era Universal Classic Monsters franchise. Strings summoned a graveyard full of ghoulish allies for the occult occasion, including Leftover Salmon, Baltimore native son Cris Jacobs, Grammy-winning keyboardist Cory Henry, the bewitching “Charm City Coven” (Adele Stein on cello, Celia Hatton on viola, and Adriana Molello on fiddle), and more.

The Universal Studios movies that were at the core of the tribute were all bona fide hits when they came out, but they truly became part of the pop culture pantheon in the ’50s when they were among the first films sold to UHF stations across the nation. Before the era of streaming and even rerun TV, films would be rereleased in theaters every few years. That changed in 1957, when 60 classic horror films, including the Universal Studios films, were sold to local stations across the nation and entered weekly rotation, often as part of a “Horror Movie Of The Week” program with costumed hosts of every shape and size.

Billy and his pack of creatures of the night took the stage in instant overdrive. Dressed in full Wolfman makeup, Strings wailed on both electric and acoustic guitars, joined in on percussion, and generally made musical havoc all night like a man—or beast—possessed. Leftover Salmon drummer Alwyn Robinson, sporting a Phantom Of The Opera mask, was on fire, but he wasn’t alone. Cory Henry, rocking a black lab coat, had his own organ nest with every tool that a Mad Scientist could need to make the music come alive…ALIVE!

 

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Strings’ sidemen got in on the act as well. Bassist Royal Masat looked perfectly pallid with white face makeup, a black widow’s peak, and Dracula cape, though he gushed low-end goodness instead of sucking blood. Mandolinist Jarrod Walker, dressed as Frankenstein’s monster, had his Bride on the far side, as banjoist Billy Failing made a frankly unattractive but talented betrothed for the famous Monster. Fiddler Alex Hargreaves was wrapped up like The Mummy and honestly looked the most comfortable out of all the players on stage. The burly, bearded spirit of all things “FESTIVAL!!!” Vince Herman, on the other hand, didn’t look too graceful in his ballerina costume, but his instrumental efforts were top shelf nonetheless.

Every ghoulish guest had a role to fill. The “Charm City Coven” gathered around their cauldron in their pointed withes’ hats and helped bring the horror theme to life. Robinson and Henry added instruments one hardly hears in bluegrass, but their drums and keyboards were welcome additions for the huge number of covers and reworked tunes in the setlist.

 

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Among the many monstrous selections were canine-ical covers of Phish’s “Wolf Man’s Brother” and Warren Zevon’s “Werewolves Of London”, plus frightening rock classics like The Beatles “Run For Your Life”, Santana‘s (“Black Magic Woman”), and Edgar Winter‘s ode to “Frankenstein”, which saw Billy join Alwyn in a percussion duet. Artists from opposite ends of the spectrum were represented, from the heavy metal thunder of Black Sabbath‘s “War Pigs”, Ozzy Osborne‘s “Bark at the Moon”, and Jimi Hendrix‘s “Fire” to more lighthearted fare like Gordon Lightfoot‘s “The Wreck Of The Edmond Fitzgeral” and Randy Newman‘s “You’ve Got A Friend In Me”. Pearl Jam‘s “Alive” was another unforgettable homage, with the wolfy frontman giving Eddie Vedder a real run for his money.

 

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It’s not like Billy forgot the bluegrass, either. Greensky Bluegrass, David Grisman, and Bill Monroe made the cut with “Blood Sucking F(r)iends”, “Arabia”, and “Mother’s Not Dead”, respectively. In what has to be some kind of record for Strings and his band, there were 25 total covers and, among those, 19 debuts. The prep work for the show must have been protracted and intense, but the results were truly spectacular.

While the show, like previous Halloween efforts from String and his hard-working production team, was beyond impressive, it did raise one questions: How will he ever top this year’s spectacle? We’ll have to wait until the witching season rolls around next year to find out.

Check out some videos from Billy Strings’ Meet Me At The Crypt Halloween show. The entire show is available to stream on demand via nugs. All Access subscribers can watch every remaining Billy Strings show of 2025 at no additional cost. Start streaming on nugs or sign up for a free trial here. [Editor’s Note: Live For Live Music is a nugs affiliate. Ordering your nugs subscription or purchasing a download via the links on this page helps support our coverage of the world of live music. Thank you for reading!]

Find Billy Strings tickets here.

Billy Strings – “Frankenstein” (Edgar Winter Group), “Tombstone Blues” (Bob Dylan) – 10/31/25

 

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Billy Strings – “Fire” (The Jimi Hendrix Experience) – 10/31/25

[Video: Todd Norris]

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Billy Strings – “Taking Water” > “Hide And Seek” – 10/31/25

[Vide: Steve Maurer]

Billy Strings – “Way Down In The Hole” (Tom Waits) – 10/31/25

[Video: Todd Norris]

Billy Strings – “You’ve Got A Friend In Me” (Randy Newman) – 10/31/25

[Video: Seneca Creek Bluegrass]

Billy Strings – “Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald” – 10/31/25

[Vide: Steve Maurer]

Billy Strings – “War Pigs” (Black Sabbath) – 10/31/25

[Video: Todd Norris]

Billy Strings – “Lil’ Red Ridin’ Hood” – 10/31/25

[Vide: Steve Maurer]

Billy Strings – “Bitin’ List” (Tyler Childers) – 10/31/25

[Video: Jeff Jaworski]

Billy Strings – “Bark At The Moon” (Ozzy Osbourne) – 10/31/25

[Video: MrTopdogger]

Billy Strings – “Werewolves Of London” (Warren Zevon) – 10/31/25

[Video: Seneca Creek Bluegrass]

Billy Strings – “Monster Mash” (Boris Pickett & The Crypt-Kickers) – 10/31/25

[Video: Seneca Creek Bluegrass]

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Setlist: Billy Strings | CFG Bank Arena | Baltimore, MD | 10/31/25
Set 1: Frankenstein (Edgar Winter Group) [1][2][3], Tombstone Blues (Bob Dylan) [4][5], Alive (Pearl Jam) [6][7], Red Daisy [5], Taking Water [5] > Hide and Seek [5], Fire (Jimi Hendrix) [7][9], Coven of Strings > The Mummy’s Bracelet (Lee Ross) [10][11], Arabia (David Grisman) [12][14], Ain’t No Grave (Brother Claude Ely) [14][15][16], Way Down In The Hole (Tom Waits) [17][18][19], Mother’s Not Dead (Bill Monroe) [2][20]
Set 2: Mummies Theme [10], Run For Your Life (The Beatles) [8][11][22], The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald (Gordon Lightfoot) [2], Blood Sucking F(r)iends (Greensky Bluegrass) [2][23] > Highway Hypnosis [2], War Pigs (Black Sabbath) [7][24], Dracula/Wolfman Themes, You’ve Got A Friend in Me (Randy Newman) [26][27], Black Magic Woman (Santana) [7][28], L-o-v-e (Bert Kaempfert) [7][29][20], Dealing Despair [7][13], Coven of Strings > Home [5][24], Wolfman’s Brother (Phish) [7][31] > Bitin’ List (Tyler Childers) [7][32], Lil’ Red Riding Hood, Bark at the Moon (Ozzy Osborne) [7][34]
Encore: Werewolves Of London [24][35][26] (Warren Zevon), Monster Mash (Boris Pickett & The Crypt-Kickers)

1. Billy Strings on electric guitar, Royal Masat on electric bass
2. w/ Cory Henry on Keyboards, Alwyn Robinson on drums, Cris Jacobs on guitar
3. FTP – Edgar Winter Group
4. Jarrod Walker lead vocals
5. Royal Masat on electric bass, Cory Henry on Keyboards, Alwyn Robinson on drums
6. FTP – Pearl Jam
7. Billy Strings on electric guitar, Royal Masat on electric bass, Cory Henry on Keyboards, Alwyn Robinson on drums, Cris Jacobs on guitar
8. Billy Strings on electric guitar, Cory Henry on keyboards, Alwyn Robinson on drums, Cris Jacobs on guitar
9. Alwyn Robinson on lead vocals
10. Charm City Coven solo – Adele Stein on cello, Celia Hatton on viola, Adriana Molello on fiddle
11. FTP
12. FTP – Lee Ross
13. FTP – Jerry Garcia and David Grisman
14. Jarrod Walker on mandola, Cory Henry on Keyboards, Alwyn Robinson on drums
15. Alex Hargreaves on lead vocals
16. FTP – Bozie Sturdivant
17. Billy Strings on electric guitar, Cory Henry on keyboards, Alwyn Robinson on drums, Cris Jacobs on guitar
18. FTP – Tom Waits
19. Billy Strings & Cris Jacobs on lead vocals
20. “Mummy’s Not Dead” lyric change
21. FTP – The Beatles
22. Royal Masat on lead vocals
23. FTP – Greensky Bluegrass
24. w/ Charm City Coven – Adele Stein on cello, Celia Hatton on viola, Adriana Molello on fiddle
25. Alex Hargreaves w/ Charm City Coven
26. FTP – Randy Newman
27. w/ Cory Henry on Keyboards, Alwyn Robinson on drums
28. FTP – Santana
29. Billy Failing and Jarrod Walker on lead vocals
30. FTP – Bert Kaempfert and His Orchestra
31. FTP – Phish
32. FTP – Tyler Childers
33. FTP – Sam the Sham and The Pharaohs
34. FTP – Ozzy Osbourne
35. FTP – Warren Zevon
36. Billy Strings on electric guitar, Royal Masat on electric bass, Cory Henry on Keyboards, Alwyn Robinson on drums, Cris Jacobs on guitar, Vince
37. Herman on guitar, Andy Thorn on banjo, Drew Emmitt on mandolin, Jay Starling on dobro, Greg Garrison on bass
38. FTP – Boris Pickett & The Crypt-Kickers