Billy Strings, Bryan Sutton and Royal Masat Welcome Sam Bush, Pay Tribute to Doc Watson on Night Two at The Ryman
Photo: Stevo Rood
Billy Strings, Bryan Sutton, and Royal Masat were not finished at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium after they closed out a concert in the historic hall on Sunday, September 14. Having welcomed virtuoso banjoist Béla Fleck, there was an unspoken expectation that night two would feature a similar flair when the acoustic collective retook the storied stage on Monday evening. Like the night prior, a master of the craft was waiting in the wings to liven the night with fingerpicked texture: three-time Grammy award-winning mandolinist Sam Bush.
Before welcoming their aid to sit in on selections from the bluegrass songbook, Strings, Sutton, and Masat took a seat and indulged the sold-out crowd with a mix of material that touched on Carter Family originals scorched by Doc Watson’s flatpicking impression, a heap of traditionals, in addition to covers of Townes Van Zandt, Bob Dylan, and John Hurt. The first frame was a full-bodied entry, rich in trades, led by both Sutton and Strings, demonstrating their shared fascination and respect for this canon of music.
The start of the second set found just Strings taking the stage for a pair of tunes: “Matty Groves” and “Brown’s Ferry Blues.” He stepped aside next, allowing Sutton solo time on “Italy.” For this number, Sutton took out the clawhammer banjo but ultimately retired it for the next series of songs, opting for guitar during a sequence of duets with String. The twosome performed “Give The Fiddler a Dram,” “Whistling Rufus,” and “Ragtime Annie.”
What came next was Bush’s arrival. The virtuoso mandolinist resumed the instrumental banter he began with Strings and Sutton back in 2024 [Sam Bush sat in with Billy Strings during the band’s second night at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on Feb. 24, as well as Sutton, who was also there as a guest], working through traditional tunes and material that nodded toward genre greats Bill Monroe and Doc Watson.
The four-piece began their delivery on the Monroe-penned “Watson Blues,” followed by “What Does The Deep Sea Say?” “Sleep, Baby, Sleep.” They continued their siege of Watson-associated releases, “St. Louis Blues,” and the city named “Nashville Pickin’,” which represented a bust out for Strings, last played on January 8, 2020. Its arrival ended a 478-show gap in plays.
“Streamline Cannonball,” “Summertime,” “The Train That Carried My Girl From Town,” and “Black Mountain Rag” continued to reference Watson, which ultimately informed the makeup of the night’s encore, Cliff Friend-penned, turned Watson and David Grisman co-release, “I Told Them All About You,” and ender “I’m A Natural Born Gamblin Man.”
Two nights of sold-out shows in Chattanooga begin tonight. For more information, visit www.billystrings.com.
Billy Strings, Bryan Sutton with Royal Masat
Ryman Auditorium – Nashville
September 16, 2025
Set I: Way Downtown1,Little Darling Pal Of Mine1,Blue Railroad Train,Hold That Woodpile Down,Fifteen Cents1,Shady Grove,The House Carpenter,Southbound1,If I Needed You1,Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright,Talking to Casey Poor Boy Blues,We Shall All Be Reunited
Set II: Matty Groves2,Brown’s Ferry Blues2,Italy3,Give The Fiddler A Dram4 Whistling Rufus4 Ragtime Annie4,Watson Blues5,What Does The Deep Sea Say?1,5,Sleep, Baby, Sleep5,St. Louis Blues5,Nashville Pickin’5,6 ,Streamline Cannonball1,5,Summertime5,7,The Train That Carried My Girl From Town1,5 Black Mountain Rag5
Enc.: I Told Them All About You5,I’m a Natural Born Gamblin’ Man5
Notes:
- Bryan Sutton on lead vocals
- Billy Strings solo
- Bryan Sutton solo on clawhammer banjo
- Duet w/ Billy Strings & Bryan Sutton on guitar
- w/ Sam Bush on mandolin
- Last Time Played 2020-01-08 | 478 show gap
- w/ Sam Bush on lead vocals
Setlist and notes via billybase.net.
