Billy Strings Kicks Off Savannah Series with Banjo Duel and Second-Time Covers of Merle Travis and John Hiatt
Photo Credit: Stevo Rood
Last night, April 11, Billy Strings touched down in Savannah, Ga. for the third stop on his eagerly anticipated 2025 Spring Tour. Wrapping up a week on the road that brought four exceptional performances–including a rare bust out of Bill Monroe’s “Old Dangerfield” with a jam that played on Phish’s “Sand” in Tampa, Fla.–the bluegrass firebrand coasted into the Peach State with a comparatively casual staging. With the first of two performances in his return to Enmarket Arena, Strings played the hits, offering up fan favorites from throughout his catalog accented by some well-traveled and emergent covers.
Strings stormed the stage on Friday night with the rollicking unreleased original “Bronzeback,” which provided an early opportunity to flex his lightning-quick and dynamic guitar chops as he merged into the Charlie Monroe standard “Bringing in the Georgia Mail.” The style-colliding artist remained in this reverent, classic sound for his four-year fan favorite “Hellbender,” then turned to his 2024 album Highway Prayers with “Gone a Long Time” and a shadowy, stormy take on “My Alice.”
Strings built steam in the first act’s midsection by seguing “The Fire on My Tongue” into “Drifter’s Escape” and “Thirst Mutilator” into the perennial crowd pleaser “Dust in a Baggie,” then issued one of the evening’s more surprising selections with his second-ever cover of Merle Travis’ “I’m a Natural Born Gamblin’ Man,” debuted on New Year’s Eve 2024 as the kickoff number for a special casino-themed show at New Orleans’ UNO Lakefront Arena. Shortly thereafter, he closed out the first frame of Friday with a commanding rendition of his recent achievement “Seven Weeks in County.”
From the set-break, Strings sauntered on stage solo for a stripped-down cover of The Hill Billies’ “Georgia Buck,” trading his acoustic guitar for a clawhammer banjo. The frontman held on to his new instrument as he welcomed trusty banjoist Billy Failing for a duelling “Dos Billys” performance of his original “Dos Banjos.” The Billys’ other bandmates, bassist Royal Masat, fiddler Alex Hargreaves and mandolinist Jarrod Walker, filed in for the following “Drifting with the Tide,” then the quintet blazed on through a second set lined with longtime hits like “Little Maggie” and “Enough to Leave.” As an odd end along the way, the band turned up its second performance of John Hiatt’s “Crossing Muddy Waters” to date.
After wrapping their second set with the Renewal standout “Hide and Seek,” Strings and his ensemble stepped back into the spotlight for the encore with “Freedom.” With all but Hargreaaves circling a single microphone, the band wrapped up their first show in Savannah with “My Blue Eyed Darling,” “Rank Stranger,” “Tennessee” and a grand finale of “Ruby.”
Strings will return to Enmarket Arena for a follow-up performance tonight, then shuffle off to Charlottesville, Va. for a standalone show on April 15. Find tickets and more information on the band’s full 2025 live itinerary at billystrings.com/
