Sturgill Simpson previewed his forthcoming Johnny Blue Skies & The Dark Clouds tour last night during a surprise, nearly three-hour show at Nashville’s 200-person The Cobra. Tickets to the pop-up performance were only $25 and available at the door.
The tiny concert, which was announced just two hours earlier, kicked off with the Sound & Fury tune “A Good Look,” before moving into the debut of the new number “Make America Fuk Again,” from Simpsons’s 2026 Johnny Blue Skies LP Mutiny After Midnight, and then back into “A Good Luck.” The rest of the show mixed originals, covers and live debuts, including Prince’ “Purple Rain,” Simpson’s first live reading of Bad Company’s “Feel Like Makin' Love,” “Welcome to Earth (Pollywog),” Eddie Murphy’s “Party All the Time,” “It Ain't All Flowers,” “Best Clockmaker on Mars,” “Right Kind of Dream,” “All Said and Done,” “If the Sun Never Rises Again,” “Fastest Horse in Town,” “Mint Tea,” “Brace for Impact (Live a Little),” William Bell’s “You Don't Miss Your Water” and “Call to Arms.”
Johnny Blue Skies & The Dark Clouds—whose lineup also includes drummer Miles “Easy Luvin” Miller, guitarist “Little Joe” Joamets, bassist Kevin “Black Daddy” Black and keyboardist/saxophonist Robbie “Raw B” Crowell—debuted a slew of other tracks from Mutiny After Midnight as well, including “Stay On That,” “Everyone Is Welcome,” “Excited Delirium,” “Venus,” “Ain’t That A Bitch,” “Viridescent,” “Don't Let Go” and “Situation.” At the end of the night, Simpson and his Johnny Blue Skies band brought things to a close with their first spin on the Talking Heads classic “Life During Wartime.”
Though off the road for much of the year—he had not performed a full show since September 17, 2025, before last night—Simpson made a surprise appearance with The Black Keys earlier this month. He will kick off the Johnny Blue Skies & The Dark Clouds Mutiny for the Masses Tour at Austin, TX’s Moody Center on September 4.
