Watch: Billy Strings Welcomes Sierra Ferrell for Sit-in at Under The Big Sky, with Cher’s “Believe” Bust-out
Photo Credit: Bryan Lasky
Beyond his incredible capabilities as an instrumentalist, vocalist, songwriter and bluegrass innovator, Billy Strings knows better than most how to put on a show. For his performance at Whitefish, Mont.’s Under the Big Sky music festival on Sunday, July 14, the artist did just that, stealing the show for the event’s final day with a special two-hour headline set. After joining alternative-roots compatriot Sierra Ferrell’s set earlier in the day, Strings invited the renowned singer-songwriter to support his closing set which, in a true highlight, included a collaborative bust-out of Strings’ quick-pickin’ rendition of Cher’s “Believe.”
After a fine morning of music, as dusk rolled in, Ferrell took the stage for her set, riding up to the rustic stage on horseback. Within a race through beloved originals and time-honored genre classics, the artist called Strings to the stage to support a treatment of “Bells of Every Chapel,” a standout from Ferrell’s 2021 debut studio record Long Time Coming. No stranger to the surprise sit-in, Strings previously lent his unparalleled performance to a live rendition of the track with Ferrell in the year of its release.
Another fan-friendly callback arose in grips of Strings’ set, after soul-stirring classics like “Summertime,” “Brown’s Ferry Blues” and “Big Spike Hammer,” as well as excellent originals “Catch & Release,” “Pyramid Country” and “The Fire on My Tongue,” among others. From “Red Daisy,” Strings called Ferrell up to the spotlight, kicking off the sit-in with Dave Evans’ “One Loaf of Bread,” which the duo issued together at Saint Charles, Iowa’s Hinterland festival in 2022.
From there, the teamed-up Strings and Ferrell delivered a toe-tapping treatment of Cher’s 1998 club classic, tactfully countrified to suit the artists’ style. This marked Strings’ 12th run-through the chart-topper, and his first since a solitary performance in March of 2022. In the wake of this moving moment, the duo returned to their roots for the traditional “Old Man at the Mill” before Strings bid Sierra a fond farewell and wrapped his set with “All Fall Down,” “Psycho” and “Train, Train.”
Watch a fan-recorded video of String and Ferrell’s rendition of “Believe” below. Strings will take the stage next on Friday as part of Redmond, Ore.’s Fairwell Festival, then kick off his summer headline tour with a pair of shows at Bridgeport, Conn.’s Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater on July 26 and 27. For tickets and more information, visit billystrings.com/tour.
Read on for a complete setlist from Billy Strings’ Under the Big Sky set.
Billy Strings
Under the Big Sky
Big Mountain Ranch – Whitefish, Mont.
7/14/24
Set: The Fire On My Tongue > Bronzeback, Seven Weeks in County, Escanaba*, Dust In A Baggie, Summertime, Pyramid Country+, Drifter’s Escape, Catch and Release^, Give The Fiddler A Dram^, Whistling Rufus^, Ragtime Annie^, Brown’s Ferry Blues^, Freeborn Man@, Big Spike Hammer@, Love and Regret, Red Daisy, One Loaf Of Bread#, Believe#!, Old Man At The Mill#, All Fall Down, Psycho > Train, Train
Notes:
* “Third Stone From the Sun” – Jimi Hendrix Experience and “Sally Goodin’” – (Traditional) teases
+ “Axel F” – Harold Faltermeyer tease
^ Billy Strings solo
@ w/ Zach Top
# w/ Sierra Ferrell
! Bust-out of Cher’s “Believe,” last played on March 9, 2022 (224 Shows)
