Bruce Hornsby setlists 2024

Here is our list of Bruce Hornsby 2024 setlists. Please feel free to e-mail Si with any additions or amendments to this list. Thanks to those who have contributed below.

Don’t forget our searchable setlist database also!

Setlists here are from Bruce Hornsby and the Noisemakers’ 2024 tour. Also don’t forget to check our live concert archive for downloads!

01/31/24 Royal Concert Hall – Glasgow, UK
Set One: Soon Enough, The Road Not Taken, Never in this House, Every Little Kiss, 20/20 Vision > Night on the Town,  Lost Soul, Country Doctor, End of the Innocence
Set Two: Sneaking Up on Boo Radley > L’`Escalier du Diable, Meds, Resting Place*, The Way It Is*, Halcyon Days, Lost in the Snow, The Show Goes On, This Too Shall Pass
Encore: Mandolin Rain*
Notes:  solo piano concert. *denotes with Bela Fleck.
Hide Bruce's notesAnd so we were back at the Celtic Connections Festival twelve years later, at the same lovely hall, with (I think) the same exemplary piano, with a desire to create something special. Sound check was solid, felt good, and then the first set came, with a slightly different feeling; everything I was doing felt disturbingly loud to me, to deleterious effect. I was able to conquer it a bit, and got through the first set (they ask for two sets here, possibly to sell more drinks) in solid fashion with a few highlight moments. At the break I asked my long-time sound man partner Wayne Pooley for a few sonic adjustments, mostly “turn everything on stage DOWN!, went back out there for round 2 and voila- instant correction, and the second set soared from Boo Radley/L’Escalier to the end, including a shouted-request final five-song run (actually starting earlier with a large on-stage piece of paper yelling for Meds, right before a beautiful reunion moment with my long-time musical partner Bela Fleck, who was sublime throughout) to end the concert. It’s a rather fragile job we do, and intangibles and the ineffable rule our world.

03/07/24 University of Illinois – Urbana, IL
Set One (solo): 20/20 Vision > Night on the Town, Sneaking Up on Boo Radley, The Show Goes On, Country Doctor
Set Two: (with yMusic): The Wild Whaling Life, (My) Theory of Everything, Every Little Kiss, Platypus Wow, Phase Change, The Way It Is, Foreign Sounds, The Wake of St. Brendan, End of the Innocence > Song C > End of the Innocence, Cast-Off, Never in This House, Mandolin Rain, (Paint it Black), Deep Blue, Deep Sea Vents
Notes:  first set solo piano; second set with yMusic.
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03/09/24 Center for the Performing Arts – Carmel, IN
Set One (solo): Song C > Harbor Lights, Sidelines, Valley Road, Halcyon Days, Song C > Sad Moon
Set Two: (with yMusic): The Wild Whaling Life, (My) Theory of Everything, Every Little Kiss, Platypus Wow, Phase Change, The Way It Is, Foreign Sounds, The Wake of St. Brendan, End of the Innocence > Song C > End of the Innocence, Cast-Off, Never in This House, Deep Blue, Deep Sea Vents, Mandolin Rain
Notes:  first set solo piano; second set with yMusic.
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03/10/24 Pick-Staiger Concert Hall – Evanston, IL
Set One (solo): Cyclone, Preacher in the Ring Part One > (Barber Booty), The Show Goes On, Sneaking Up on Boo Radley
Set Two: (with yMusic): The Wild Whaling Life, (My) Theory of Everything, Mandolin Rain, Platypus Wow, Phase Change, The Way It Is, Foreign Sounds, The Wake of St. Brendan, End of the Innocence > Song C > End of the Innocence, Cast-Off, Never in This House, Deep Blue, Deep Sea Vents
Notes:  first set solo piano; second set with yMusic.
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03/14/24 Herzberg Hall – Kansas City, MO
Set One (solo): Harbor Lights, My Resolve, The Show Goes On, Preacher in the Ring Part One
Set Two: (with yMusic): The Wild Whaling Life, (My) Theory of Everything, Every Little Kiss, Phase Change, Platypus Wow, The Way It Is, Foreign Sounds, The Wake of St. Brendan, End of the Innocence, Cast-Off, Never in This House, Deep Blue, Deep Sea Vents, Hooray for Tom
Notes:  first set solo piano; second set with yMusic.
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03/15/24 J. Scheidegger Center for the Arts – St Charles, MO
Set One (solo): Sneaking Up on Boo Radley, Here We Are Again, Soon Enough, Country Doctor
Set Two: (with yMusic): The Wild Whaling Life, (My) Theory of Everything, Mandolin Rain, Phase Change, Platypus Wow, The Way It Is, Foreign Sounds, The Wake of St. Brendan, End of the Innocence, Never in This House, Deep Blue, Deep Sea Vents
Notes:  first set solo piano; second set with yMusic.
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03/21/24 Ferguson Center for the Arts – Newport News, VA
Set One (solo): Country Doctor, Sneaking Up on Boo Radley, Continents Drift, Night on the Town
Set Two: (with yMusic): The Wild Whaling Life, (My) Theory of Everything, Mandolin Rain, Platypus Wow, The Way It Is > Changes (Tupac), Phase Change, Foreign Sounds, The Wake of St. Brendan, Song B > End of the Innocence > Song A, Never in This House, Deep Blue, Deep Sea Vents
Notes:  first set solo piano; second set with yMusic.
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04/05/24 Herbst Theatre – San Francisco, CA
Set One: Country Doctor, Sneaking Up on Boo Radley, Parisian Thoroughfare, Dreamland, Sticks and Stones, Halcyon Days
Set Two: The Wild Whaling Life, (My) Theory of Everything, Every Little Kiss, Phase Change, Platypus Wow, The Way It Is, Foreign Sounds, The Wake of St. Brendan, Take You There (Misty), End of the Innocence, Song A, Never in This House, Deep Blue, Deep Sea Vents
Notes:  first set solo piano; second set with yMusic.
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04/10/24 Fred Kavli Theatre – Thousand Oaks, CA
Set One: L’Escalier du Diable > Country Doctor, Sneaking Up on Boo Radley, Soon Enough, My Resolve, Harbor Lights
Set Two: Deep Sea Vents, The Wild Whaling Life, (My) Theory of Everything, Mandolin Rain, Phase Change, Platypus Wow, The Way It Is, Foreign Sounds, The Wake of St. Brendan, Stranger in a Strange Land, Cast-Off, End of the Innocence, Song A, Deep Blue
Notes:  first set solo piano; second set with yMusic.
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04/21/24 Benaroya Hall – Seattle, WA
Set One: Harbor Lights, Hooray for Tom, Preacher in the Ring Pt. 1, 20/20 Vision, Night on the Town, Halcyon Days, The Way It Is
Set Two: Deep Sea Vents, The Wild Whaling Life, (My) Theory of Everything, Mandolin Rain, Phase Change, Platypus Wow, The Way It Is, Foreign Sounds, The Wake of St. Brendan, Never in This House, Cast-Off, End of the Innocence, Deep Blue
Notes:  first set solo piano; second set with yMusic.
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06/18/24 South Bank Centre – London, UK
Days Ahead, Soon Enough, Look Out Any Window, Cast-Off, Country Doctor > (L’Escalier du Diable), End of the Innocence > Song A, Fairytale of New York (w/Olivia Chaney), Schoenberg Gavotte > The Way It Is > Goldberg Variation 1 > The Way It Is, Halcyon Days, Love Me Still > Dreamland > Hooray for Tom, Preacher in the Ring Part One > Webern Variation #2 > Preacher > (Cherokee) > (Catenaires), Mandolin Rain (w/Olivia Chaney)
Notes: solo piano show.Hide Bruce's notesWhat a special night in London. Playing solo at the Royal Festival Hall, the vaunted venue inside the Southbank Centre, was a real joy. Starting with “Days Ahead”, from the ‘Flicted album was the right first move judging from the response, and continued with “Soon Enough”, which I always seem to play in the U.K. because it has, to me, a very Paul Brady-esque Irish-British Isles flavor. Then went back and forth from the old to the new with 1988’s “Look Out Any Window” into 2019’s “Cast-Off”, then on to the “blues meets two- handed independence meets the modern” combo of my “murder ballad” “Country Doctor” into the Ligeti Etude 13 excerpt. A 90-minute set limit was a challenge, but I tried to cover as many stylistic bases and eras of my career as possible, and was able to find time for a cover, The Pogues’ “Fairytale Of New York”, sung with my British friend and fantastic artist Olivia Chaney, who also helped out on “Mandolin Rain” for the encore. There were so many requests and so little time that I decided to run a few together for a spontaneous medley, highlighting songs sung on record with several of my English musical mates through the years, plus the song written with Festival curator Chaka Khan (whose invitation led me to play this concert) back in 1994. Special thanks to Chaka for making this happen, and to the audience for being so interested and receptive.

06/27/24 Memorial Hall – Plymouth, MA
Living in the Sunshine, Line in the Dust, Sneaking Up On Boo Radley > (Ligeti Etude 13), Across the River, Song C > Meds, The Way It Is, MIA in M.I.A.M.I.*, Valley Road*, Over the Rise*, Pete And Manny**, Halcyon Days, Chad/John/JV solo-duo-trio > Great Divide, End of the Innocence
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer. ** denotes with accordion.Hide Bruce's notesOur 2024 opening night was really special. Totally engaged audience, played mostly requests (lots of Spirit Trail devotees in the house), and the sound on stage had surprising clarity for a big old-time community hall. Fully six of the fourteen songs (we stretched a good bit on several) came from the featured old 1998 record, all requested, and “Over The Rise” achieved serious lift-off, starting strong and rising and rising from there. The band was in total mid-to late-tour form right away, and I hope we can sustain that all the way into early October!

06/29/24 Ulster Performing Arts Center – Kingston, NY
Preacher in the Ring Part 1 > Variation #2 > Cherokee > (Ligeti Etude #13), – all BH.Chad Wright duo, Preacher In The Ring part 2, Song C > Sad Moon, Fields of Gray, Rat King, Bucket List (first public performance), The Way It Is > Goldberg Variation #1, LIDAR*, Every Little Kiss*, Prairie Dog Town*, Jacob’s Ladder**, In A Gadda Da Vida > My Favorite Things Variations, Funhouse, White-Wheeled Limousine, Rubber Band Rainbow
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer. ** denotes with accordion.Hide Bruce's notesToward the end of our first concert Thursday night in Plymouth, MA I started feeling a slight vocal deterioration, enough to decide to have a silent off-day on Friday. Saturday’s soundcheck arrived and I still felt there was an issue, and sure enough there was, and I had a vocally difficult time on an otherwise very strong band night in Kingston. By the last half of the gig I had lost my lower and upper range and was just gutting it out, caressing and being careful to try to keep it at least semi-acceptable. By the end my voice was virtually gone, shot, and damaged. We will have to pause, postpone some dates, and try to regroup (including a mostly silent extended vocal time) for the last few shows of this run. Too bad, because the night was really good in every other way. Great requests from a knowledgeable crowd, mostly Spirit Trail and White-Wheeled Limousine requests. We played two first-time performances, “Bucket List” from ‘Flicted and our new “Rubber Band Rainbow” version – you’ll just have to come see us to find out what that one’s about!

07/11/24 Meijer Gardens – Grand Rapids, MI
Life in the Psychotropics, Cast-Off, Every Little Kiss, Here We Are Again, Meds, Schoenberg Gavotte >  Hymn in C, Mandolin Rain > That Would Be Something, Country Doctor, Prairie Dog Town, Rubber Band Rainbow, The Way It Is
Notes: Psychotropics – Meds with the Grand Rapids Symphony Orchestra. Whole show with Noisemakers. Hide Bruce's notesThis concert was one of the craziest, most unpredictable and wildest ever. The weather called for a very nice night, but right before we went on (7:30) the sky started rumbling and lightning was seen in the distance. We went on with the orchestra, an extremely adept Grand Rapids Symphony led by the very capable and collegial conductor Bob Bernhardt, and started playing for a big-ass sold-out crowd. We were rolling along well, playing the first five songs of our orchestral set. Then I played a semi-lengthy intro to precede The Way It Is, got fairly deeply involved with it, finished and looked up to cue the ensemble and saw….. no conductor, virtually no orchestra! They had been pulled from the stage because of the imminent weather barrage. I stopped, looked around, laughing, band still with me, then our long-time beautiful tour manager Matt Clery came on to tell us that they wanted us to play some more (the orchestra has a policy of stage removal when weather threatens). At this point the rain was hitting hard and a solid number of audience members were bailing, but we played a couple of songs before WE also were removed. My voice was still not all there, so I asked the remaining hard-cores to sing the high Mandolin Rain choruses for me, and they lustily joined in; I never do that “audience-participation” thing, but it made for a very nice moment in the rain. After a wait of around 15 minutes, we were asked to play a few more (we had been getting bulletins from Matt regarding how the powers-that-be wanted to proceed), so we played three more songs for the existing audience, which was still fairly sizable given the downpour and threatening lightning in the now-nearer distance. Prairie Dog Town, the new Rubber Band Rainbow and finally Way It Is, and then we were pulled by the venue. The crowd was just fantastic, so vociferous in a great, positive way, and we hope to be able to come back and complete the job sometime in the future.

07/12/24 Orpheum Theatre – Madison, WI 
John M intro > Bright Star Cast, See the Same Way, Sneaking Up on Boo Radley > L’Escalier du Diable, End of the Innocence, Circus on the Moon, Mandolin Rain (Skaggs-Hornsby version), No Limits – first public performance, JT Intro> (BH Hymn in C) > The Way It Is > Goldberg Variation #1, Tipping*, Every Little Kiss*, Mirror on the Wall*, Prairie Dog Town*, Jacob’s Ladder**,  La Fiesta (Chick Corea) > Walk in the Sun > On Broadway > This Magic Moment,  Rubber Band Rainbow, (Absolute Zero), Valley Road*
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer. ** denotes with accordion.Hide Bruce's notesThis being our third night in a row (including a four-hour orchestral rehearsal on Thursday night), there was a concern about the beleaguered and besieged voice, but surprisingly it kept getting stronger by the night! I pretty much had most of it (such as it is haha) and felt confident all night that I could hit the notes needed. The Madison crowd came especially armed with requests, possibly the most ever; at least 200-250! So most best-laid plans flew away and almost every song played was from the fairly massive request pile. The band was on their toes and our collective memory was almost completely served all night (almost!). Another first-time-ever performance occurred with the unveiling of “No Limits”, the last song on 2020’s Non- Secure Connection, upbeat and exciting and a very nice new addition. “Rainbow’s Cadillac” was the most-requested song, so we gave them our new arrangement at the end to nice effect. JT was back in the Intro saddle before “Way It Is”, which was NOT a request during the night (which actually happens not infrequently, I think because a lot of requesters are looking for deeper, less well-known but personal favorite cuts), and John-Gibb “Prairie Dog” breakdown is developing with each new version. JV’s spontaneous entrance at the end of “Same Way” totally kicked it to a new higher level, as did Chad’s washboard solo in”Valley Road” (as always!!). We can’t wait to come back to Madison.

07/14/24 Corson Auditorium – Interlochen, WI
Intro > Study #22 (Charles Ives) > Preacher in the Ring Part 1 (Chad-Bruce duo) > Variation #2 > Cherokee (Bud Powell) > (Catenaires), Preacher in the Ring Part 2, Living in the Sunshine, Line in the Dust, The Way It Is > Goldberg Variation #1, Absolute Zero, Bucket List, End of the Innocence, Shadow Hand*, Is This It*, Over the Rise*, Pete and Manny**, Across the River, Funhouse (with Wayne Pooley on guitar and vocals), Hooray for Tom (BH solo)
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer. ** denotes with accordion.Hide Bruce's notesFor the last concert of this run we returned to Interlochen, the legendary summer music camp destination, two years after we last played there. I often try to nod to the location, so in this case I opened with the Chad-BH duo version of Preacher 1 with the astringent Charles Ives short piece “Study #22,” then followed with the usual modern music intrusions that we Chad and I play together on the song; Anton Webern’s “Variation 2” and Elliott Carter’s “Catenaires”, with a new entrant, some of Bud Powell’s solo on “Cherokee”. It’s possible that very few in the audience had any idea about this music, but it works well capturing the anxiety-riddled, dangerous environment of the song’s subject matter, at least to me.
The response was very strong, and continued through the set, and the sound of the hall was clear and lovely (I often mention hall acoustics because it’s so important to our approach and presentation).
This was a Spirit Trail box set night, where the venue accepts the set being included in the ticket price, so we featured a sizable number of songs (6!) from the collection. “Living In the Sunshine” and “Line In The Dust” achieved lift-off, as did “Over The Rise” (as usual) with Gibb and John and the band hitting soaring heights in the dulcimer set. Next we move out West, two weekends from now for the first time in two years, starting at a Casino in Reno. We’ve always been very good at packin’ ’em out on the Casino circuit (as opposed to packin’ ’em in), and this gig will probably prove to be no different! Seriously though, we have lots of very enjoyable gigs coming up out there, from California and Arizona to Montana and Oregon, and really look forward to them.

07/26/24 Grand Sierra Casino – Reno, NV
See the Same Way, John M-Chad Duo > Great Divide, Funhouse, Every Little Kiss (on piano!), No Limits, The Road Not Taken, The Way It Is, MIA in M.I.A.M.I.* > I Need You*, Valley Road*, Pete and Manny**, Space is the Place, End of the Innocence
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer. ** denotes with accordion.Hide Bruce's notesAfter some serious travel problems making it to Reno, we re-convened to play one of our rare casino concerts, in one of the largest casino venues we’ve played over the years. Had a good crowd (for us!), which made it about half a house overall! The crowd was boisterous and rowdy all night, and we started off with three pretty strong Spirit Trail jammers to fit the mood. Keeping the tempos upbeat for the most part, most songs stretched out in some new and creative ways (12 songs lasting a hundred minutes!). A very nice start to our West Coast swing.

07/28/24 Libbey Bowl – Ojai, CA
Bb Prelude > Living in the Sunshine, Line in the Dust, Catenaires > Take You There, Gavotte (Schoenberg) > The Way It Is, Absolute Zero, The Show Goes On, End of the Innocence, The Good Life*, Echolocation*, Over the Rise*, Jacob’s Ladder** > Cartoons and Candy**, Cruise Control > Across the River, Rubber Band Rainbow
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer, ** denotes with accordion.Hide Bruce's notesI’ve always liked playing here because it’s the home of the Ojai Classical and Contemporary Music Festival, a serious vaunted venue in that world. So I’m ready with some tributes to the setting and that event, starting with the Bach piece, two songs later with the Carter, and a song later with the Schoenberg. The audience is always forgiving when I follow them with a big song or new favorite like Living in the Sunshine or Way It Is, and so I do that! A very free night of music happened with those pieces and songs setting the mood, and the band was following and creating so beautifully all night, making for a special and memorable night. Our bus had broken down the day before, making for a grueling marathon time that was supposed to be an off-day but ended up as a day sitting in bus and truck repair shop parking lots for hours at a time, then renting a 12-passenger van for a six-hour drive down to Ventura, CA. So we went from feeling fried to the fulfilling feeling of the next day; the musical experience that heals.

07/31/24 The Troubadour – West Hollywood, CA
Resting Place, No Limits, John M-Chad duo > Great Divide, Cast-Off, Gavotte(Schoenberg) > The Way It Is, Country Doctor, Every Little Kiss (on piano), LIDAR*, Silver Threads & Golden Needles (Bruce A Capella), Green Green Rocky Road*, Shadow Hand*, Black Rats of London*, Valley Road*, Space is the Place (w/ Russell Hornsby performing his 21- year-old rap), (Bb Bach), Fortunate Son, Sunflower Cat > Lot To Laugh, Train To Cry, Nobody There But Me
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer.Hide Bruce's notesOur opening night at the storied Troubadour went well, with a rowdy, vocal crowd and the intense feeling of playing in a small space with a standing, dancing audience. The feeling is always festive, and enthusiasm is always inspiring for any band that plays in this situation.
Starting off with an upbeat trio of Resting Place, No Limits and Great Divide (complete with the always-welcome John-Chad duo) set the tone for a mostly faster-tempo song selection. Interestingly, the night seemed to lift during the dulcimer set; the sound when we were almost all close together on the small stage was sublime, so warm and inviting, and we responded to it, as did the crowd. LIDAR got such a strong response that it made me get really loose, and I said (to myself but probably audible to all) “what’s that old Dave Van Ronk thing?” I answered my own question and dove into “Green, Green Rocky Road”, and we were off. Somebody put a large black plastic rat onstage, which let us into “The Black Rats Of London”, and the spontaneity between band and audience continued for the rest of the night.
“Space Is The Place” featured my son Russell reprising his rap from the original record (when he was 11 years old, now 32!), and kept the spirit climbing, all the way to the end when, hoping to send the crowd out into the night on a valedictory cloud, I chose our song (recorded by Willie Nelson) “Nobody There But Me”, a benediction to close the night.

08/01/24 The Troubadour – West Hollywood, CA
Bright Star Cast, My Resolve, Circus on the Moon, Mandolin Rain (with Shawn Colvin) > Lost Soul (with Shawn Colvin), Days Ahead, Absolute Zero, Walk in the Sun, Where’s the Bat (with CJ Camerieri) > Talk of the Town (with CJ Camerieri), MIA in M.I.A.M.I.*, Over the Rise*, Prairie Dog Town*, Cyclone, Rubber Band Rainbow, End of the Innocence
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer.Hide Bruce's notesWhen two dear friends (one an old friend and one a more recent one) show up to perform or just to hang out at one’s concert, one can’t help but be at least a bit more inspired and excited to do the job. This happened last night when Shawn Colvin and CJ Camerieri came to sit in with us. Soundcheck/rehearsal gave all of us the chance to test-drive the music we had collectively chosen, and also gave us the opportunity to catch up personally. We wanted to (as is often the case) start off with strong intent to instantly capture the house and leave a mark, just like the night before using a different opening threesome; we did that here with two strong 2020 “Non-Secure Connection” songs, plus the perennial from 2004, “Circus On The Moon”. Then a slower catch-your-breath palate-cleanser seemed right, so Shawn joined us (and sang the high chorus lead, helping me out!) on “Mandolin Rain” leading into our old 1990 duet “Lost Soul”, or at least two-thirds of it. That second chorus of “Lost Soul” (the first chorus on this night) achieved that intangible lift-off quality for which we’re always trying. Then for Shawn, because it’s her favorite song from the last record, we played “Days Ahead”, featuring serious quality background harmonies from the stage-left battery mates John and Gibb. Absolute Zero was also special, and we’re really finally figuring out how to play that deceptively simple, spacey piece. After a romp through my attempt at an old Drifters feeling “Walk In The Sun”, CJ (yMusic member, Paul Simon band member and my partner in our chamber-music collaboration “BrhyM”) came out to crush on my obscure old SCKBSTD musical theatre piece “ Where’s The Bat”, leading into “Talk Of The Town” as he took Branford Marsalis’ original featured horn role. We played A-list dulcimer tunes to keep the level high, and closed with the first song I wrote with the great Hunter, “Cyclone”, the new Spinners mash-up on “Rainbow’s Cadillac”, and the ageless (at least for us) Don Henley co-write “End Of The Innocence”. The band just killed it all night, making for a truly great night playing for a great crowd.

08/04/24 Pepsi Amphitheater at Fort Tuthill Park – Flagstaff, AZ
Soon Enough, Tropical Cashmere Sweater, Cleopatra Drones, Line in the Dust, Sticks and Stones, Walk in the Sun, Gulf of Mexico Fishing Boat Blues, Mandolin Rain > The Grand Tour, Celestial Railroad*, The Good Life*, Valley Road* (dulcimer Grateful Dead-style; first time played!), Pete and Manny** > Barcelona Mona (w/Blue Monk quotes), Cast-Off, The Way It Is, Halcyon Days, Swan Song
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer, ** denotes with accordion.Hide Bruce's notesThis amphitheater is a beautiful venue, set in the woods outside of lovely Flagstaff. We played here two years ago and were packin’ ‘em out (as opposed to packin’ ‘em in!), and the same smallish number was slated to greet us this time as well.
Soundcheck began with a little piano warmup; I was playing the song “Soon Enough” solo. The band spontaneously fell into the song, and the sound was gorgeous. I said, “hey let’s play this first tonight”. Then we played two more rarely- played items and felt the same way, so decided to start the night with those three. The sound on stage in this place is really special.
So we started with “Soon Enough”, it felt perfect, felt like church, a deep feeling, I’m getting chills while playing it, and the audience reaction was- tepid! Obviously the easy answer is that they don’t know the song, but “Soon Enough” virtually always transcends that issue. Then the next two, also really strong- tepid again! Our reaction to what we were doing and our crowd’s were at opposite poles!
From there (the Spirit Trail unsung sneaky killer “Line In The Dust” got ‘em) the two entities were in sync for the rest of the night, performance and reaction came together, and the night sailed through. At one point during the dulcimer mini-set, some tie-dyed denizen arose from his seat to go somewhere, catching my eye at the same time someone screamed for “Valley Road”, and the two bits of input led me to start playing the shuffle-Dead version, and the band jumped in and winged it with me for a new version. Such great fun when that happens.

08/07/24 KiMo Theatre – Albuquerque, NM
My Resolve, Candy Mountain Run, Barren Ground, End of the Innocence > Sun Bear Theme, Anything Can Happen, The Way It Is, Love Me Still, Spider Fingers, Every Little Kiss (piano version), Echolocation*, Shadow Hand*, Over the Rise*, Jacob’s Ladder**, Sneaking Up on Boo Radley > (Ligeti Etude), Rubber Band Rainbow, Nobody There But Me
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer, ** denotes with accordion.Hide Bruce's notesI did a little research (thanks, Si Twining) and found that we have not played Albuquerque in 28 years! (although Skaggs-Hornsby played the Albuquerque Zoo in 2007). So this was long overdue, but almost surely due to my lack of popularity here. I was glad to see it on the 2024 tour list, because I always liked the city when we would pass through on marathon treks across I-40 to and from Los Angeles so many times. I’m so glad we came.
My duet partner on 2020’s “My Resolve” was the fantastic James Mercer of The Shins, who is from this city so I decided to pay homage to him by opening the show with the song (also because it’s a really great opener!). This led to a quick decision to feature a set of collaborative songs from the recent and distant past, which we’ve done before, and do it for a solid forty-five minutes.
From then, shouted and written requests filled the set. The audience seemed to really understand what we were doing, our approach to live playing where we try to spontaneously move the music to new and fresh places for a lot of the night. It may be sounding redundant at this point, but the band was very strong, and has hit a consistent stride for a long time now. We all hope it lasts and lasts.
I also hope we come back to Albuquerque sooner than has been the case during the last thirty years!

08/08/24 Lensic Theater – Santa Fe, NM
Preacher in the Ring Part One, Variation #2 > Catenaires > Chad/Bruce Duo, Preacher in the Ring Part Two, Circus on the Moon, Look Out Any Window, The Blinding Light Of Dreams > L’Escalier du Diable, Absolute Zero, Goldberg Variation #1 > The Way It Is, Hey Kafka*, MIA in M.I.A.M.I.*, Cyclone, Valley Road*, Soon Enough, Rubber Band Rainbow, Little Sadie > White-Wheeled Limousine > Long Black Veil
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer.Hide Bruce's notesWe’re in the final phase of our Western swing, the last half in which almost all the seats are sold, starting with the night before in Albuquerque. My voice is getting stronger so I’m feeling more confident about singing some of the older songs that have all those high notes, and on this night “Look Out Any Window” made its 2024 debut. It was really fun to play “Blinding Light” with all the technical challenges, as well as “Preacher 1”, and the rare “Kafka” inclusion made us all smile. A washboard “Cyclone” was a new wrinkle, prodded by insistent audience demand, as well as a popular demand “Soon Enough”. We haven’t hit “White-Wheel” in awhile; so it felt incredibly fresh and so enjoyable to play. Thanks so much to our friends in Santa Fe and we hope to return soon.

08/10/24 The Gardens on Spring Creek – Fort Collins, CO
Living in the Sunshine, Chad-John M duo > Great Divide, Line in the Dust, Mandolin Rain > That Would Be Something, Meds, Swing Street, Goldberg Variation #1 > Schonenberg’s Gavotte > The Way It Is, The Good Life*, Tropical Cashmere Sweater*, Valley Road*, Big Stick** > Jacob’s Ladder**, Country Doctor, End of the Innocence
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer.Hide Bruce's notesNow and then we play these shows that I call “lawn chair gigs” in which the patrons are almost all seated in the fold-outs they’ve brought from home. This was one of those. These events can be fairly unrewarding (as Orson Welles would say); my son Keith and his wife Heidey came out from Baton Rouge for the weekend of concerts, and he loved taking pictures from the side of the stage of “fans” in their seats, sleeping soundly while we played haha. That said, we had a really good time playing, a loose affair that we kept mostly upbeat because there was a sizable contingent of dancing revelers, there for a party. Some of the “lift-off” moments were ballads, especially “Meds”, and we found a new way to play “Jacob’s”, bringing it out of “Big Stick” for a Cajun Music feel featuring J. Mailander’s fiddle in honor of our daughter-in-law, Heidey Hanks Hornsby!

08/11/24 Chautauqua Auditorium – Boulder, CO
Bright Star Cast, My Resolve, No Limits, Circus on the Moon > In Dreams, The Way It Is, Absolute Zero, Going Home (Theme from “The Local Hero”), Blinding Light of Dreams > L’Escalier du Diablo, Mandolin Rain, Tipping*, Valley Road*, The River Runs Low* (first time on dulcimer), Shadow Hand*, (Arthur McBride)* (old Irish folk song), Over the Rise*, The Rat King, The Show Goes On, Rubber Band Rainbow, Every Little Kiss (on piano)
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer.Hide Bruce's notesSound on stage can be everything, of paramount importance to a concert’s success or failure. As much as I love the Chautauqua Auditorium, and the whole Chautauqua idea, sometimes (and we’ve played here for MANY years) the stage sonics are tough, and this proved to be so for the whole band this time. Still, I felt we made the most of it in a tough spot, and the audience was very receptive to our stylistically broad-ranging offerings.
So it’s not necessarily surprising that we hit our stride, to me, in the dulcimer area of the show. Halls like this are sonically perfect for quieter, acoustic music (not unlike Carnegie Hall), so the broken-down “unplugged” section almost always works well, hence an extended set of five songs plus a bit of Paul Brady’s “Arthur McBride” as an added attraction. “The Rat King” and “Show Goes On” were also late-set highlights, maybe because they were quieter as well. On the other hand, louder jams like “Circus”, “Resolve” and “Rainbow” were also special in spite of the fact that the band was in close proximity and still couldn’t hear each other clearly on the raised volume-level songs.
We still love to play here (and love the backstage renovations; the old backstage was tiny and fairly bootleg!) and truly appreciate our long-time audience; we think of them as old friends.

08/13/24 Center for the Arts – Jackson, WY
Sidelines (solo piano), 20/20 Vision > Night on the Town (John M/BH duo), Every Little Kiss (piano plus some band), The Hound, Non-Secure Connection, Look Out Any Window, Tango King, Days Ahead, Goldberg Variation #3 > The Way It Is, Is This It*, Valley Road*, Prairie Dog Town*, Mandolin Rain, Over the Rise*, Walk in the Sun
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer.Hide Bruce's notesIt felt right to open solo with the Ezra Koenig (Vampire Weekend) duet “Sidelines”, move from there to the stanky old roots-music combo “20/20 Vision- Night On The Town” with John Mailander, and then bring the band on for a piano- plus (almost solo, with key additions from the band, developing as we go) version of an old hit. Then a bit of odd modernity with “The Hound” and “Non-Secure Connection”, the chromatic piece about a computer hacker.
The chorus of “The Hound” always elicits guffaws and chortles from several audience members, and tonight was no different. Seems like it’s mostly men; maybe the women, are for the most part, aghast (or indifferent!). As usual, we draw our disparate audience comprised of older listeners who mostly only know the old hits, and younger followers who generally wish we wouldn’t play those songs! The challenge is to placate both.
The man who yells for “Over The Rise” is usually going to get his wish. The person who yells for “Valley Road” is also fairly likely to be rewarded; we just hope they enjoy the current, folky dulcimer version. The give-and-take between audience and band makes for new moments every night, and on this night there was a lot of that, so thanks to the Jackson crowd for being so ebullient and in-the-moment.
I was approached today on the streets of lovely downtown Bozeman (featuring a fantastic book store with a large literary fiction section, Vargo’s) by a young man and his friend, stopping me to relay that a friend of his had reported earlier in the morning about last night’s Jackson gig in a very positive way, and he just wanted to let me know (and get a picture!). He had last seen me at the Fare Thee Well concerts in Santa Clara in ‘15. Maybe he’ll stop by Pine Creek Lodge tonight!

08/15/24 Pine Creek Lodge – Livingston, MT
Big Rumble, Spider Fingers, King of the Hill > There is a Mountain > Mystery Train, Mandolin Rain > The Sadness Of It All, Bucket List (w/Mailander breakdown!), Anything Can Happen, The Dreaded SpoonHide Bruce's notesThis night was one of the wildest ever, in the 38 years of playing live since our first record was released.
The Pine Creek Lodge venue is an outdoor party spot, set out in the beautiful Montana countryside about 45 miles from Bozeman. The crowd there, at least for our gigs (we played there two years ago), is ready for a festive time. Some weather forecasts, but not all, called for some rain in the 9-10pm area. We were slated to play at 8:30 after an opening slot filled soulfully by Gibb Droll and John Mailander.
Knowing that the order of the day was to start rolling hard from the beginning, we started with “Big Rumble”; we hadn’t played it in a good while so worked it up at soundcheck. We kept it moving with “Spider”, and on further with “King”. Then it was time for a dynamic shift for a hopefully lovely breather with “Mandolin”, and then the band jacked it up again with the recent crazy oddity “Bucket List”. At that point, it hit me to play the Leon Russell collab “Anything Can Happen”.
As we were playing “Anything”( a song born from Leon’s request to me to “write me a Barry White track”), it hit me that I had made the record with Leon during 1990-91, released in ‘92,and I had made the first record with Ricky during 2005-06, released in ‘07, fifteen years apart with both records made within three miles of each other (Leon’s in his home studio which had a portrait of William Lee Golden of the Oak Ridge Boys on the wall, (a story for another day) and Ricky’s in his studio nearby that he bought from the Oak Ridge Boys!), because both men lived in Hendersonville, TN in those years.
I was about to tell that story when our road manager Matt Clery came onstage to inform me that we had to stop because lightning was coming near. I jumped into the Skaggs-Hornsby staple “The Dreaded Spoon”, played a quick version, hail started pelting away and everyone fled the area. This violent onslaught did not let up for another two-plus hours as we all sat around the back of the stage hearing the incessant roar, and the show could not go on. We had made it through fifty minutes before plugs were pulled.

08/17/24 Revolution Hall – Portland, OR
Cast-Off, Fractals, White Noise, Across the River, Hooray for Tom, Sticks and Stones, Funhouse > We’ll Sing In The Sunshine, The Way It Is, Echolocation*, Tipping*,  MIA in M.I.A.M.I.* > Baby Don’t You Worry* > Spoonful* > Smokestack Lightning*, Prairie Dog Town*, Big Stick** > Jacob’s Ladder**, The Dreaded Spoon, John M.-Chad duo > Great Divide > Will It Go Round In Circles, Fortunate Son > The Show Goes On
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer, ** denotes with accordion.
Hide Bruce's notesRevolution Hall has been our Portland concert spot for several years, and it’s become a fairly perfect venue for us, and the right spot in which to end our three-week western tour. Creative requests, e.g. “Bananana” for Hooray For Tom, and “play your wife’s favorite song” (we opened with it), and spontaneous reactions to instrumental flights of fancy always inspire the band.
This has been a very solid-to-great run for us, and this Rev Hall gig helped us close it on a very high note, with lots of highlights. “White Noise” sounded like a record, “Echolocation” achieved the nasty, old-time gutbucket folk feeling required, “MIA” went straight to the blues (unexpected!), and the new “Big Stick/Jacob’s” Cajun combo proves quickly to be a real winner. Also, I loved placating some persistent and insistent ballad-lovers with the encore medley of “Fortunate Son” into “Show Goes On” to close the night.
Now there’s a small break (which actually is not a break, heading into the studio for a second stint after having worked with the band on off-days while in LA earlier in the month) and then starting back in Memphis, with a few make-up dates from July postponements in-between. Crazy, man, crazy!

09/04/24 Musikfest Cafe – Bethlehem, PA
Red Plains, Sneaking Up on Boo Radley > Ligeti Etude 13, Catenaires > This Too Shall Pass, Every Little Kiss (piano version), Song C > Sad Moon, What the Hell Happened, End of the Innocence, Rehab Reunion*, MIA in M.I.A.M.I.*, Mandolin Rain* (first time ever performed on dulcimer), Prairie Dog Town* > Too Much Monkey Business*, The Way It Is, Big Stick** > Jacob’s Ladder**, Rubber Band Rainbow
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer, ** denotes with accordion.
Hide Bruce's notesWe had a great night to open our quick make-up date run, as we gradually visit the four July “voice damage” postponement spots over the next month or so. This is a unique performance space, located next to the massive, shut-down Bethlehem Steel plant reduced to large brick carcasses and glass-shattered husks, remnants of a by-gone era in this city; a very large window looks out onto some of this, framing the back of the stage.
We’re playing some songs we haven’t played yet this year, so “Red Plains” had to enter the mix in spite of its high notes and subsequent high degree of vocal difficulty; I fared fairly well with definite room for improvement! “This Too”, “What The Hell”, “Rehab”, and “Monkey Business” (performed to the Snoop Dogg loop) were welcome additions, and as we always say, “we should play these more!” This keeps everything fresh, along with the spontaneous, impromptu, off-the-cuff dulcimer version of “Mandolin Rain” prompted by a very insistent woman screaming for it as we were sitting in our back-porch dulcimer-music positions.
Our new accordion medley of “Stick-Jacob’s” has quickly become a band favorite, along with “RB Rainbow”, which instantly can take old-timers right back to 1976. Thanks to the wonderful audience that went along willingly with us on our various flights of fancy, from Gyorgy Ligeti to The Spinners.

09/04/24 Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center – Westhampton Beach, NY
Preacher in the Ring Part 1 > Variation 2 (Webern) > Bud Powell’s solo on “Cherokee” > Catenaires > Bruce/Chad duo > Preacher in the Ring Part 2, White Noise, Every Little Kiss, Dreamland, Lost in the Snow, The Way It Is, Absolute Zero, The Good Life*, (TSA Man*), Echolocation*, TSA Man*, Prairie Dog Town*, Shit’s Crazy Out Here, Mandolin Rain*, (Barren Ground), The Tide Will Rise (JT killin’!), Big Stick** > Jacob’s Ladder
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer, ** denotes with accordion.
Hide Bruce's notesI wasn’t looking forward to this gig. My previous experiences here have never been rewarding, and I expected the same, but it all felt different at soundcheck, and continued on in the show. The “Preachers” together are most always a solid opener, and other than my butchering of the ending, “P1” was a really strong duo rendering with Chad. “P2” was, as usual, a glorious, moving entity, followed by “White Noise” which is becoming a special new mainstay.“Dreamland” and “Lost In The Snow” (firsts for the year) kept the more “mellow” feeling set by “ELK”, and continued through the dulcimer set because the sound on stage was so nice that I kept it in that dynamic mode. “TSA Man” was an unlikely highlight, prompted by an audience request responding to my question “any dulcimer requests out there?” Requests so often lead us to new places; here was a perfect example! “Shit’s Crazy” and “Tide Will Rise” were more new entrants for the year, capping a very fresh, spontaneous and enjoyable night for a receptive audience. I feel differently now about the Westhampton Beach PAC.

09/18/24 Germantown Beach Performing Arts Center – Germantown, TN
Crown of Jewels, Pastures of Plenty, Walk in the Sun, Every Little Kiss, Spider Fingers, Resting Place, Cast-Off, Levitate, Echolocation*, Mandolin Rain*, Prairie Dog Town* > Too Much Monkey Business*, Little Sadie > White-Wheeled Limousine > Long Black Veil (with The Doors’ “Touch Me” rhythm in the outro), Big Stick** > Jacob’s Ladder**
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer, ** denotes with accordion.
Hide Bruce's notesWe began our third and final leg of 2024 at this old standard haunt outside of Memphis, and it was a special night from the start. Opening with two songs that haven’t been played yet this year usually creates a fresh feeling of excitement with the band (we’ve now played around 104 of my songs this year; hats off to the group for developing this deep memory bank of material!), and that happened on this night. Sound on stage was very clear, which led to an entire night of spontaneity and new musical moves made in most every song. Requests led us to new areas as well, with “Levitate” (from the Spike Lee ESPN doc “Kobe Doin’ Work”, my first film score composed in 2008-9) adding to the 2004 list of songs played. “Spider”, “Cast-Off and “Monkey Business” were also requests granted. We got so carried away, in the best way, that we forgot to play “Way It Is”, which I try to play every night. Sometimes a break from a perennial results in the same fresh feeling (the next time that playing rarities creates.
Many thanks to the very receptive audience in Germantown.

09/20/24 Bourbon & Beyond Festival- Louisville, KY
Bright Star Cast, My Resolve, Chad/John M duo > Great Divide, Ligeti Etude 13 interspersed with “Way It Is” teases > The Way It Is > Tupac’s Changes, Prairie Dog Town
Hide Bruce's notesWell, that was bloody. Festivals are always a challenge because there’s no soundcheck and minimal set-up time for the crew. This totally proved to be the case at the otherwise very nice and well-run B&B Fest. The piano seemed to be muted in the house at first; a helpful audience member screamed “Bruce, tell ‘em to turn on your piano!” after the first song; this seemed to be fixed quickly judging from subsequent crowd response. JV’s bass was ripping and roaring through everyone’s monitors except JT, who had zero bass- I’d love an explanation regarding how that happens! So most of us, including JV, were getting drilled by bass for the whole set, making it difficult.
The opener, “Bright Star Cast”, was the true casualty of this public sonic hell, but we hit a stride from the middle of “My Resolve” to the end. I felt after “ Resolve” that a large percentage of the crowd was there to hear the piano, so I became a bit more of a ball-hog for the next two songs, and that seemed to be the right move. We really had a nice turn-out for a mid-afternoon short set, and I hope at a certain point we gave them our best in spite of the challenges.

09/22/24 Knight Theater – Charlotte, NC
Circus on the Moon, Living in the Sunshine, Sneaking Up on Boo Radley > L’Escalier du Diable (Ligeti Etude 13), Every Little Kiss, Cast-Off, Absolute Zero, Walk in the Sun, The Way It Is > Goldberg Variation 1, Tipping*, Valley Road* (Dead style shuffle), The Good Life*, Mandolin Rain*, Over the Rise*, Big Stick** > Jacob’s Ladder**, Cyclone, End of the Innocence
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer, ** denotes with accordion.
Hide Bruce's notesThere was the boisterous, sold-out house, lots and lots of florid, artful and creative requests, a very nice hall that we’ve played before; everything was in place for a special night in Charlotte, and for a good while it was. Opening with the venerable warhorse “Circus On The Moon” is never a bad idea, and this version achieved lift-off right away and never flagged. Then straight on through the first seven songs until onstage sound issues (feedback, sound drop-outs, etc.) started encroaching on our lovely space. The dulcimer set, as it so often does, created a sonic re-set for us and our momentum returned, so overall the night was strong, with cautionary notes about how fragile and challenging this performance milieu can be.
There were SO many knowledgeable and funny requests; someone asked for a song I wrote when I was twelve years old! (when I was a little guitar player playing “Louie, Louie”, “Cherry Cherry” and “Get Off My Cloud”). Wish we could play a multiple-night run to have the time to placate these devotees, and my thanks to them for being so tuned in and interested.

09/24/24 Harvester Performance Center – Rocky Mount, VA
Preacher in the Ring Part 1 > Variation 2 (Webern) > Bud Powell’s solo on “Cherokee” > Catenaires > Chad/Bruce duo, Preacher in the Ring Part 2 > The Road Not Taken, Echolocation*, Rehab Reunion*, MIA in M.I.A.M.I.*, Mandolin Rain > A Change is Gonna Come, Line in the Dust, Across the River, The Rat King, My Resolve, The Way It Is > A Change is Gonna Come > Tupac’s Changes > Sister Rosa, Shadow Hand* > Moonshadow*, The Good Life*, Big Stick** > Jacob’s Ladder**, Too Much Monkey Business* > Prairie Dog Town*
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer, ** denotes with accordion.
Hide Bruce's notesThe Harvester Center is a small concert hall, very intimate; the feeling is club-like, without the noise of clinking glasses and conversation. As I usually do when we’re out in this area, we played four geographically and aesthetically related songs to open, highlighted (for me) by what felt like an exemplary version of the challenging Chad-BH drums-piano duo, grooving and fairly flawlessly played (mostly mistake-free!). Dulcimer songs came early on this night, which was an enjoyable switch.
Sam Cooke’s “A Change Is Gonna Come” is, for me, one of the most iconic and transcendent songs and records ever created, so much so that I’ve always thought it shouldn’t be touched. Instinct moved me away from that notion at the end of “Mando”, and it just felt right. It felt good enough that I couldn’t get it out of my head, and returned to it later!
JT was just jammin’ all night, and The Tweedles (Gibb and John) continue to further develop their simpatico. JV had several solo spots to showcase his broadening melodic prowess, and overall we had a very nice creative night, capped by pleasing the creator of a massive blown-up plastic bear with “Monkey Business” written across his chest, our first-ever “chest request”.

09/25/24 The Carolina Theatre of Durham – Durham, NC
John M/Chad duo > Great Divide, Funhouse > Catenaires, White Noise, Every Little Kiss, Cast-Off, Meds, Never in This House, Go Back to Your Woods, Valley Road*, LIDAR*, Over The Rise* > Arthur McBride*, JT plays “Music to accompany Bruce strapping on the accordion”, Pete & Manny** > Barcelona Mona, Rubber Band Rainbow, The Way It Is, Mandolin Rain > The Grand Tour
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer, ** denotes with accordion.
Hide Bruce's notesWe had a very strong night at one of our venerable old haunts, the Carolina Theatre where we have played probably for the last twenty-five years. Our dear friends and support act Heavy MakeUp is a perfect opener for us; we love them and we love their music, so fresh and original; our audience feels the same.
I figured we’d start off with a couple of Spirit Trail favorites to hopefully rouse the crowd, and move from there. The great virtuoso Itzhak Perlman always says to practice music slowly and build up to tempo, so I used the “Funhouse” opportunity to do just that, playing the usually rapid-fire Elliott Carter late-career piece “Catenaires” as a slow Etude for a good test, with a solid result. Then we dove into the modern with four Absolute Zero songs broken up by our very first single ever, the song we call “ELK”.
Gearing up for our upcoming performance at the Robbie Robertson Tribute Concert at the Forum in LA, we blasted into the Robbie/BH collab “Go Back To Your Woods” for the first time in years, to jack up the proceedings again. On to a strong dulcimer set and out; we realized at the end that we had gotten so carried away that we had forgotten to play our two first hits; I try to always play “The Way It Is” because of its seeming status in the world (especially the hip-hip world!) but sometimes don’t get to it. We generally play the version used earlier this year for the live-across-the-U.K. BBC Radio Orchestra mini-concert, because the band likes it more, and so do I.
The audience was so upbeat, discerning and appreciative, and we reciprocate with our appreciation of them.

09/28/24 Warner Theatre – Washington, DC
Bright Star Cast, My Resolve Circus On The Moon, Mandolin Rain, Sneaking Up On Boo Radley/ Ligeti Etude #13, Swing Street, Country Doctor, The Way It Ism Is This It*, Tipping*, MIA in M.I.A.M.I.* > Maggie May* Prairie Dog Town*, Big Stick** > Jacob’s Ladder**, Never in This House, End of the Innocence
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer, ** denotes with accordion.
Hide Bruce's notesWe played the Warner once before, fifteen-twenty years ago, and my memory is of a decent, solid concert that never really achieved lift-off. That was not the case on this night, aided by an inspiring Heavy MakeUp opening set; on their first night in Charlotte (their first as a group) they sounded like they’d played a hundred gigs already, and it just gets stronger every night.
We fairly quickly got into our “spontaneity” mode, creating new sections on the spot and finding new breakdowns and duo moments that keep the dynamics moving up, down and around, and that loose feeling continued to the end. A loud and engaged crowd (LOTS of shouted requests) was our partner throughout, and I think we’ve found our “DC concert spot” for the foreseeable future. Many thanks to Edie, Trever and CJ, and everyone in the building!

10/1/24 Count Basie Theatre – Red Bank, NJ
Sidelines (Bruce solo), Song C > Sad Moon, King of the Hill > Mystery Train > There is a Mountain, Every Little Kiss, Cleopatra Drones, Candy Mountain Run, Walk in the Sun > Under the Boardwalk, Tango King (with CJ Camerieri), Shadow Hand*, LIDAR*, Valley Road* (moving back and forth from waltz time to shuffle), Defenders of the Flag**, Schoenberg Gavotte > The Way It Is, Lost in the Snow > Little Sadie > White-Wheeled Limousine > The Letter > Long Black Veil, Down the Road Tonight
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer, ** denotes with accordion.
Hide Bruce's notesIt was so enjoyable to play at the old Count Basie Theatre for the first time in several years; it’s always been a special venue for me and so many of my friends. I always love opening with a solo “Sidelines”, although I don’t do it that often. Actually we play so many different songs that other than old hits, we don’t play anything really regularly, which keeps it fresh but is also a serious memory test for all of us.
“Sad Moon” is one of those–we get regular requests for it, and the band really enjoys playing it. Ditto for “Cleo Drones”, “Candy Mountain”, “Tango King”, and these days “White- Wheeled”, which used to be a go-to move for years; now it’s played more occasionally, which makes it “new” again.
It was also fun to play “Down The Road Tonight” for the first time, maybe, in years. So this was a very novel, uncommon set aided by requests (“Lost In The Snow”, “Defenders”), and it seemed to please the Basie audience as much as it pleased the cats onstage.

10/2/24 Scottish Rite Auditorium – Collingswood, NJ
Stander on the Mountain, Fractals, Living in the Sunshine, Funhouse, End of the Innocence, Where’s the Bat (w/ CJ Camerieri), Across the River, Crown of Jewels, Mandolin Rain, The Dreaded Spoon*, Celestial Railroad*, The Way It Is*, Shadow Hand*, Black Rats of London*, Sunflower Cat, The Show Goes On
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer.
Hide Bruce's notesAnd it expands and expands, every night lately. Maybe it’s the inspiring push-shove given to us nightly by our partners Heavy Makeup, so strong every night, or maybe it’s the full flowering of ideas with which we’ve been working for several years. Whatever the reason, it’s been thrilling and often transcendent, and we collectively have been riding this improvisatory wave maybe since Bethlehem,PA.
Starting with “Stander”, a “Grateful Dead song” because the Dead played it twice in the fall of 1990 when I first joined them, is always a welcome moment, especially since it was its first play of the year. “Fractals”, with a new tricky and trippy final section added to create a solo section for Chad Wright, also connected on a heightened level. A wild “Funhouse” and a very creative, extended “Innocence” moved it forward, and then my great partner in many musical areas CJ Camerieri clearly crushed the competition on “Bat”. Then I played “Longest Night”, a major request, for the first time in probably 25 years as a palate cleanser before rising into “Across”, which moved all around to new and revelatory places.
The extended dulcimer set happened that way because someone screamed for “Dreaded Spoon”, leading us to try it in this configuration, and then a woman near the front in a slightly exasperated tone exclaimed “where’s The Way It Is, where’s Every Little Kiss”?, leading me to start the former and lead the band through a brand-new version highlighted by JT Thomas’ soulful accompaniment. “Sunflower Cat” jammed away, featuring the irrepressible John-Gibb combo platter as JV undulated in the vicinity, and then a solo “Show Goes On” seemed to be the correct valedictory moment to close out a special, memorable night.

10/4/24 The Flynn – Burlington, VT
No Limits > Little Sadie > White-Wheeled Limousine > Secret Agent Man >Just One More > Long Black Veil, Resting Place, Song C, Every Little Kiss, JV/Chad duo > Talk of the Town, Days Ahead, Line in the Dust, The Way It Is, MIA in M.I.A.M.I.*, Valley Road*, Prairie Dog Town*, Big Stick** > Jacob’s Ladder**, Rubber Band Rainbow, End of the Innocence
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer, ** denotes with accordion.
Hide Bruce's notesA big crowd greeted Heavy MakeUp and our band on Friday night at the venerable old Flynn, a venue we’ve been playing since the late ‘90s. At this point they could be called Heavy MakeUp and the Noisemakers, as Gibb Droll and JT Thomas have now infiltrated their ranks to add new color to their sound. Their last night with us was very strong.
We started with “No Limits” from 2020’s “Non-Secure Connection”, a Steve Reich-ian number that then morphed as connective tissue into the old Doc Watson classic “Little Sadie”, an old folk standard that long-time fans know will then slide into our “White-Wheeled Limousine.” “White-Wheeled” is known to move all over the stylistic map, and this night brought the old ‘60s Johnny Rivers classic “Secret Agent Man”(!) into the mix along with other standard inclusions, and then back into the minimalist “No Limits” motif, to the end.
Beginning with that bang led us to Spirit Trail’s “Resting Place”, another showcase for most every musician in the band, then a break with “ELK”, featuring a strong drum-less groove from John, Gibb and JT. Realizing that JV and Chad had played virtually nothing on that song, I called an improvised duo for them; they made the most of it and created a slow, swinging groove that led me into “Talk Of The Town”, taken at a sultry, deliberate tempo that was fresh and enjoyable. Another, newer ballad “Days Ahead” then led back to the Spirit Trail with “Line In The Dust”, which achieved a certain groove-oriented, fulfilling lift-off.
The audience seemed to be right with our every move, for the most part; we know very well that there are certain factions in our audience that have no idea about this loose, music-in-the-moment approach and frankly are not necessarily happy about it! We always hope to bring them into our fold.

10/5/24 The Music Hall – Portsmouth, NH
Sunlight Moon, Song H > Gulf of Mexico Fishing Boat Blues, Soon Enough, Walk in the Sun, Anything Can Happen, Absolute Zero, Long Tall Cool One, The Way It Is (Shuffle!) > Sister Rosa( > Tupac’s Changes, Mirror on the Wall*, Shadow Hand* > Moonshadow*, Echolocation*, Cyclone, The Road Not Taken, Fields of Gray, Cruise Control
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer.
Hide Bruce's notesThere exists a tacit, fragile compact between audience and performer in the concert space; the boundaries vary widely, from the raging mosh-pit of the punk show to the pin-drop silence of the classical concert hall, and ours falls somewhere in the middle. Our standard mode of taking requests, both written and aural, helps create a fairly festive and intimate environment that we welcome, but there are limits, based on common sense, respect and decency. Those boundaries were crossed by several shouting audience members during the last third of the gig, marring an otherwise truly creative and special night at another old haunt of ours, the Portsmouth Music Hall.
About twenty to thirty rather belligerent, extremely persistent, hectoring patrons screaming song requests left an intrusive mark that rendered some band members disconsolate after the show, and hopefully won’t happen again.
Otherwise, it was another very strong night for us as we close in on the end of a solid three-month run around the country. Highlights for me were the first eight songs, several not often played, that led into another new run at “The Way It Is” (some funny requester dared me to “not play it”) played as a semi-bluesy shuffle. “Cyclone” is always welcome (requested by a fifteen-year-old girl with nice calligraphy), and “Road Not Taken” gained new time signatures and harmonies (chords) in the third verse to soulful effect, at least to the band and me. We’ve been playing here since the mid-90s, and hope to continue; the gig is always special (I’ve played here solo quite a bit) and we’ve always loved the town of Portsmouth.

10/7/24 Riviera Theatre – North Tonawanda, NY
MIA in M.I.A.M.I.*, Mandolin Rain*, Tipping*, Sneaking Up on Boo Radley > L’Escalier Du Diable (Ligeti Etude13), Sticks and Stones, Every Little Kiss, Funhouse > Gennessee Ted, Halcyon Days, The Way It Is (record version), Shadow Hand*, Over the Rise*, Big Stick** > Jacob’s Ladder**, Sunflower Cat
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer, ** denotes with accordion.
Hide Bruce's notesWe just had to begin this night with a rare opening dulcimer set because the first line of the song “M.I.A. In M.i.a.m.i” is “I got tired of waxing cars in Tonawanda”, and it just felt right to hit that one first. After three back-porch numbers we kicked into “Boo Radley”, to allow the audience to, as Charles Ives said, “learn to take a good dissonance like a man”; I was solid on the Ligeti Etude after a little pre-show backstage tune-up. “Sticks” was a fun request from a woman I had agreed to meet pre-show who had the Big Swing Face album cover tattooed on an arm, and wanted my signature so she could have it inked next to the existing tat. She said “Sticks” was her favorite and that was enough to put it in, always fun to play. I also loved playing “Halcyon”, it achieved the soulful feeling which is always the goal.
Sound issues reared an ugly, intrusive head during the second (!) dulcimer two-hander, a low roar that never went away for the rest of the night. Luckily it was only evident onstage, but it made our jobs more difficult trying to perform through this omnipresent murk. We got through it, and finished with our new-groove version of “Sunflower Cat”, featuring a bit more of a floating, lighter, more Dead-like feeling that can really soar.

10/8/24 The Goodyear Theatre – Akron, OH
Preacher in the Ring Part 1 > Variation 2 (Webern) > Bud Powell’s solo on “Cherokee” > Catenaires > Chad/Bruce duo, Preacher in the Ring Part 2, Chad/John M duo > Great Divide, Walk in the Sun, Gonna Be Some Changes Made, Cleopatra Drones, Music For Unfolding and Taping Sheet Music To The Music Stand (JT Thomas), Fractals, Circus on the Moon, The Way It Is, LIDAR*, Valley Road*, Too Much Monkey Business* > Prairie Dog Town*, The Show Goes On, Rubber Band Rainbow
Notes: * denotes with dulcimer.
Hide Bruce's notesAfter a slightly tough night in Tonawanda with stage sonics, we were truly fortunate to have a tour-closing night in Akron that may well rank among the best of the year. A sizable portion of our audience is comprised of members expecting a “nostalgic” night out hearing the “good old songs”; we nod to that every night with several of those (between 3-6), but often re-invented and re-imagined, some times in the moment.
Opening with the Chad-BH duo “boogie-meets-the-modern” version of “Preacher In The Ring, Part 1” is a strong spice for that crowd, but by the end it’s usually given a lusty, fairly rousing reception. On this night it was greeted a little less so! But still promising, and the full-band treatment of “Preacher, Part 2”(these songs are from Spirit Trail) and the reaction from the other side of the audience, the musical adventure-seekers, started to bring everyone together in collective understanding of what we really do. The evening was sublime from then on.
The combination of my finally playing well the extremely difficult piano part while singing and the addition of a new “arena-strong” ending section has now made “Fractals” a star, along with “Cleo Drones”, and “Circus” found new harmonic (chordal) exploration to great effect during John’s fiddle solo. “Show Goes On”, not often played with the band, now will mostly be played that way because it can achieve greater dynamic heights with “the cats” playing.
We closed with the new staple “Rubber Band Rainbow” which may have been the best version yet, like so much more on this special and memorable night.
Thanks to everyone who supported us this last three-and-a-half months, it’s been our pleasure to do it for you.