Outlaw Music Festival, the touring showcase for legendary country and folk musicians, has officially embarked upon its summer tour this summer, bringing an all-star roster to Live Nation amphitheaters across the United States. Notable acts on this year’s tour include Willie Nelson & Family, Bob Dylan and John Mellencamp as well as legendary acts Avett Brothers Robert Plant & Alison Krauss Billy Strings Brittney Spencer Celisse Southern Avenue among others.
The tour, launched in 2016 in Scranton, Pennsylvania and successful enough for Nelson and Rothbaum to turn into an annual touring franchise, will visit 25 cities between Sept 17 – September 17.
Dead and Company can feel more like a nostalgia act with its heavy doses of Grateful Dead songs, while Nelson’s Outlaw Music Festival draws heavily from contemporary country. That makes it the ideal fit for Somerset Amphitheater which had struggled during COVID-19 yet was revived this summer by concert giant Live Nation.
This past weekend, Outlaw Music Festival returned to Massachusetts at Xfinity Center. An expansive indoor amphitheater that can seat over 20,000 attendees was transformed into “Willie’s Joint”, selling lighters, hats and posters featuring their icon.
Onstage was a small stage containing an array of acoustic instruments and vocalists singing with passion and grace – captivating both audience members as well as themselves with no obvious mistakes and an impressive set list.
Highlights of the evening included an a cappella rendition of Neil Young’s “Powderfly” and an impressive cover of Chuck Berry’s “Sweet Home Alabama,” by The Avett Brothers, respectively. They delivered an engaging set that displayed their talents on guitar, bass and banjo with Seth Avett playing his electric guitar to great effect in rock ballad “Live and Die”, bluegrass music in “Vanity”, while closing their set off with their humorous “It’s Hard to Be Humble,” an amusing take on music stardom that left everyone impressed and grateful.
Holmdel saw the band demonstrate their impressive range by opening with “Ramble on Rose,” featuring Sheldon Brown’s soulful saxophone solo, before seamlessly transitioning into “Slow Ride.” They added in country classics like “Love at First Sight” and the country anthem, “On the Road Again”. Marcus King, Margo Price, Trampled By Turtles, Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway, Kathleen Edwards of Flatland Cavalry and Particle Kid all provided comprehensive sets. Outlaw Music Festival Orchestra was an impressive ensemble, composed of violinists, saxophone players and trumpeters; its harmony arrangements on bluegrass number “Down on the River” was especially outstanding; audiences loved every moment! Everyone involved made this night unforgettable.