www.whiskeyriff.com
Watch Billy Strings Perform Haunting Cover Of Alice In Chains’ “Nutshell” In Greensboro, North Carolina
Is “Nutshell” Billy Strings’ best cover?
It’s certainly up for debate, but I think it might be. At least amongst the non-bluegrass covers that have found a spot in his seemingly endless collection of songs from which his setlists are composed, “Nutshell” is up there at the top.
For anyone who may not be familiar, covers of other artist’s songs are as much a part of Billy Strings’ live show as his originals. As is often the case with jam bands, Strings seldomly repeats songs during a run of shows, so in addition to whichever originals he chooses to play on a given night, he’ll play nearly as many bluegrass and traditional folk covers, and may even mix in a bluegrassified rock cover or two.
Of those, some of the more frequently played fan favorites include songs like “Train, Train” by Blackfoot, “Black Clouds” by String Cheese Incident, and Widespread Panic’s “All Time Low,” to name a few. Within the past few years, though, “Nutshell” has creeped up as a recurring cover, and it has quickly became a favorite amongst the Billy Strings faithful.
Originally released in January 1994, at the peak of grunge rock and a few months before the high-profile suicide of Nirvana’s frontman Kurt Cobain on April 5th 1994, “Nutshell” is an eerily beautiful song off of Alice in Chains’ Jars of Flies album that gave the public a look inside the troubled an isolated mind of the band’s frontman Layne Staley. Exactly eight years following Cobain’s death, on April 5, 2002, Staley tragically passed away from an overdose, adding a particularly haunting element to the gravity of “Nutshell.”
With a stripped-back, acoustic approach that differs sonically from the majority of AiC’s heavier catalog, “Nutshell” fits perfectly within Billy Strings’ sonic and vocal wheelhouse. He covered it for the first time in Cincinnati on March 18, 2023, and since then, he’s played it periodically enough that fans have latched on and many consider it a bucket list cover to hear live. I had been chasing it myself, and after hearing it live for the first time in Greensboro, North Carolina earlier this week, I can attest that it is a special cover indeed.
As soon as Strings played the recognizable first riff, the crowd erupted, but immediately silenced themselves as he began to sing the poignant lyrics of the first verse.
“We chase misprinted lies
We face the path of time
And yet I fight, and yet I fight
This battle all alone
No one to cry to
No place to call home”
The song gives me chills any time hear the original, but there’s just something ethereal about hearing Billy Strings play it live, in a packed stadium with thousands of people hanging on to every word. Check it out for yourself below, live from Greensboro this past Tuesday.
Billy Strings has some great covers up his sleeve, but I think this one might just be my favorite. Following this song, he went right into his original “Wargasm,” and those two tracks back-to-back were an absolute force. You know what they say – Never miss a Billy show in NC. He tends to put on an extra special show when he gets near the stomping grounds of his greatest musical inspiration, the late Doc Watson.
Anyway, it’s only right I include the iconic video of AiC performing “Nutshell” for MTV Unplugged in 1996. Rest in peace Layne Staley.
Go to a Billy Strings show, you won’t regret it.
Billy Strings Tour Dates:
4/22 – Charleston Coliseum – Charleston, WV
4/24-4/26 – Fishers Event Center – Fishers, IN
7/4 – Willie Nelson’s 4th of July Picnic @ Germania Insurance Amphitheater – Austin, TX
7/14 – Berglund Center – Roanoke, VA
7/17-7/18 – Portsmouth Pavilion – Portsmouth, VA
7/21-7/22 – Agganis Arena – Boston, MA
7/24-7/25 – Cross Insurance Arena – Portland, ME
7/28 – PeoplesBank Arena – Hartford, CT
7/31-8/1 – Bethel Woods Center for the Arts – Bethel, NY
8/28-8/29 – Ionia Freak Fair @ Ionia County Fairgrounds – Ionia, MI
9/18-9/19 – Ball Arena – Denver, CO
9/20 – Paramount Theatre – Denver, CO
9/25 – The Orpheum Theatre – Los Angeles, CA
9/26 – Kia Forum – Inglewood, CA
9/28 – Pechanga Arena – San Diego, CA
10/2-10/3 – Oakland Arena – Oakland, CA
10/6 – Matthew Knight Arena – Euguene, OR
10/9-10/10 – Angel of the Winds Arena – Everett, WA
10/23-10/24 – The Orion Amphitheater – Huntsville, AL
10/30-10/31 – CFG Bank Arena – Baltimore, MD
12/4 – Saenger Theatre – New Orleans, LA
12/5 – Smoothie King Center – New Orleans, LA
12/9 – Smart Financial Centre – Sugar Land, TX
12/11 – Dickies Arena – Fort Worth, TXThe post Watch Billy Strings Perform Haunting Cover Of Alice In Chains’ “Nutshell” In Greensboro, North Carolina first appeared on Whiskey Riff.