It didn’t matter where fans came from, southern Missouri, Baltimore or a little closer to The Pageant in St. Louis — they were all there for the same thing — to get rowdy at Blackberry Smoke’s Be Right Here tour Friday night.
The night kicked off with Duane Betts (who’s celebrating his 46th birthday on April 16) & Palmetto Motel, consisting of Johnny Stachela on guitar, Pedro Arevalo on bass, and Vince Fossett Jr. on drums, priming the crowd with about 45 minutes of his take on that American/Americana mix of blues, rock, folk that sails right into your soul. They began with “Saints and Sinners” and slid right into “Cold Dark World,” both from Betts’ Wild & Precious Life album released last summer. Being in St. Louis meant a good chance that Devon Allman might make an appearance, what with the whole Allman Betts Band partnership, and turns out that chance was 100 percent. Allman guested on their song “Magnolia Road” and the classic The Allman Brothers Band’s “Blue Sky” to everyone’s thrill.
After a short break and growing anticipation, Blackberry Smoke took to the brightly lit stage shortly after 9 p.m. for a night of entertaining with good ol’ fashioned rock and country. They began with the driving “Payback’s a Bitch” and slide into the good-time, boot-scooting, “Six Ways to Sunday.” A sing-along broke out during the Bayou-sounding favorite “Hey Delilah.” New songs from Be Right Here included “Hammer and the Nail” and they slowed it down a bit for “Whatcha Know Good.” Devon Allman made another appearance and sang lead during the cover of The Allman Brothers Band’s “Midnight Rider,” which he dedicated to his dad, Gregg.
One fan had “Shine On Brit” emblazoned on the back of his shirt in honor of drummer Brit Turner who passed on March 24 from glioblastoma (brain cancer). His last show with Blackberry Smoke was in November 2023.
If you like concerts, a good time, upbeat, twangy tunes, and a night sure to be full of memories, then you still have plenty of opportunities to catch Blackberry Smoke in concert as they continue to crisscross the U.S. through early October before heading to Europe.
More photos from the night https://bit.ly/BBS24cz
Blackberry Smoke’s setlist https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/blackberry-smoke/2024/the-pageant-st-louis-mo-6bab42d2.html
In my work life, I help nonprofits and small businesses with media and public relations. In my what I love to do life, you can typically find me photographing either wild horses or concerts.
