On Top of Everything Else, Tyler Childers Plays Fiddle Too
Well damn. Tyler Childers is already regarded as one hell of a singer, songwriter, and country music performer, so much so that even without mainstream radio play, he’s getting nominated for Grammys, recently minted a gold record, and right now is on an arena tour with fellow Kentuckian and his studio producer Sturgill Simpson.
That’s not to mention the Tyler Childers intangibles such as sticking up for the roots of country music, so much so he’s the reigning Saving Country Music Artist of the Year. All Tyler has to do is open his mouth, and it’s patently obvious he’s full of heart and authenticity, while he brings an originality to country music that is highly cherished by his rapidly-swelling fan base.
But who the hell knew this boy could play fiddle too? Don’t be holding a place for him in the Del McCoury Band just yet, but he’s been impressing audiences out on tour lately by calling for the violin, and sawing out a jig. Pretty darn cool to be able to add multi-instrumentalist to the Tyler Childers resume.
Perhaps we shouldn’t be too surprised Childers has taken a shine to the fiddle, and not just because his Kentucky roots run so deep. One of the primary members of his backing band The Foodstamps is fiddle player and guitarist Jesse Wells. His nickname of “The Professor” is not just a happenstance. Wells is an instructor at the Kentucky Center for Traditional Music operated by Morehead State University, and has been since the institution opened in 2000. He’s also responsible for The Traditional Music Archives of the institution.
Whether Jesse Wells has been giving him pro bono instruction on the bus, or Childers has been spending his spare time with crash courses on YouTube, he’s getting pretty good at playing fiddle as can be seen in the video below. Perhaps on future records we’ll hear Childers himself showing off his bow skills.
March 3, 2020 @ 9:45 am
Hey folks, so there was some devastating tornadoes in Nashville last night which you’ve probably heard about. I’m going to be addressing it shortly. Not much use on me reporting hard information on it when there’s assets on the ground that can do a much better job of that. But didn’t want folks think I was ignoring it either. Hearts and prayers go out to everyone affected.
March 3, 2020 @ 10:04 am
Yes prayers going up for all those affected. God bless you all!
March 3, 2020 @ 10:57 am
The tornadoes and severe storms are scary.
And thoughts and prayers definitely go out to those affected.
Tyler is one very cool guy. Love him.
And very respectfully making an observation that if you decide to go back to the format, of a few days ago, more people will probably comment.
Understand and respect that you are the benevolent dictator of your site.
And your description as such, has always brought a smile.
I think it’s great
March 3, 2020 @ 11:34 am
American country music is a direct line from Celtic music.
March 3, 2020 @ 12:54 pm
Seen Tyler over the weekend, incredible show in Lexington but he didnt break out the fiddle i believe. Him and his band were great as expected. Kind of sad when a good 1/4 of the audience left during Sturgills set but im glad i stayed. I will say for those that still have reservations that the Sound and Fury record is definitely meant to be listened to in a live setting. Sturgill is approaching guitar hero status! As cool as it was, the two shouldnt be billed together, their just too different.
March 3, 2020 @ 1:17 pm
It blows my mind to hear of people leaving during Sturgill’s set. Why pay $100+ for an hour-ish Childers concert? Or, if you’re coming in expecting to hear High Top Mountain or Metamodern Sounds, then you obviously haven’t been paying attention for a while.
March 3, 2020 @ 1:25 pm
I agree, in Lexington Childers played for 1 hour and 45 min. I dont know if this is every show or just because he was in Kentucky but that is way longer than any opener ive ever seen.
March 3, 2020 @ 2:47 pm
I’m seeing two sets of feedback from the tour. One is that Tyler is great and Sturgill is terrible. The second is Tyler is great, Sturgill is great, and the 1/3rd of the crowd who left halfway through Sturgill’s set missed a great show. Either way you slice it, lots of people are leaving early.
A 1 3/4 hour set from Tyler is unprecedented for anywhere.
March 3, 2020 @ 3:44 pm
No joke! In four tries, I’ve only seen him play over an hour and a half once!
March 3, 2020 @ 4:46 pm
I wonder how Sturgill is taking the people leaving, or if he would consider becoming the opener with a shorter set.
March 8, 2020 @ 11:25 am
Show last night in Duluth, GA:
Crowd was great. At least where we sat, everybody was having a good time and being respectful of everyone else around them. I didn’t see the mass exodus halfway through Sound & Fury like I’d heard about from other shows, but the crowd was definitely thinner around 10:30-45, well into Sturgill’s set.
Tyler was great. He played about an hour and 15 minutes. If you were going to see him, you got exactly what you came for. I really dug the longer jams they did with Honky Tonk Flame and Housefire, but then again, I tend to enjoy “jam” bands.
Sturgill burned the place to the ground. They played for just under 2 hours. If you enjoyed S&F, or were lukewarm about it, I’d say the live version truly did that music justice. Second half of the set was a little more traditional, but still learning towards a rock and soul feel.
Sturgill also made a joke about how this is the first time he’s played in Georgia when his voice wasn’t completely ruined from allergies. I was supposed to see him at the Tabernacle in 2015 with a buddy who came with me last night, only to find out the show was cancelled, and we couldn’t make the make-up show. We both agreed that last night made up for it.
2 guns way up! (am I allowed to do that?)
March 3, 2020 @ 7:33 pm
I understand the amazement at people leaving the shows, but I think it’s more amazing that people are ponying up the money just to see Tyler open. That speaks volumes about what kind of fan base he has built. And that is directly related to Tyler respecting his fans. This tour is a case study on how to and how not to carry on with a professional music career.
March 4, 2020 @ 3:58 am
I love Tyler’s music, but based on what I’ve seen online, what is he doing that makes the live experience that much better than what I can hear sitting at home?
Like what Sturgill is doing or not, what you hear live is *not* what you are going to hear at home.
Finally, if you are so…whatever you are that you don’t want to hear the new stuff from Sturgill, head up to the concourse, grab a cold beverage, and when he gets to the stuff you want to hear, get back to your seat.
Back in the 90s I saw Counting Crows and remember a guy 10 rows or so in front of us leaving and as he did he was holding up his middle finger to the stage. As he went by I asked him what that was about and he said that he didn’t pay money to hear them play the songs different from what was on the cd. I didn’t have time, but I wanted to ask him why he paid money to hear them play the songs just like they did on the cd.
Maybe my idea of what the live music experience should be is different from what others think it is?
March 4, 2020 @ 5:59 am
I wasnt referring at all to studio vs live. I think people that are walking out just want to hear country music, whether it sounds like the studio version or not. From what it sounds like, Sturg is playing from Sound & Fury which is not country at all, so I dont blame the hard country fans for walking, if that’s what they wanna do. Personally, I’m gonna get my money’s worth in Dallas, even if the whole night sucks.
March 3, 2020 @ 5:16 pm
The tune they’re playing is Angeline The Baker. It’s a common first tune for many Appalachian style fiddlers to learn. It’s still one of my favorites to play. Love Tyler!
March 3, 2020 @ 6:17 pm
The Lexington show was awesome. Tyler seemed to be who the crowd showed up for, but Sturgill and his band crushed it. The folks who left missed out on a sonic juggernaut. The rhythm combo of Bartels and Miller is stout, and Bobby is pretty damn good on the keys. I’ll say this though: Tyler’s finale of Nose on the Grindstone and his impromptu address of Rupp was one of the coolest things I’ve seen at any concert. Absolutely perfect for the time and place.
March 4, 2020 @ 1:29 pm
I’ve seen Tyler in Lexington dozens of times over the years, but man that was probably best show I’ve seen him do. You could tell it meant a lot to him. That was the best rendition of Nose on the Grindstone I’ve ever heard and I was hoping someone would upload it to youtube.
March 3, 2020 @ 7:59 pm
SMDH……2 studs doing their art finally on the BIG stage and you all still bitching….there’s your problem….DAMN….keep blaming everyone else
March 4, 2020 @ 6:49 am
Whaaaaa!?!? You mean he played fiddle like as well as The Hag, Roger Miller, Roy Clark or was it more on par w Bocephus, as in like the oldest gimmick in the book sorta way. Or maybe kinda like the way Waylon played Mandolin on ‘Never Could Toe the Mark’….. or like when DAC played piano on ‘Mona Lisa Lost Her Smile’, or maybe it was on par w Jerry Lee Lewis playing guitar on stage during ‘Mystery Train’. No matter, hoist this guy higher on the pedestal immediately, cause we’ve lost all perspective of the caliber of musicianship and songsmiths that created the country music that’s worth saving To begin with if this is post worthy news.
March 4, 2020 @ 9:01 am
Look, nobody’s saying this is a groundbreaking moment. It’s just fun to see Tyler Childers play a little fiddle. Jeez. I said myself it felt very entry level. So what? I do think it shows a commitment to roots music, and it’s cool. You take note of it, and move on.
March 5, 2020 @ 10:53 am
Let’s take the time to hear from a fiddle teacher with a music theory degree (me.)
1: His form is good and proper
2: intonation is fine.
A note: his bowing is a bit rigid but since Roy Clark’s been brought up in this thread I’ll use him as an example since his bowing was pretty rigid too.
Angeline the Baker is a good upper intermediate piece and a good benchmark for quality fiddle playing, since it ranks with St. Anne’s Reel and Old Joe Clark as an often learned tune that remains popular even with experienced players
This is about as good as this song can be without getting into some pretty extreme variations and improvising or just playing it needlessly fast.
Something that laymen might not notice, but experienced fiddle players will, is a pause, drag, or needless lift at the beginning or end of a note that usually signifies a bit of struggling through a passage. I didn’t notice any of that, which is a good sign at least of plenty of practice and preparedness if not necessarily of technical brilliance.
Overall I’d say this is a pretty good example of solid, competent fiddling and not just some showoffy gimmick. I’m sure Michael Cleveland doesn’t need to lose any sleep but this is a comfortably solid fiddling performance all around.
March 4, 2020 @ 10:08 am
Was this at sound check? Crowd seems tame (or dead). I would have thrown my hat on stage in appreciation (then got thrown out).