JAMBASE: Railroad Earth Debuts John Prine Cover With Shannon McNally In Birmingham

Friday night Railroad Earth pulled into Birmingham, Alabama for a gig at Avondale Brewing. The craft brewery, which is housed in a historic building that was once a pharmacy, saloon and brothel, also hosts concerts along with serving up their beers. Last night’s double-bill featured the Americana jamband along with their current support act singer-songwriter Shannon McNally. The New Jersey-based band delivered a two-set affair that saw them once again team up with McNally along with inviting keyboardist Matt Slocum to join them throughout the night.

Railroad Earth got their night underway with “Monkey” from their 2014 release The Last of the Outlaws which segued straight into “Mighty River” from their sophomore studio effort Bird In A House. From there the bluegrass-tinged band delivered their longtime pairing of the traditional tune “Dance Around Molly” with their own “Dandelion Wine.” Towards the back end of their opening frame, RRE invited out their first guest of the night as Matt Slocum emerged. The keyboardist, who is currently a member of The Magpie Salute, lent a hand on the live staple “12 Wolves” and “Chasin’ A Rainbow” from 2014’s The Last of the Outlaws.

The band’s second set got rolling with a pair of tunes from their 2001 release The Black Bear Sessions, “Head” and “Lordy! Lordy!” “Shockenaw Mountain Breakdown” and the band’s namesake song followed. Slocum returned to the stage next as the augmented act worked its way through “Cold Water,” “Donkey For Sale,” “Birds Of America,” “Like A Buddha” and “Elko,” which brought things to a close. As they did the night prior Railroad Earth brought Shannon McNally out for a debut cover this time during their encore. The ad-hoc ensemble along with Slocum offered up a take on a state-appropriate cover of John Prine’s “Angel From Montgomery.”