A photo resurfaced this past week, taken several years ago by J.J. Waters, of Tyler Childers sitting near the window of a restaurant. Childers was playing to a nearly full restaurant, where diners seemed to be oblivious to the fact that they were listening to a man who would one day be selling out almost every single venue he played at. In the two years since I’ve started following Tyler, I’ve been to five shows. I’ve seen him sell out the legendary Cain’s Ballroom twice, play to a packed Basement venue during Americanafest, where moving through the crowd meant barely being able to turn sideways, much less having any personal space, and packing the opening night of Knoxville’s Rhythm and Blooms festival. The crowd sizes haven’t changed, but the show has its subtle changes. Oh, it still has all the hits, “Whitehouse Road,” “Shake the Frost,” “Feathered Indians,” but the band sound is tighter and more musicians have been added. The new guy this time around was Chase Lewis on keys. The blue plaid shirt, a staple of most of 2017 and 2018 has been replaced and so has the long hair tied back into a bun, but it’s still the same lyrics, the same music and the same “it” factor that has launched him onto the national stage with appearances on both Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night shows.

Photo Courtesy of J.J. Waters of Honky Tonk Heroes

With doors at 6:30, the crowd was still on the thinner side when opener Caroline Spence took the stage at a few minutes past 8:00. Having listened to Caroline’s album, Mint Condition on repeat when it was released back in May, I felt lucky to catch her opening for Tyler. Accompanied only by one guitar, Caroline in her quiet yet commanding way, took the crowd through 45 minutes of stellar songwriting. Although my favorite song, “Sit Here and Love Me” didn’t make the cut, it was a good mixture of her studio albums, some of which I haven’t listened to as much as Mint Condition. “Slow Dancer” and “Whiskey Watered Down,” from her earlier albums, Spades & Roses and Somehow, started off the set, followed by Mint Condition and “Who’s Going to Make My Mistakes” from her latest album. Between songs, Caroline took the rowdy crowd in stride by complimenting them on their “very positive heckling.” Ending her set with “Hotel Amarillo,” Caroline talked about traveling out on the road and what led to and inspired her to write the song.

After an intermission, Tyler and his band, The Food Stamps took the stage to cheers from the sold-out crowd. With his Buck Pond hat pulled low and his trademark plaid shirt traded for a denim jacket, the lights came on and the band started its twenty-song set with “Born Again,” followed by a cover of “Tulsa Turnaround” and then “Redneck Romeo.” Two parts of the set really stood out for me, the first being the instrumental break before launching into “House Fire.” As soon as the opening chords began, you could hear the sound of hundreds of stomping feet hitting the historic floor of Cain’s Ballroom. The second standout moment of the set was when Tyler covered, “Help Me Make It Through the Night,” which I’ve never heard him sing live before. The tune is now available on his Reimagined release that is available now on Apple Music.

Looking at the crowd on the rail, it was a mixture of old and young, but at any point in the set, a brief glimpse showed all of them singing every word. “Feathered Indians” and “Nose on the Grindstone” always seems to be crowd favorites at any show I’ve been to and the crowd sang solo for a few lines during Tyler’s, “Lady May,” “Creeker,” “Bus Route,” “Honky Tonk Flame” and “Follow You to Virgie” also made the cut for the Tulsa show. Although he doesn’t sing all the songs from his albums, you can always expect a good mix of Tyler’s music and a few well-chosen covers. You won’t find many surprises at a Tyler show, but you can expect a little bit of stage banter, and a lot of good music that keeps turning people into Tyler Childers fans. He is a fantastic talent and this show, as well as all of his upcoming shows, will continue to give his fans what they want: sometimes raw, sometimes polished, but always true music from Kentucky and beyond.