Definitely wouldn’t mind hearing more from these two together.
Eric Church is currently in the middle of his incredible Outsiders Revival Tour, his first ever amphitheater tour and one unlike any that he’s ever done.
The setlist for these shows feature more deep cuts, and leaves off some of the bigger hits that you might expect to hear at an Eric Church concert. But he also breaks out some badass new arrangements of hits like “Drink In My Hand” and “Springsteen,” while also featuring an incredible wall of sound courtesy of a three-piece horn section and three background vocalists just back there belting it in place of former backup singer Joanna Cotten.
But one of the best things about the tour is the incredible slate of opening acts that Eric’s brought with him on the road. Names like Cody Jinks, Ashley McBryde, Muscadine Bloodline, Jelly Roll, Travis Tritt, Koe Wetzel, Shane Smith & the Saints…if you would put all of the acts from this tour on one festival it would pretty much be the perfect lineup.
I caught the show last weekend in Chicago, and it’s safe to say it was one of the best concerts I’ve seen all year. But after seeing this performance, I’m kind of regretting not making the trip to Alabama this weekend too.
This weekend Eric is joined by Lainey Wilson and Jackson Dean for three shows at the Wharf Amphitheater in Orange Beach, Alabama. And last night, Eric and Lainey treated the crowd to one hell of a performance.
After performing her opening set, Lainey joined Eric during his show for a duet of “Over When It’s Over,” an album cut from his 2011 record Chief.
The song’s been a staple of Church’s live shows for a while now, but dropped off the regular setlist this year after Cotten left to pursue her own musical career. But when you have Lainey Wilson there with you, it only makes sense to break it back out, right?
Damn right.
The two knocked it out of the park, and I think it’s safe to say that these two could make a hell of a pair if they decided to team up to release more music together in the future.
Check it out:
@gregorypearson The Chief and Lainey at The Wharf in Orange Beach #ericchurch #laineywilson #outsidersrevivaltour #orangebeach #thewharforangebeach ♬ original sound – Gregory Pearson
Eric Church Says ‘Outsiders Revival Tour’ Features New Version Of “Springsteen,” More Deep Cuts
Eric Church has always been one to mix things up.
Throughout his entire career, he’s always kept fans guessing at what was coming next, from the surprise Mr. Misunderstood album in 2015 to the Double Down Tour in 2019 which featured two nights in each city with no openers, to his Heart & Soul triple album in 2021.
You never really know what you’re going to get from Chief.
Although he’s warning fans who are coming to see him on his current tour: Don’t expect all of the hits.
Just a few months ago, Church left some fans disappointed after his performance at Nissan Stadium in Nashville during CMA Fest when his setlist didn’t include hits like “Springsteen” or “Record Year,” and instead featured deep cuts like “Bad Mother Trucker,” “Hangin’ Around,” and a cover of Little Feat’s “Sailin’ Shoes.”
The superstar admitted in an interview with Rolling Stone that he was surprised by the criticism, but he didn’t want to reveal everything he had in store – and that’s why he didn’t play one of his biggest hits:
“I didn’t play ‘Springsteen,’ because I have a new version of ‘Springsteen.’ You’ve got to come to a show and see it.”
And it’s not just “Springsteen” that will sound a little different if you catch a show on the Outsiders Revival Tour. Church has debuted new versions of many of his songs, showcasing the 12-piece band and horn section that he’s bringing along with him on the tour.
Oh, and if you’re expecting to hear only the hits? Well, you might be disappointed.
Church says that new setlist (which in true Church fashion, is never the same from one night to the other) leans heavily into his last two projects, Heart & Soul and his 2018 album Desperate Man – because he didn’t get to explore them during his last tour:
“The last tour was maybe my least favorite, because of Covid weirdness every night. I never got to lean into the ‘Desperate Man’ album and ‘Heart & Soul.’ This time, we changed that. Most of [the set] is those two albums.”
Of course he still dips back into his catalog for songs like “Drink In My Hand” and “Smoke a Little Smoke.” And “Springsteen” is still a staple of the nightly setlist. But some of his other major hits didn’t make the cut this time around:
“If you’re coming to hear ‘Talladega’ and ‘Record Year,’ you ain’t gonna hear them. There are a ton of songs people are leaving going, ‘He didn’t play his hits.’ And, no, we didn’t.”
If you’re an Eric Church fan like me, it doesn’t really matter what he plays because I love pretty much every song he’s released (except for one, and I’ll let you guess which one that is).
But if you’re just a casual fan showing up to hear “These Boots” or “Talladega,” you may leave disappointed – although if you’ve ever seen Church in concert, I have a hard time believing anybody is too disappointed after the show he puts on.
He just does things his way. And he always has.
The 2023 Outsiders Revival Tour
He added a handful of new stops to the previously-announced 27 cities on the schedule, including Charleston, South Carolina, Atlanta, Georgia, and another show in his home state of North Carolina at PNC Music Pavilion in Charlotte, among a few others.
In addition to all the great dates, Chief is bringing along an incredible cast of 18 different rotating openers with him on his first headlining amphitheater tour, with the likes of:
Whiskey Myers, Cody Jinks, Jelly Roll, Ashley McBryde, Koe Wetzel, Lainey Wilson, Midland, Parker McCollum, Travis Tritt, Elle King and Paul Cauthen, plus Jackson Dean, Morgan Wade, Muscadine Bloodline, Shane Smith & The Saints, Hailey Whitters, Ray Wylie Hubbard and The Red Clay Strays rotating as openers in different cities.
“Once again due to continued overwhelming demand, we’re fired up to announce SIX additional shows are being added to The Outsiders Revival Tour! See below for details.
8.24 Saratoga Springs, NY w/ Lainey Wilson and Red Clay Strays
9.21 Atlanta w/ Whiskey Myers
9.24 Charlotte w/ Whiskey Myers
Don’t miss it if Eric’s rolling through your town this summer…
Of the forthcoming trek, Eric says it will be a whole new ballgame for his team on this outdoor summer tour, headlining outdoor amphitheaters across the country for the very first time:
“When I approach touring, I’m always inspired by a new experience, a new way to gather, to express ourselves sonically and visually.
Whether it’s solo, in the round, double down; being able to bring a different perspective has always brought out our best creatively. Well, we have never done an outdoor summer tour. Never headlined amphitheaters.
Never brought a summer experience to your town that featured artists we want to share the summer with. Until now. See you in the season of sunshine with some fellow outsiders that shine brightest when the sun goes down.”
In one of the previous teasers, he included a clip from his 2013 Caught in the Act live album, where he details his first amphitheater concert in Charlotte, North Carolina, so this venture seems to also be some sort of nod to that early inspiration in a way:
“I still remember my first amphitheater concert. I was 16-years-old.”
This is easily the tour of the summer in my opinion, and I can only hope an album announcement won’t be too far behind… he released his most recent triple album, Heart & Soul, in April of 2021.
Eric Church 2023 Tour Dates
* denotes festival dates
Aug. 24 Sarasota Springs, N.Y.
Aug. 25 Holmdel, N.J. / PNC Bank Arts Center
Aug. 26 Philadelphia, Pa. / Freedom Mortgage Pavilion
Sept. 8 Portland, Ore. / RV Inn Style Resorts Amphitheater
Sept. 9 George, Wash. / Gorge Amphitheatre
Sept. 10 George, Wash. / Gorge Amphitheatre
Sept. 15 Albuquerque, N.M. / Isleta Amphitheater
Sept. 16 Phoenix, Ariz. / Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre
Sept. 21 Atlanta, Ga. / Ameris Bank Amphitheatre
Sept. 22 Atlanta, Ga. / Ameris Bank Amphitheatre
Sept. 23 Charlotte, N.C. / PNC Music Pavilion
Sept. 24 Charlotte, N.C. / PNC Music Pavilion
Sept. 29 West Palm Beach, Fla. / iTHINK Financial
Sept. 30 Tampa, Fla. / MIDFLORIDA Credit Union
Oct. 7* Bristol, Tenn. / Bristol Motor Speedway
Oct. 15* Sacramento, Calif. / Discovery Park
