Sierra Ferrell is spending some time revisiting past shows as she recently announced a new live record from her 2025 show at Nashville’s The Blue Room, recorded at Third Man Studios. Set for release on June 5th, Sierra has formally announced the release of her first live record, Live at Third Man Records. The album will be available exclusively on red vinyl via Third Man Records, and a limited-edition black-and-blue vinyl will be offered exclusively to those who attended the show.
Releasing this record touches on the stellar 2025 that the West Virginia native had. Riding the highs of her brilliant 2024 album, Trail of Flowers, Ferrell swept her categories at the 67th Grammy Awards, taking home four trophies for Best Americana Album (Trail of Flowers), Best Americana Performance (“American Dreaming”), Best American Roots Song (“American Dreaming”), and Best American Roots Performance (“Lighthouse”).
She’d follow that up in September by taking home her second-straight Artist of the Year trophy at the Americana Awards, becoming just the third artist and first female artist ever to win in back-to-back years.
Leaning more into her incredible 2025, Ferrell again is going back into her archives and gifting fans something from a standout show. Last year, Ferrell headlined the legendary Red Rocks Amphitheatre on Thursday, August 28th, 2025, with Nikki Lane. The show marked Ferrell’s headlining debut at the venue, a bucket-list stage for many artists today.
After the show last year, my social media feed was taken over by magical clips from the night, and I was not mad about it one bit. With her setlist featuring hits like “Silver Dollar,” “Why Haven’t You Loved Me Yet,” “Lighthouse,” and more, it was a stellar mix of her original music and a few covers. One of the standout covers she played that night was during her encore when she whipped out Kris Kristofferson’s “Me and Bobby McGee.”
“Me and Bobby McGee” was made famous with Janis Joplin’s version, recorded in 1971, which was a chart-topping success. However, the rock and roll classic has country music roots, as the author behind the famed track is none other than Kris Kristofferson. It was initially released by Roger Miller in 1969, followed by Kenny Rogers, Gordon Lightfoot, and even Kris Kristofferson himself, before Joplin recorded her rendition (just a few days before she tragically passed away). It was also recorded by Charley Pride, Jerry Lee Lewis, and the Statler Brothers.
While the song reach the peak of its success via Joplin’s gritty vocals and rock influence, the melody still has twangs of country roots. Sierra Ferrell, being the rising star that she is, took a stab at covering the song, but stab is a light way of describing this cover. Ferrell knocked it out of the park.
But if you’ve read any of my pieces about Sierra Ferrell covers, you know I’m a firm believer that there isn’t a song she can’t cover incredibly well. It’s truly a testament to her being a generational talent. Ferrell has previously performed this cover at shows, leading fans to go wild for it. And now Ferrell is gifting fans with a live performance video of the cover. Decked out in her stunning silver star outfit, she belts out the tune with a confidence that can’t be matched. Ferrell breaks out a rasp as she delivers the lyrics, mimicking Janis Joplin’s vocals while still making it very much her own.
Kris Kristofferson and Janis Joplin would give this cover their stamp of approval, I’m certain of it.
Turn this one all the way up; you won’t regret it.
