Once again begging these two to release an official duet.
In many ways, The Red Clay Strays and Zach Top have shared a similar trajectory over the past few years. Though the two sit on opposite sides of the genre, with the Strays bringing a wholly unique blend of country, southern rock and gospel elements from album to album and Top spearheading the rise of traditional country back to the mainstream, it hasn’t stopped the pair from garnering a lot of crossover fans and, more importantly, a whole lot of success both commercially and critically.
For the Strays, they’ve been nothing short of dominant during the recent award show cycles. At the 59th annual CMA Awards last November, they’d dethrone Old Dominion as Vocal Group of the Year en route to their first-ever CMA win. They’d follow that up last week and dethrone Old Dominion once again, this time taking home their first-ever ACM Award for Group of the Year.
For Top, he’s arguably been even more successful. Not only did he take home Best New Artist at the CMA Awards in November, which he accepted with a Coors Banquet in hand, but he also scored his first-career Grammy in February. In turn, Top became the first-ever winner of the brand-new Best Traditional Country Album category, winning it with his sophomore album, Ain’t In It For My Health.
What makes the two so special, outside of the incredible work in the studio, is the number of times they’ve collaborated in the past year. Last April at Georgia Rodeo, the pair teamed up for the first time and surprised the crowd with a performance of Waylon Jennings’ 1990 single, “Where The Corn Don’t Grow,” which was later covered and popularized by Travis Tritt in 1996.
This year, they’ve been making appearances together early and often. Back in June, at Red Clay’s album release party for Grateful at the Pinnacle in Nashville, Top would make a surprise appearance, and they’d play the track once again. Just two weeks later, they’d reunite at Top’s headlining show at the Wharf Amphitheater in Orange Beach, Alabama, performing George Jones’ “Bartender’s Blues.”
@whiskeyriff @Zach Top @The Red Clay Strays #whiskeyriff ♬ original sound – Whiskey Riff
Last night, the pair teamed up for arguably their biggest collaboration to date. In their headlining debut at Madison Square Garden in New York, Top would surprise the crowd not once but twice throughout the concert.
Early in the set, the Washington native would make his first appearance of the night for a performance of “Don’t Wanna Know,” a standout track from their new album, Grateful. In case that wasn’t enough, however, he’d return during the encore for a stunning cover of Kris Kristofferson’s country standard “Help Me Make It Through The Night,” which has been recorded countless times by the likes of Willie Nelson and Johnny Cash to Tyler Childers and Elvis.
Even more excitingly, the entire show will be released as a live album in the coming months, with frontman Brandon Coleman confirming the notion at the concert after it was being billed as a “Live from MSG” recording upon its announcement back in November.
“Help Me Make It Through The Night”
@braxtons_fish_camp The red clay strays are joined by special guest, Zach top Sunday, August 9, at a sold out Madison Square Garden. They came out with a bonus song during the encore, and it turned out to be a Willie Nelson classic. Here’s helped me make it through the night by the red clay strays featuring Zach top ##zachtop##redclaystrays ##willienelson##newyork##madisonsquaregarden ♬ Original sound – 🇲🇲 Nway Oo Naing 🇹🇭 650K🌈
“Don’t Wanna Know”
@anniedisano I’m unwell 😭🙌🏼🔥 @The Red Clay Strays @Zach Top #redclaystrays #zachtop #countrymusic #collab #madisonsquaregarden ♬ original sound – Annie D ✝️⛰️🎶
Their third collaboration of the year comes on the heels of Top teasing a collaboration potentially being in the works back in June when he explained that he and Coleman have been wanting to finally write and record a song together.
“Any time we’re around each other, we love singing together. He’s one of my favorite singers in the world. So we keep on talking every time we see each other. It’s like, ‘Man, we gotta write something some time and record something together.”
While we still have to wait for an original song from the two powerhouses, it looks like we’ll have live versions of “Don’t Wanna Know” and “Help Me Make It Through The Night” officially available on streaming services incredibly soon.
The Red Clay Strays Tour Dates
August 16 – Sioux Falls, SD – Denny Sanford PREMIER Center with Dylan Gossett & Sweet Talk
August 18 – Grand Forks, ND – Alerus Center with Dylan Gossett & Sweet Talk
August 19 – Bismarck, ND – Bismarck Event Center with Dylan Gossett & Sweet Talk
August 21 – Bozeman, MT – Brick Breeden Fieldhouse with Sweet Talk
August 22 – Missoula, MT – Adams Ceter with Dylan Gossett & Sweet Talk
August 26 – Spokane, WA – Numerica Veterans Arena with Wyatt Flores & Sweet Talk
August 27 – Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena with Wyatt Flores & Sweet Talk
August 29 – Portland, OR – Moda Center with Wyatt Flores & Sweet Talk
August 30 – Vancouver, BC – Rogers Arena with Wyatt Flores & Sweet Talk
September 2 – West Valley City, UT – Maverik Center with Dylan Gossett & Sweet Talk
September 4 – Stateline, NV – Lake Tahoe Amphitheater at Caesars Republic with Dylan Gossett & Sweet Talk
September 11 – Sacramento, CA – Golden 1 Center with Dylan Gossett & Sweet Talk
September 12 – Ontario, CA – Toyota Arena with Dylan Gossett & Sweet Talk
September 16 – San Diego, CA – Pechanga Arena San Diego with Dylan Gossett & Sweet Talk
September 17 – Phoenix, AZ – Desert Diamond Arena with Dylan Gossett & Sweet Talk
September 20 – San Antonio, TX – Frost Bank Center with Muscadine Bloodline & Sweet Talk
September 30 – Toronto, CA – RBC Amphitheater – with The Revivalist & Haley Reinhart
October 1 – Pittsburgh, PA – PPG Paints Arena with The Revivalist & Haley Reinhart
October 3 – Grand Rapids, MI – Van Andel Arena with The Revivalist & Haley Reinhart
October 7 – Fort Worth, TX – Dickies Arena with Shane Smith & the Saints & Brent Cobb
October 14 – Orlando, FL – Kia Center with The Revivalist & Haley Reinhart
October 15 – Savannah, GA – Enmarket Arena with The Revivalist & Haley Reinhart
October 17 – Charleston, SC – Credit One Stadium with The Revivalist & Haley Reinhart
October 18 – Greenville, SC – Bon Secours Wellness Arena with The Revivalist & Haley Reinhart
October 22 – Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena with Brent Cobb & Sierra Ferrell
October 23 – Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena with Brent Cobb & Sierra Ferrell
October 28 – Knoxville, TN – Food City Center with Wyatt Flores & Brent Cobb
October 31 – Birmingham, AL – Legacy Arena at the BJCC with Shane Smith & the Saints & Brent Cobb
November 5 – Baton Rouge, LA – Raising Cane’s River Center with Muscadine Bloodline & Brent Cobb
November 6 – Bossier City, LA – Brookshire Grocery Arena with Muscadine Bloodline & Brent Cobb
November 8 – Jonesboro, AR – First National Bank Arena with Muscadine Bloodline & Brent Cobb
November 13 – Atlanta, GA – State Farm Arena with Travis Tritt & Brent Cob
