Billy Strings and Chris Thile highlight collaboration weekend at Telluride Bluegrass Festival 2024 (Photos/Videos/Audio)

Popular bluegrass hustle and bustle The Telluride Bluegrass Festival took over the small mountain town of Telluride, CO for its 2024 edition this weekend. At the 51st edition of the festival, which is popular with “Festivarians”, great emphasis was again placed on cooperation, with Billy Strings And Chris Thiele Telluride Bluegrass kicks off with a highly anticipated joint set.

It has become a tradition in recent years for mandolin genius Chris Thile to open the festivities in one way or another. While this has long been a well-kept secret among returning Telluride Bluegrass-goers (nicknamed Festivarians), this year the cover was widely blown when the festival announced in advance that Billy Strings would join the Punch Brothers And Nickel Creek frontman. Although no further details were announced other than the promise that these two artists of the highest caliber would be on the same stage together, thousands turned out early Thursday afternoon to witness the collaboration.

Billy Strings and Chris Thile have been in the spotlight twice before Telluride, once at the finale of Thile’s 65th Street Session Joint series at Lincoln Center with keyboard player Cory Henry and then appeared the next day on CBS Morning as a duo. The pair reprised their duo configuration for Telluride Bluegrass, delivering a 75-minute mono-y-mono mountain music duel packed with traditional bluegrass songs like “I Am A Pilgrim,” “Wild Bill Jones,” “Lonesome Moonlight Waltz,” “The Train That Carried My Girl From Town,” and more. Thile and Strings also brought in a few newer covers, like The Beatles“Rocky Raccoon”, Moody Blues“Nights in white satin” and Radiohead‘s “Videotape,” the latter being another entry in the growing number of Radiohead covers in Chris’ live toolbox. The two artists arguably had the most fun of anyone in attendance, and luckily for fans, this bluegrass bromance seems to be just getting started.

Chris Thile & Billy Strings — Telluride Bluegrass Festival 2024 — Full Audio

(Audio: BOOTsy Jacobs)

While the start of Billy and Chris’s joint set was a highlight for many, the undisputed man of the weekend was Sam Bush. The founding Revival of the new grass The mandolinist was celebrating his 50th consecutive appearance at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival. His long and storied association with the festival began in 1975. Artists from across the lineup and beyond paid their respects to the man nicknamed the “King of Telluride” with a ceremonial plaque. The festival also honored the baseball-loving Bush with a commemorative bobblehead at the merchandise table.

Per Saving Country MusicBush was probably on more sets than not, as he performed alongside the likes of The infamous Stringdustersalso a bluegrass icon Peter Rowanand slamgrass veterans Leftover salmon who played through a downpour until Bush arrived, and were then promptly greeted by clearing clouds and a rainbow in the sky as Bush entered with his violin. Bush’s traditional Saturday headlining performance was a fittingly star-studded affair. In addition to the myriad artists on the lineup who all came out to kiss the ring, Telluride’s most famous resident and country music star Dierks Bentley made a surprise appearance during Sam’s set. While he became a bluegrass icon over the past half century, Bush also became one of the most sought-after session musicians for roots music of all kinds. Bush lent his strings to Bentley’s 2010 album On top of the ridgewith his song about Telluride, “Sun Sets in Colorado,” which the two played on Saturday, along with Bentley’s interpretation of U2“Pride (In the Name of Love)”.

The highlight of Bush’s performance was a couple of long jam sessions on “Ralph’s Banjo Special” and Bush’s classic “Same Ol’ River,” which together amounted to nearly half an hour of music. All hands on deck as a generation’s worth of talent emerged from the side of the stage, with performances by Thile, Bentley, Thomas Emmanuel, Andy Thorn (leftover salmon), Andrew Marlin (Watchhouse/Mandolin Orange), Noam Pikelny (The Punch Brothers), Kyle Tuttle (Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway) and too many more to count.

“We found a friend for life in this town and friends for life at this festival,” Bush said at one point about his lasting legacy in Telluride.

Sam Bush & Friends — Telluride Bluegrass Festival 2024 — Full Audio

(Video: foxfireman188)

Sam Bush & Friends – “Same Ol’ River” – Telluride Bluegrass Festival 2024

(Video: Owen Perkins)

Check out a collection of images from the 2024 Telluride Bluegrass Festival courtesy of the photographer Conrad Meyer along with a selection of fan videos by Owen Perkins (unless otherwise noted) and audio by foxfireman188.

Sierra Hull – Telluride Bluegrass Festival 2024 – Full Audio