For an artist known for his unwavering authenticity and aversion to music industry norms, Eric Church’s recent show was perhaps his most audacious undertaking yet. The country superstar eschewed his usual high-octane concert experience filled with rock-inspired anthems for something radically different – a thoughtfully curated collection of classic songs covering genres from soul to rock to gospel.
Backed by a 16-person choir and little more than his acoustic guitar, Church took the stage and delivered a boundary-pushing, one-of-a-kind performance drawn heavily from the iconic artists and tracks that shaped his own musical awakening. From Leonard Cohen’s beloved “Hallelujah” to bluegrass standard “I’ll Fly Away” to rap staple “Gin and Juice” by Snoop Dogg, the setlist represented an authentic exploration of Church’s deepest artistic roots and inspirations.
“This was the most difficult set I have ever attempted,” Church admitted in a statement after the show. “I’ve always found that taking it back to where it started, back to chasing who Bob Seger loves, who Springsteen loves, who Willie Nelson loves, you chase it back to the origin. The origin of all that is still the purest form of it. And we don’t do that as much anymore.”
Indeed, the entire performance seemed a conscious rejection of the mainstream country music industrial complex in favor of something more primal, more organic, more truthful to the core fundamental building blocks that made Church fall in love with music in the first place. Rather than a high-tech assault of pyrotechnics and bellowing guitar riffs, he stripped things down to their bare essence – uplifting gospel voices joining in unison, a masterful songwriter gutturally bearing his soul.
“It felt good at this moment to go back, take a choir and do that,” he added about the show’s back-to-basics intimacy and reverence for the classics.
The sparse, dimly lit staging only amplified the night’s rawboned spiritual undertones, with Church and his singers standing solemnly before a glowing, stained-glass cathedral backdrop that served as the only visual accompaniment for most of the set. Midway through, he passionately tore into covers of soul standards “Take Me to the River” and “Stand By Me,” his soulful bellows sending shockwaves through the hushed venue as the choir provided full-throated harmonic reinforcements.
For many in the audience, witnessing one of country’s most electrifying arena-rockers completely strip down his sound to pay homage to his most sacrosanct musical idols proved a thrilling once-in-a-lifetime experience.
“I’ve been to quite a few Church shows, but this one was just on another level from anything I’ve ever seen,” said longtime fan Sarah Wilkins. “It was like getting a window into his soul and the real inspirations that shaped him as an artist. There was so much rawness and authenticity, I don’t think I’ll ever forget it.”
Of course, for an artist of Church’s stature and singular success in the mainstream country genre, such an unorthodox performance carried an inherent risk of alienating more casual fan bases drawn to his catalog of radio-friendly hits. He acknowledged some confusion from segments of the audience, but remained steadfastly committed to delivering the show entirely on his own merits.
“For me, it’s always been something with records, with performances, I’ve always been the one that’s like, ‘Let’s do something really, really strange and weird and take a chance,'” Church explained. “Sometimes it doesn’t work, but it’s okay if you’re living on that edge, because that edge, that cutting edge, is where all the new guys are going to gravitate to anyway. So if you can always challenge yourself that way, it always cuts sharper than any other edge.”
Even the country superstar himself seemed surprised at the polarizing responses from the crowd. Just last year at the CMA Music Festival, Church performed a seven-song acoustic set highlighted by Little Feat’s “Sailin’ Shoes” and new arrangements on some of his most popular hits – a performance he assumed would test the limits of what mainstream audiences expected.
“I was shocked because I played the show that I went out there to play,” Church told Rolling Stone at the time. “We had a time slot and I went out there to play that slot and try to show a little bit, a peek, as to what I was working on for this tour.”
This most recent performance represented the full uncompromising vision of that mindset. From start to finish, Church leaned directly into his deepest musical obsessions and contemporary creative instincts, regardless of how his well-established fan base might receive the detour into the unexpected.
For the bulk of the set’s 90 minutes, it was just Church alone in the spotlight with his guitar and choir, reimagining classic compositions through his signature gritty artistic lens. At one point, the band exited altogether leaving the chief curator alone to deliver a hauntingly sparse rendition of the spiritual standard “When The Saints Go Marching In” with the choir.
It was only near the very end when the rest of his band members took the stage as well, bringing the show to a rousing culmination with performances of hit songs like “Springsteen” and “Country Music Jesus” that showcased Church in his more familiar heartland rocker mode.
By fearlessly stepping outside of his established comfort zone, Church achieved something uniquely special – a concert experience that transcended the constraints of genre or commercial expectations. This was pure, unfiltered artistry, a creative flex from an elite talent no longer feeling the need to conform or compromise.
“This night was about going to the chippy, the bone; finding the zygote that all these forms of American music came from,” he proclaimed with trademark conviction. “These are the Ghost Dances, the Campfires, the huddling together around the community. These are the First Nations celebrations. This is where it begins.”
For an artist whose very brand has become emblematic of uncompromising authenticity and close spiritual connections with his dedicated fan base, this daring performance represented the apotheosis of Eric Church’s lifelong musical manifesto. He followed his own curiosities and instincts without hesitation or apology, creating an immersive experience brimming with the bones and spirit of the sounds that first moved him.
For Church and his band, concerts likely won’t come much more challenging, personal, or potentially polarizing than this carefully crafted showcase. But that’s what made it a quintessential Eric Church production – an unrelenting commitment to creative exceptionalism, even if it means taking the road less traveled.
When reflecting on his uncompromising artistry and penchant for rejecting mainstream conventions, the country iconoclast put it best: “We’re not taking anything from Yungs. We are the OGs that the Yungs are taking from, and we have to stay out front of that so that the roots and the grits of what they’re recording has depth in it.”
For those fortunate enough to witness this landmark performance, that conviction and depth resonated through every note, cover, and unexpected musical detour. It was Eric Church at his most authentic and artistically daring, curating a singular creative celebration drawn directly from the sacred wells that first quenched his passion.