Words by Heath Clayton
David Nelson led New Riders on the Purple Sage into Sin City a few weeks back for two sets of great music at the Hard Rock Live. With their unique mix of psychedelic country/rock, NRPS did not disappoint their loyal fans. The first set was hard hitting with legendary tunes like “Where I Come From”, “I don’t Know You”, and ending the set with The Rolling Stones, “Dead Flowers”. The first set was on fire and you could tell that Nelson and Cage were having a blast.
The second set was just as hot. David Nelson ripped into “Armadillo > Destruction” and didn’t look back. Buddy Cage took the lead and was laying it down with the pedal steel in “Big Six”. We were all very happy to hear classic tunes such as “Panama Red” and “Lonesome LA Cowboy”, but my personal highlight was hearing “17 Pine Ave” (the title track to their latest album). The night was ended with an amazing version of “Ripple” and not one soul was left untouched as David Nelson belted out the lyrics, “If I knew the way, I would take you home”.
Perfect ending to a perfect night!