Leon Bridges and Charley Crockett played the Hollywood Bowl this past Thursday night (6/5). Over the past decade, Crockett has released 17 albums, with his third album Lil G.L.'s Blue Bonanza hitting number 11 on the Billboard U.S. Blues Albums chart in 2018. Fast forward to 2025, Crockett received his first GRAMMY nomination for $10 Cowboy. Crockett is both a Country and Blues artist. Crockett opened the show at 7:30 p.m., performing 15 songs beginning with “Game I Can’t Win,” and covered Link Wray’s “Juke Box Mama,” before closing with “Lonesome Drifter.” Crockett had a band consisting of guitar, drums, bass, pedal steel, and keyboard/organ. Crockett took the stage in daylight and by the end of his set, it was night.
Soul artist Leon Bridges took the stage at 9 p.m. Bridges was born in Atlanta, GA, however, he was raised in Fort Worth, TX. Crockett is a native of San Benito, TX. Like Crockett, Bridges’ debut album was released in 2015. All four of Bridges’ albums made the Billboard 200, placing as high as three with his second album Good Thing. Bridge’s 2018 single “Bet Ain’t Worth the Hand” won a GRAMMY for Best Traditional R&B performance. Bridges played a set of 23 songs, including two songs recorded with Khruangbin—“Mariella” and “Texas Sun.” Bridges' band includes two guitarists, guitar/pedal steel, keyboard/organ, drums, and percussion. Following “Smooth Sailing,” Bridges came back for a two song encore of his breakthrough song “Lisa Sawyer” written about his mother and her life growing up in New Orleans, LA, followed by “Beyond.”
Photos by Alex Kluft
