Dwell Evaluate: Songwriters Pay Tribute to John Prine @ Wolf Trap — 6/9/26

John Prine was one of the vital beloved and influential songwriters of the final 50-plus years. His songs, celebrating the small joys and empathizing with the struggles of on a regular basis folks, have been extensively lined by his fellow artists, and he had a considerable fanbase as a recording artist and as a performer. Over the years, he performed many occasions at Wolf Trap, which he numbered amongst his favourite venues. On Tuesday night, an all-star lineup, backed by John’s band, gathered to share their favourite John Prine songs, together with each a few of his best-known songs in addition to deeper cuts, and a few of their very own he impressed, in a shifting tribute.

Hailing from Maywood, a suburb west of Chicago, Prine comes from a particular midwestern custom. He and Kurt Vonnegut are the modern-day descendants of Mark Twain, packing nice which means into economical, clear, unpretentious writing, filled with humor, within the vernacular voice and dialect. As a author, I can see among the wonderful subtleties of craft in that language; the way in which “Great Rain” slips from repeating “rain” to the phrase “train” is a robust use of each repetition and selection. For all their variations — Prine is gentle the place Vonnegut is commonly darkish — these similarities actually come into give attention to songs like “Linda Goes to Mars,” the place John is pushing towards the science-fictional territory Vonnegut roamed.

We misplaced John in 2020, within the early phases of the Covid pandemic. His loss was enormous for musicians and followers, however we additionally felt like our time with him was a present, as he’d gone a number of rounds with most cancers.

Before the live performance, there was a quick panel with representatives of the Hello In There Foundation, together with Prine’s widow, Fiona, and Alison Russell, who carried out later within the night. They mentioned creating the inspiration to advertise the causes that have been near John’s coronary heart, serving communities and supporting rising artists. Fiona additionally shared a stunning story about how John would name his mom each night time to inform her he liked her.

The first artist to play within the live performance, Colorado’s Jobi Riccio, benefited from the inspiration’s work, incomes the John Prine Songwriter Fellowship in 2023. The observe yr, she was nominated for Emerging Artist of the Year on the 2024 Americana Honors. Riccio performed “Summer’s End” from John’s ultimate album, 2018’s Tree of Forgiveness and her personal “Idaho,” which she described as “a love song.”

Watch the official music video for “Summer’s End” by John Prine on YouTube:

Next up was Fancy Hagood, who launched himself as a “queer, independent country artist.” He inspired the viewers, in the event that they felt the urge, to rise up on their toes and boogie whereas he performed John’s “I Just Want to Dance With You,” adopted by his personal “To The Moon.”

While she’s been making music for greater than twenty years as a part of Po’ Girl, Our Native Daughters, and Sisters of the Strawberry Moon, Montreal native Alison Russell broke via to wider recognition together with her debut solo album, 2021’s Outside Child. The album was nominated for the Best Americana Album Grammy in 2022, and “Nightflyer” was nominated for Best American Roots Performance and Song. (Despite the identify, Canadian artists have contributed loads to Americana, The Band, most notably). Her follow-up, 2023’s The Returner, was equally well-received, with 4 Grammy nominations, together with Best Americana album and Best American Roots Song and Performance for the title observe. She was joined on stage by her husband and companion within the duo The Birds of Chicago, J.T. Nero, who performed guitar and joined in on vocals. They did John’s “Everything Is Cool,” then have been joined by the trio I’m With Her (Sara Watkins, Aoife O’Donovan, a and Sarah Jarosz)  for “Really Real,” a music that can seem on her album popping out later this yr; Russell will return to Wolf Trap on July 5 to open for Sarah McLachlan.

The three members of I’m With Her have achieved success each in teams (Nickel Creek for Watkins, Crooked Still for Donovan) and as solo artists. That success has carried over to their work collectively: “Call My Name” was nominated for Best American Roots Performance and Song in 2020, and their second album, Wild and Clear and Blue gained Best Folk Album and Best American Roots Song (“Ancient Light”) earlier this yr. The trio carried out the title observe of Prine’s Bruised Orange, in addition to the title observe from Wild and Clear and Blue.

Margo Price, an Illinois native like Prine, made an ideal alternative in his antiwar basic, “Your Flag Decal Won’t Get You Into Heaven Anymore” was an ideal alternative, exhibiting how the political themes in John’s work hook up with her personal. She advised an amazing story about how, some 10 years in the past, when she performed Wolf Trap with John, she drank with him after the present, resulting in her having to scale the fence again into the park at 2 a.m., whereas drunk, in heels. (Lest anybody fear about her well-being, she’s since gotten sober.) Her personal “And the Horse You Rode In On” is firmly within the spirit of his John at his most reducing. Price confirmed a softer with a shocking rendition of “Angel From Montgomery,” which is probably finest recognized from Bonnie Raitt’s cowl.

The first a part of the present ended with Emmylou Harris and Hayes Carll duetting on “In Spite of Ourselves,” which John recorded with Iris DeMent, adopted by a 20-minute intermission that allowed me to stuff myself with salt-and-vinegar potato chips and meet up with a good friend.

Lucius (Holly Laessig and Jess Wolfe) present how wide-ranging Prine’s affect is: whereas the night’s lineup consisted of artists from the folks and nation worlds, they’re a pop band. “Hello In There” was an apt alternative for them, because it’s additionally been finished by the choice band 10,000 Maniacs. Their attractive concord shined via on that and on their very own “Dusty Trails.”

I discussed the wonderful craft John employed in his lyrics, and John Dickerson drew consideration with a spoken-word recitation of “Mexican Home.” Songs won’t fairly be poems, but when this one isn’t, it’s awfully shut.

Hayes Carll returned to the stage, saying, “Singing ‘In Spite of Ourselves” and dancing with Emmylou Harris wasn’t on my bingo card in life.” Price joined him to sing Prine’s salute to pot, which each are smitten by, “Illegal Smile,” then did his personal “Beaumont.”

Watch John Prine carry out “Illegal Smile” stay at Austin City Limits on YouTube:

For Emmylou Harris, who grew up on this space, taking part in at Wolf Trap is coming house, and she or he spoke fondly of the numerous family and friends in attendance. It’s nearly inconceivable, in article like this, to say something ample about her profession, which spans greater than 5 many years, has garnered her quite a few artists, and has made her a principal affect on what has change into Americana; many take into account the best concord singer within the historical past of recorded music. Harris made her cowl of “The Speed of the Sound of Loneliness” a tribute not solely to Prine, however to her late good friend Nanci Griffith, who recorded the music as nicely. You may’ve heard a pin drop when she sang her personal “Red Dirt Girl,” which she talked about was a piece of fiction, as her personal upbringing and life have been fairly optimistic.

John’s son, Tommy, did his father proud with the melancholy “Far From Me,” from Prine’s self-titled debut. A formidable songwriter in his personal proper, he surprised along with his personal “Ships In The Harbor.”

Throughout his profession, John ended his live shows with “Paradise,” a music from that celebrated addressing the destruction wreaked by the coal business on his household’s ancestral house within the mountains of Kentucky. Tuesday night’s tribute ended with the entire artists on stage singing it, leaving us with an exquisite second.

It’s a tall order to make a tribute that lives as much as the legacy of somebody like John Prine, however everybody pulled it off, honoring John’s artwork and exhibiting the way it continues to influences generations of songwriters.

Here are some photographs of artists paying tribute to John Prine at Wolf Trap on June 9, 2026. All footage copyright and courtesy of Steve Satzberg.