Rodney Crowell, Rosie Flores and More Send Off AmericanaFest

In the spring, the fate of long-running independent venue 3rd and Lindsley seemed uncertain, though a proposed construction project that would displace it fell through last year. However, in May word came that venue owners signed a five-year lease and were making plans to celebrate the club’s 35th anniversary in 2026. As AmericanaFest 2025 drew to a close on Saturday, a line wound around the building in anticipation of a mix of newer talent and stars whose work is a part of the bedrock of Americana.

Singer-songwriter Liz Longley, whose March album New Life features rich arrangements, wowed the first folks in with a solo acoustic set. After a brief break, legendary songsmith Rodney Crowell walked onstage in a polka-dotted shirt and immediately took off with his band. The set featured songs from his latest LP Airline Highway, released Aug. 29, including “Some Kind of Woman” and Lukas Nelson co-write and album opener “Rainy Days in California.” 

The set was billed as “Rodney Crowell and Friends,” and many of them joined him including bluesy duo Larkin Poe (whose members contributed to several tracks on Airline Highway), Sarah Jarosz and Carlene Carter. Crowell was met with raised hands and much crowd participation when he played Bob Dylan's “Like a Rolling Stone.”

“I read somewhere there was a study that was the best rock ’n’ roll song of all time,” Crowell said. “So I said ‘OK, we’re gonna do it.’”

Hot on Crowell’s heels was Rosie Flores, the accurately self-proclaimed Rockabilly Filly, who celebrated her 75th birthday during the festival. She radiated personality as she took the stage in a red fringed dress and a matching flower in her hair, to the delight of the audience. She and her band jumped into action, warming up with an energetic jam. The set that followed covered a lot of territory, including songs from her 2019 album Simple Case of the Blues as well as newer songs written during COVID quarantine and ones she penned during her childhood.

It was time for us to call it a night, but one more set rounded out the bill. Flores is a tough act to follow, but top-notch Nashville session players Tom Bukovac, Guthrie Trapp and Jedd Hughes were ready to give it their best with the Guitar Party they kicked off around 10:30 p.m.