The Outlaw Music Festival has returned to Syracuse, led by the original country outlaw.
Willie Nelson performed at the Empower Federal Credit Union Amphitheater at Lakeview on Sunday night as the headliner for the 10th anniversary edition of his touring festival. Nelson missed last year’s stop at the Amp due to health issues, making it his first Syracuse performance since the 2017 Outlaw Music Festival.
The long wait to see Nelson made it all the more special. The man is an American treasure, and about 15,000 attendees got to enjoy him live and in person.
Nelson took the stage at 9:45 p.m. after hours of music that included fellow Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Bob Dylan and opening acts Turnpike Troubadours, The Red Clay Strays and Waylon Payne. Payne, who had the unenviable position of kicking off the festival at 3:45 p.m. (when temps were near 100 degrees), was also part of Nelson’s band and took lead vocals on some songs during his set.
The 92-year-old Nelson, backed by a huge American flag, remained seated for his entire 65-minute performance, but was still lively on fan favorites like “Funny How Time Slips Away” (a medley with “Crazy” and “Night Life”) and “On the Road Again.” During “Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys,” he’d call on the audience to sing the chorus out loud, and they happily obliged.
It’s especially impressive how much emotion and passion Nelson still puts into songs he’s been playing for more than four decades, like “You Were Always On My Mind” and “Angel Flying Too Close to the Ground.” Nelson even made “Last Leaf,” his 2024 cover of a song by Tom Waits and Kathleen Brennan, more soulful and sad.
Above all, Nelson was entertaining and captivating. Young fans (who came with their parents or grandparents) couldn’t help but smile, while older audience members giggled when he played “Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die,” his 2012 collaboration with Snoop Dogg, Kris Kristofferson and Jamey Johnson.
Speaking of things being rolled up and smoked, it’s worth noting that the longtime cannabis enthusiast no longer smokes weed. Nelson told Forbes in June that “my lungs have already said ‘don’t do that,’” though he still enjoys marijuana edibles and sells his own line of Willie’s Remedy products, including CBD coffee and a THC-infused drink that was available at the concert.
It’s clear that Nelson wants to continue performing for as long as possible, regardless of age. His voice is often soft, almost spoken, but it can still hit a few golden notes. And every extra pluck or flourish on his guitar still draws big cheers.
The audience was less enthusiastic for Bob Dylan, who similarly stayed put for his entire performance. Dylan, 84, stood or sat at an upright piano towards the back of the stage while his bandmates surrounded him closely.
Like Nelson, Dylan is a living museum that deserves reverence for 60-plus years of music and songwriting. But Dylan has never had the best voice or cared to do anything other than what he wants, like contributing to Machine Gun Kelly’s most recent album or switching to an electric guitar at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965.
He played a few of his most recognizable tunes, like “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right” and “All Along the Watchtower.” Mostly, he leaned into slow, country-ish tunes like “’Til I Fell in Love with You” and “Blind Willie McTell,” that dragged as the sun set.
Some fans were clearly most excited for The Turnpike Troubadours, a 6-piece band from Oklahoma. The red dirt country group played a lot of mid-tempo songs, none more perfect for the sun-baked lawn crowd than their fiddle-driven rendition “Long Hot Summer Day.”
The Red Clay Strays delivered the day’s best performance with a 75-minute set that combined country, blues, Southern rock and Americana. Lead singer Brandon Coleman was stoic as his powerful voice slowly won over every single audience member, earning huge cheers for the Alabama group’s platinum-selling 2022 hit “Wondering Why.”
Payne, whose “daddy” played guitar in Willie Nelson’s band and shared stories about growing up with music. His mother Sammi Smith recorded the most popular version of “Help Me Make It Through the Night,“ which Payne performed with Nelson later in the evening. He also delivered a fun cover of Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire” (going up, up, up instead of down, down, down) and joked about his place in the lineup.
“Does anyone know who I am?” Payne asked. “Well, I’m currently touring, so I got that going for me!”
Willie Nelson set list at Outlaw Music Festival
Aug. 10, 2025, at Empower FCU Amphitheater at Lakeview, Syracuse, N.Y.
Whiskey River (Johnny Bush cover)
Stay a Little Longer (Bob Wills & His Texas Playboys cover)
Still is Still Moving to Me
Funny How Time Slips Away / Crazy / Night Life
Bloody Mary Morning
I Never Cared for You
Workin’ Man Blues (Merle Haggard cover) (with Waylon Payne on vocals)
Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys (Ed Bruce cover)
Angel Flying Too Close to the Ground
On the Road Again
You Were Always on My Mind (Gwen McCrae cover)
Good Hearted Woman (Waylon Jennings cover)
Help Me Make It Through the Night (Kris Kristofferson cover) (with Waylon Payne on vocals)
Move It on Over (Hank Williams cover)
Georgia (On My Mind) (Hoagy Carmichael and His Orchestra cover)
Me and Bobby McGee (Kris Kristofferson cover) (with Waylon Payne on vocals)
Last Leaf (Tom Waits cover)
Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die
Will the Circle Be Unbroken / I’ll Fly Away (with Red Clay Strays)
The Party’s Over
* * * * *
Bob Dylan set list at Outlaw Music Festival
Aug. 10, 2025, at Empower FCU Amphitheater at Lakeview, Syracuse, N.Y.
Masters of War
I Can Tell (Bo Diddley cover)
Forgetful Heart
Axe and the Wind (George “Wild Child” Butler coveR)
To Ramona
Early Roman Kings
Under the Red Sky
I’ll Make It All Up to You (Charlie Rich cover)
All Along the Watchtower
‘Til I Fell in Love with You
Desolation Row
Love Sick
Share Your Love with Me (Bobby “Blue” Bland cover)
Blind Willie McTell
Highway 61 Revisited
Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right
* * * * *
If we’re missing any songs from the setlist, please email gherbert@syracuse.com.
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