Article Contributed by Mountain Home Music Company
Published on 2026-05-30
For the latest release in his epic duets series, From Roots to Branches, guitar master Bryan Sutton turns back to the contemporary sphere with an “in the wild” collaboration with Punch Brother — and long time fellow Tony Rice admirer — Chris “Critter” Eldridge. Recorded at famed Colorado festival, Rockygrass, their take on Rice’s mid-80s original, “Port Tobacco” makes for a mesmerizing listen.
"Rockygrass 2022, I think,” recalls Sutton. “We put together a Tony Rice tribute with myself and Chris Eldridge, Sam Bush, Bela Fleck, Jerry Douglas and Mark Schatz. I was obviously honored to be a part of that, and Critter and I had done that song as a duet for another Tony Rice tribute a few months earlier, so it just felt like that would be a cool thing for us to do on that tribute set. Thankfully, the folks at Planet Bluegrass record everything that they put on stage there. You can feel the crowd, you can feel that...it was really special.”
Indeed, the uniqueness of the moment — Sutton notes that “Rockygrass was one of the first times we jammed backstage” — can be sensed throughout their expansive reading of the beloved tune, which comes from the jazz side of the legendary guitarist’s catalog. After a leisurely legato opening that features delicate chords and whispers of melody, the pair settle into the tune’s Latin-flavored groove and eventually, after backing one another in a couple of straightforward passes through its two parts, dissolve into an inspired set of simultaneous, interlocking improvisations that celebrate their rare musical empathy more than their acclaimed virtuosity.
Bringing together two of Tony Rice’s most acclaimed acolytes on one of his signature tunes, Bryan Sutton and Chris Eldridge’s “Port Tobacco” serves as an homage to the master that brings his legacy into a new decade.
"Port Tobacco" is streaming in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL. Listen to it HERE.
