Luke Bryan•Tyler Braden•Jon Langston•August 31, 2023•USANA Amphitheatre
Reviewed and Photographed by Nate Bonney
On August 31st Salt Lake City finally got to see Luke Bryan in concert at USANA Amphitheatre. The show had been postponed from earlier in the month due to some health issues Bryan has been dealing with. This time he brought along upcoming musicians Jon Langston and Tyler Braden as his openers.
Jon Langston
A little bio on Jon Langston. He is from Loganville, GA. There he went to college on a football scholarship. After receiving multiple concussions and going blind as a result for fifteen minutes, it abruptly finished his football career. He then picked up his guitar that he hadn’t touched in years and has been doing that since. He was the first artist to sign under Luke Bryan’s label “32 Bridges.” He has been touring on and off with Bryan since 2017 plus doing a bunch of his own tours.
He opened up with I believe was “Wiskey Does.” I was entertained during his set. Jon Has a great stage presence. He was walking up and down the catwalk singing and playing guitar. His bandmates all came out on the catwalk and engaged with the audience. If you have ever been to USANA in West Valley City, you’ll know that the open always has the sun in his eyes and the heat on him. He Played “Day In The 90’s,” “Heart On Ice,” and “Ain’t No Cowboy.” He Sang one cover that I can recall. “How You Remind Me,” by Nickleback. Jon Langston has a strong songwriter ability and it is no wonder why Luke Bryan snagged him to open for him
Tyler Braden
On to Tyler Braden. He is an artist out of Slapout, AL. He has been playing ever since he was a teenager and has honed his craft. He has a powerhouse voice. He started by playing four-hour-long cover shows. He would do shows between his shifts as a firefighter in Montgomery and Nashville. This guy has a bright future in country music.
Again I wasn’t able to get his setlist for this particular show. But From what I see his set is pretty much the same on average for his other shows. So the setlist below is what you can expect from his show.
1. Nothing Wrong Right Now
2. Better Off
3. She Don’t Care
4. Brother
5. Friends
6. Fix You (Coldplay cover)
7. What Do They Know
8. Iris (The Goo Goo Dolls cover)
9. Do you think about me
10. Try Losing One
11. Creep
12. Neon grave
13. Beer Never Broke My Heart (Luke Combs cover)
Tyler has an amazing voice that sounds natural. You are able to hear it in his song “Better Off” and “She Don’t Care.” He brings great energy to his songs. He can jump from the guitar and then slow it down by jumping on the piano.
He played a few covers during his set. “Fix You” by Coldplay, “Iris” by The Goo Goo Dolls, and “Creep” by Radiohead. It’s always nice to hear some covers doing other artist’s sets. There has to be a balance though and even though he had more in there I would prefer it had a different enough sound to them that it was annoying or boring. Kudos to that!
Tyler played “Friends,” and he had the honor to tell everyone that it would be released that night at midnight. If you are looking for a great show or some solid country, check out Tyler Braden
Luke Bryan
And now on to Luke Bryan. He needs no intro but here’s a little. He grew up in Leesburg, GA where is family owned a peanut farm. He was going to go to Nashville when he was 19, but his brother passed away in a car accident that set him back a few years. He finally made it there. He first gained success as a songwriter but then later started performing. His first success was “All My Friends Say”
Finally the house lights went off and the stages lights went on. The lights turned red and in moments Luke was walking out. He started with “Kick the Dust Up.” From his 2015 album. A nice song to get the audience cheering more. Then he played “Knocking” Boots.” The song that I recognize the best is “ Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye.” Such a powerful song and great songwriting. It was awesome to see it live.
The stage had a nice out feel and he was out on the can’t walk for a great majority of the concert. It really puts them in with the fans. The lighting was really well put together and complimented every song. He slowed it up midway through his set with “Drunk On You.” He seemed to refighting something most of the concert. He had water all over and kept turning to cough or fight it off. Nonetheless, after not playing in Utah for 5 years he put on a great show.
If you want to catch one of his shows you can always make your way down to Las Vegas where he is doing a residency.
Setlist:
1. Kick the Dust Up
2. Knockin’ Boots
3. Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye
4. What Makes You Country
5. But I Got a Beer in My Hand
6. Huntin’, Fishin’ and Lovin’ Every Day
7. Sunrise, Sunburn, Sunset
8. Games / What She Wants Tonight
9. I See You
10. Country On
11. Down to One
12. All My Friends Say
13. Light It Up
14. Strip It Down
15. Drunk on You
16. Crash My Party
17. Drink a Beer
18. Buy Dirt (Jordan Davis cover)
19. Sweet Emotion (Aerosmith cover)
20. One Margarita
21. Rain Is a Good Thing
22. I Don’t Want This Night to End
23. Country Girl (Shake It for Me)
24. Play It Again
Encore:
25. Sad but True (Metallica cover)
26That’s My Kind of Night
