November 5, 2026 | Peace Center — Greenville, South Carolina
By Michael Bragg | Behind The Pic
Twenty-five years in the music business is an accomplishment in itself. But spending those years building a career without compromising your musical identity is something entirely different. That’s exactly what Blackberry Smoke has managed to do.
On Thursday night, the Atlanta-based Southern rock band brought their “25th Anniversary Tour” to the Peace Center in Greenville, South Carolina, for an evening that celebrated not only their music, but the history, brotherhood, and perseverance that have defined the band for a quarter century.
For anyone familiar with Blackberry Smoke, their music is a mixture of Southern rock, blues, country, and a little bit of everything in between. There’s an unmistakable influence from bands like Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Allman Brothers Band, and other artists who helped establish the Southern rock sound. But Blackberry Smoke has never been content with simply recreating what came before them. They’ve managed to take those influences and develop a sound that is distinctly their own.
Their story began around 2000 in Atlanta, Georgia, with vocalist and guitarist Charlie Starr, guitarist Paul Jackson, bassist Richard Turner, and his brother, drummer Brit Turner. Keyboardist Brandon Still would eventually join the lineup, adding another dimension to their already established sound.
The band’s lineup would continue to evolve over the years, with multi-instrumentalist Benji Shanks and percussionist Preston Holcomb joining the touring group in 2018 before becoming full-time members in 2021. Holcomb, a longtime friend of Brit and Richard Turner who grew up with the brothers, added another layer of percussion to the band’s performances and recordings before retiring from touring in the spring of 2024. Shanks, meanwhile, brought additional guitar work and musical versatility that would become an important part of the band’s expanding live sound as he continues touring with the band.
Like most bands, their early years were anything but glamorous. They spent countless hours traveling, performing in small clubs, and building a following one audience at a time. One of their earliest supporters was Jesse James Dupree, frontman of the Southern hard rock band Jackyl, who produced some of Blackberry Smoke’s early recordings. The band also performed many shows with Jackyl during those early years, helping introduce their music to a wider audience.
Their second album, Little Piece of Dixie, arrived in 2009 and included songs such as “Good One Comin’ On” and “Up in Smoke,” helping establish the foundation of what would become their signature sound.
But it was their 2012 release, The Whippoorwill, that would become a defining moment in their career. With songs like “Pretty Little Lie,” “One Horse Town,” “Ain’t Much Left of Me,” “Six Ways to Sunday,” and “Sleeping Dogs,” the album helped introduce Blackberry Smoke to a much larger audience and remains one of the most recognizable releases in their catalog.
The success continued with, Holding All the Roses, in 2015, which reached number one on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart, followed by another number-one country album, Like an Arrow, in 2016. Songs such as “Rock and Roll Again” and “Waiting for the Thunder” demonstrated that the band was continuing to evolve without abandoning its roots.
Further releases including, Find a Light, in 2018, You Hear Georgia in 2021, and Be Right Here in 2024, continued that progression. Their work with Grammy-winning producer Dave Cobb helped capture the natural, organic sound that has always been at the heart of their music.
What started as a group of musicians playing small clubs eventually grew into a band performing on some of the world’s largest festival stages, earning chart-topping albums and developing an international following. And they accomplished much of that success without the mainstream radio attention typically associated with bands of their stature. That history is what makes their 25th anniversary particularly meaningful.
Thursday night’s performance brought together the musicians responsible for carrying that legacy forward. Charlie Starr continues to lead the band with his distinctive vocals and guitar playing, alongside longtime guitarist and vocalist Paul Jackson. Richard Turner remains the driving force on bass, while Brandon Still’s keyboard work adds the piano and organ textures that are so important to the band’s sound. Multi-instrumentalist Benji Shanks, who joined the touring lineup in 2018, brings another layer to the band’s guitar arrangements, while Kent Aberle now occupies the drum position once held by founding member Brit Turner.
And while the music remains as strong as ever, the band has endured a loss that makes this anniversary considerably more emotional.
On March 3, 2024, Brit Turner passed away at the age of 57 following a battle with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer. As a founding member, Brit was instrumental in shaping both the music and the identity of Blackberry Smoke. He wasn’t simply their drummer. He was part of the band’s history from the very beginning, and the brother of bassist Richard Turner.
Kent Aberle, who had already stepped in to perform with the band during Brit’s illness, has since taken over drumming duties. Continuing after losing someone who helped build the band has to be a hard thing to cope with, but there’s something meaningful about seeing the music continue while never forgetting the person who helped create it.
One of the most touching moments of Thursday’s performance came when the band dedicated “Azalea,” from their 2024 album Be Right Here, to Brit’s memory. The song carries an emotional weight of its own, but hearing it performed in recognition of someone who had been such an important part of the band’s existence gave it an entirely different meaning.
For me, that was one of the moments that stood apart from the rest of the evening. A 25th anniversary is naturally a celebration of accomplishments, but it’s also a reminder of the people who helped make those accomplishments possible, including those who are no longer here to celebrate them.
Of course, Blackberry Smoke is also a band that knows how to deliver a rock and roll performance.
Their catalog is filled with songs that have become staples of their live shows, from the unmistakable swagger of “Whatcha Know Good” and “Pretty Little Lie” to the storytelling of “One Horse Town” and the driving energy of “Waiting for the Thunder.” It’s that combination of memorable songwriting and outstanding musicianship that has kept audiences coming back year after year.
One of the more entertaining moments in Greenville came during “Sleeping Dogs,” a song that has developed a reputation for becoming something of a musical journey during their live performances. Rather than playing it exactly as it appears on the album, the band frequently stretches the arrangement into extended instrumental passages, weaving in portions of other familiar songs along the way.
Thursday night was no exception, as they incorporated music from Charlie Daniels and The Beatles into the performance. It’s become one of those things that makes seeing Blackberry Smoke live different from simply listening to their records. You may know the song, but you never know exactly where they’re going to take it.
The evening’s encore also included a performance of Thin Lizzy’s “Cowboy Song,” another fitting addition to a night filled with guitar-driven rock and roll.
What I appreciate about Blackberry Smoke is that there’s nothing particularly complicated about what they do. They don’t rely on elaborate stage productions or unnecessary theatrics to make their performances memorable. Their strength comes from the musicians themselves, their chemistry, and the music they’ve spent years creating together….and that’s something I believe is becoming increasingly rare.
There’s a difference between a band that simply performs its songs and one that genuinely understands how to play together. Blackberry Smoke falls firmly into the latter category. After 25 years, that musical connection is still evident, even as the lineup has evolved and the band has faced some incredibly difficult circumstances.
Watching them perform at the Peace Center, I couldn’t help but appreciate how far they’ve come since my first time seeing them perform in front of less than 500 people back in January 2012 at one of Greenville’s former venues, The Handlebar. From those early recordings to years of traveling from one venue to another, to chart-topping records and audiences around the world, Blackberry Smoke has built a career that many bands would envy.
But perhaps their greatest accomplishment isn’t the records they’ve sold, the charts they’ve topped, or the stages they’ve performed on. It’s the fact that they’ve remained true to the music they set out to create. Twenty-five years later, they’re still doing what they love, still bringing their music to audiences, and still carrying the legacy of a brother and bandmate who helped make it all possible.
Thursday night in Greenville wasn’t simply another stop on a tour. It was an opportunity to experience a small part of that 25-year history firsthand. And after all these years, Blackberry Smoke continues to prove that Southern rock isn’t merely something from the past. It’s a musical tradition that is still very much alive, and they’re doing their part to keep it that way.
Do not altar photos
Copyright: MJBragg Photography
