Chris Stapleton was the musical guest on Wednesday night’s episode of Late Night with Seth Meyers, performing the song “Worry B Gone” from his 2020 album Starting Over.
A shuffling, blues-influenced rocker penned by Guy Clark, Gary Nicholson, and Lee Roy Parnell, “Worry B Gone” has a bit of ZZ Top’s Texas boogie in its DNA and a generous dose of THC in its blood. “People ain’t treatin’ one another like they oughta,” Stapleton sings, decrying the sorry state of the world and his need to escape. “So gimme just one more puff of that worry b gone.”
For his Late Night appearance, Stapleton handles both lead vocal and guitar duties, with instrumental accompaniment by pedal steel, bass, and drums. As usual, his wife Morgane chimes in on background vocals. Stapleton turns in a typically terrific vocal performance, then kicks off his brief guitar solo by hammering away at an open string.
Stapleton released Starting Over in late 2020 and reached Number One with its meditative title track — his second radio chart-topper as a recording artist after “Broken Halos.” He is currently headlining his All American Road Show Tour, which has upcoming dates at outdoor venues in Atlanta, Birmingham, and Virginia Beach before it ventures to indoor venues like Madison Square Garden this fall.