Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country brought the heat and all the love to an enthusiastic packed house at Louisville, KY’s Mercury Ballroom.

Taking the stage with his trusty bandmates Will “Mustang” McGee (bass, vocals), Nathan “Sugar Leg” Aronowitz (keyboards, vocals), and Will “Bronco” Clark (drums, vocals), Donato opened the first set with three Cosmic Country originals before giving more than a nod to the legendary Bob Dylan on his 84th birthday.

Donato kicked off a seven-song Dylan tribute with a respectful “I Shall Be Released” featuring Sugar Leg on vocals, followed by “Subterranean Homesick Blues”, “You’re Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go”, “Lay, Lady, Lay” with McGee taking the lead on vocals, and “Country Pie”.

Donato reassured his fans he wasn’t leaving anytime soon with another Dylan classic released in 1969, “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You”, followed by a crowd favorite Dylan tune, “Tangled Up in Blue”, to culminate the epic first set.

The second set resumed the more traditional Cosmic Country jams fused with improvisational rock and western honky-tonk twang, starting off with a “Half Moon Night” > “I Saw the Light” (Hank Williams) > “Half Moon Night” sandwich. Later in the set, Donato went full-on Cosmic with a 13-minute instrumental version of Stan Jones‘ “Ghost Riders in the Sky”.

Before the evening ended, the band affectionately presented Jake Knoll with a cake-in-the-face to celebrate his 100th show as the band’s stage manager, then closed out the set with newly released 2024 song “Sunshine in the Rain”, which included familiar teases of War’s “Low Rider” and Phish’s “Bathtub Gin”.

Returning to stage for the encore, Donato and his posse honored Dylan once again with an upbeat cover of “Quinn the Eskimo” to conclude the fun-filled night before hitting the dusty trail to Thornville, OH for Dark Star Jubilee.

Check out fan-shot footage and click below to view a gallery of photos from Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country in Lousiville, KY. Scroll down for the full setlist.

Donato’s cosmic journey continues with a series of upcoming performances, including appearances at Bonnaroo, Northlands Music & Arts Festival, All Good Now, High Sierra Music Festival, and more. For a complete list of tour dates and ticket information, head here.

Daniel Donto’s Cosmic Country – “Ghost Riders In The Sky” (Stan Jones) – 5/27/25

[Video: MB1 Music]

Setlist [via Daniel Base]: Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country | Mercury Ballroom | Louisville, KY | 5/24/25

Set 1: Better Deal Blues, Along The Trail > Down Bedford, I Shall Be Released (Bob Dylan) [1][2], Subterranean Homesick Blues (Bob Dylan) [1][3], You’re Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go (Bob Dylan) [1], Lay, Lady, Lay (Bob Dylan) [1][4], Country Pie (Bob Dylan) [1], Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You (Bob Dylan) [1][5], Tangled Up In Blue (Bob Dylan) [1]

Set 2: Half Moon Night > I Saw The Light (Hank Williams) > Half Moon Night (Reprise), Rose In A Garden > The Gold Rush, Fox On The Run (Manfred Mann), ‘Til The Daylight, Running Gun > Ghost Riders In The Sky (Stan Jones) (Instrumental), Faded Lovin’, Sunshine In The Rain (Strange Presence)

Encore [6]: Quinn The Eskimo (The Mighty Quinn) (Bob Dylan) [1][7]

Annotations:
[1] In Honor Of Bob Dylan’s Birthday (Song)
[2] Nathan Aronowitz On Lead Vocals (Song)
[3] Will Clark Drum Solo Ending (Song)
[4] Will McGee On Lead Vocals (Song)
[5] Will Clark On Lead Vocals (Song)
[6] Celebration Of Jake Knoll’s 100th Show (Set)
[7] Whole Band Alternating Lead Vocals (Song)