John Mayer Honors Dolly Parton With Instrumental Tribute at Intimate Hamptons SiriusXM Concert
On Wednesday, August 26, 2026, musician John Mayer delivered his first full-band show of the year at the Stephen Talkhouse in Amagansett, New York. Performing an exclusive SiriusXM concert just one night after the death of country music icon Dolly Parton at age 80, Mayer honored her memory with a moving instrumental guitar rendition of “I Will Always Love You” woven into his closing track, “Gravity.”
The Bottom Line
- The Event: John Mayer’s invite-only summer show at Stephen Talkhouse in the Hamptons on August 26, 2026.
- The Tribute: A wordless, emotional guitar interlude of Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You” incorporated into the encore performance of “Gravity.”
- How to Listen: The intimate performance broadcasts on SiriusXM’s Life with John Mayer (Ch. 4) on Saturday, August 29, 2026, at 8 p.m. ET.
An Exclusive Hamptons Gathering Set Against a Backdrop of Loss
The night before Mayer took the stage with an eight-piece backing band, the entertainment world absorbed the news of Dolly Parton’s passing on Tuesday, August 25, 2026. Her family released a statement confirming she died at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center following a brief battle with cancer.
Andy Cohen introduced Mayer at the storied Hamptons venue as part of SiriusXM’s ongoing exclusive concert series, calling the event “the hardest tickets in the Hamptons in many years.” Backed by musicians who accompanied him on his 2022 Sob Rock Tour—including drummer Aaron Sterling, bassist Sean Hurley, and keyboardist Greg Phillinganes—Mayer delivered a 14-song career-spanning set.
Inside the Setlist and the Musical Homage
The concert opened with “Last Train Home” and moved through fan favorites like “Queen Of California,” “Who Says,” “In The Blood,” and “Slow Dancing In A Burning Room.” But the emotional apex of the evening arrived during the encore.
After opening the encore with Tom Petty’s “Free Fallin’,” Mayer launched into “Gravity.” Before completing the track, he executed a delicate, instrumental guitar interpretation of Dolly Parton’s 1974 classic, “I Will Always Love You,” before tagging the end of the song with additional phrases from the melody.
Parton originally took her self-penned ballad to the top of the country charts in 1974 before Whitney Houston transformed it into a global pop phenomenon for the 1992 film The Bodyguard. Mayer joined artists like Chris Stapleton, Jack White, and Orville Peck in honoring Parton’s cultural footprint following her death.
Reflecting on a Cultural Legacy
Earlier in the evening, Mayer sat down with Andy Cohen for a SiriusXM interview on Radio Andy, reflecting deeply on Parton’s passing. Calling it “a huge loss, and a universal loss,” Mayer noted how the global reaction demonstrated Parton’s unique ability to bridge cultural divides.
“I don’t know that there are many people in this world left that can galvanize a very fractured world to come together and share love for one person,” Mayer shared in the interview, courtesy of SiriusXM. He praised her career as a “brilliant, classy, talented, fully artistic rendering” of a life dedicated to her craft.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Date of Event | Wednesday, August 26, 2026 |
| Venue | Stephen Talkhouse, Amagansett, NY |
| Tribute Song | “I Will Always Love You” (Dolly Parton) |
| Broadcast Date | Saturday, August 29, 2026, at 8 p.m. ET (Channel 4) |
Broadcasting and Album Updates
Fans who missed out on the invite-only ticketed event will have a chance to experience it. SiriusXM announced that the concert will air on the Life with John Mayer channel (Ch. 4) on Saturday, August 29, 2026, at 8 p.m. ET, and will remain accessible on the SiriusXM app.
Additionally, Mayer offered a glimpse into his ongoing recording process during his conversation with Cohen, revealing that he has been utilizing Cohen’s bedroom to mix his upcoming single with newly rented studio monitors set up on stands.
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