It was wild to watch the rise of William Apostol, aka Billy Strings, a bluegrass prodigy who became a crossover star like his genre peers Alison Krauss and Chris Stapleton – but one who found a home in Jambandlandia, where his super-sick Flatpicking guitar virtuosity met big fats is dancing bear hugs. Strings’ original songs have proven to be solid jam vehicles. Give or take a few of them – particularly the early signature “Dust in a Baggie”, a meth-head’s jailhouse blues – on their own they weren’t particularly memorable.

But recent collaborations with Willie Nelson (“California Sober”), Margo Price (“Too Stoned to Cry”) and rising bluegrass heroine Molly Tuttle (a cover of Nanci Griffith’s “Listen to the Radio”) – all winners – indicated something was afoot. That something, a doubling of the art of the song, is confirmed Highway Prayersa studio set produced by longtime LA studio guru Jon Brion, wingman on classics by Fiona Apple, Aimee Mann, Mac Miller and Kanye West. The result, which also marks Strings’ major label debut, is an impressive 20-track album that harkens back to the days when old-fashioned hybrids were popular Old and in the way And Will the circle be unbroken? sat proudly alongside country rock classics like Workingman’s Dead, DesperateAnd Eat a peach on American record shelves.

Strings’ longtime bandmates – Billy Failing (banjo), Royal Masat (bass), Jarrod Walker (mandolin) and Alex Hargraves (fiddle) – take center stage here, and of course it’s still a bluegrass record. A cappella gospel harmonies and Bill Monroe-style twin violins set the tone on “Leaning on a Travelin’ Song,” an opening number that feels like a traditional piece, while instrumentals like “Escanaba” and “Seney Stretch” are reminiscent of the jazzier ones Newgrass by Alison Brown and the pioneer David Grisman.

But polyglot studio A-listers such as drummer Matt Chamberlain, organist Cory Henry, Dobro master Jerry Douglas and Brion himself are also there and are breaking new ground with the music. On “Gild the Lily,” Brion’s laid-back bass and drum groove steer the sound toward Americana-pop with hints of cello. “Seven Weeks in County,” another jailhouse blues, expands the screen even further, conjuring the cowboy ballads of Marty Robbins against the soundscapes of Ennio Morricone and the Dead’s cover of “El Paso” for a new generation of Stardust cowgirls reimagined.

The latter is a prime example of how Strings has improved his songwriting level. He has experienced co-writers on board, including former collaborators Aaron Allen (“California Sober”) and Jon Weisberger, as well as newcomers Shawn Camp and Thomm Jutz. But this isn’t a Music Row affair, for better or worse, and Strings is careful not to stray far from the bluegrass foundation, perhaps even unfairly. The playing is so hot on a song like “Cabin Ride” that it’s hard to complain, even if the slower tracks shine just as brightly; Check out Douglas’ dobro on “Don’t Be Calling Me (at 4AM)” and the weaving lead lines of “My Alice.”

Brion, for his part, is careful to create a space that doesn’t feel too manipulated, not far from the approach a producer like Dave Cobb or T Bone Burnett might take. But you wonder what might happen if Strings and Brion got weirder. However, the music is at its most memorable when it eschews genre purism and is crazy.

On “Stratosphere Blues/I Believe in You,” Strings trades speed picking for bowed-note ebow electric guitar and gentle fingerstyle playing. “Catch and Release” is a talking blues à la Woody Guthrie or the young Bob Dylan, but with a rhymed flow that feels 21st century, as Strings tells a pretty hilarious story about getting pulled over by a cop , as he gets extremely high in Tennessee (Kids: Don’t try this at home. “MORBUD4ME” is based on a rhythm track of lighter flicks and bong rips. Sure, it’s probably funnier when you’re stoned. But it is still funny. And Strings’ dark family history, which involves hard drugs and harsh consequences, deepens and complicates his “California sobriety” stories. The fact that he still approaches the topic in a playful way is impressive.

Highway Prayers It feels like an old-fashioned double album from start to finish and, like most, has its ups and downs. But it ends with a double victory. “The Beginning of the End” feels like the final signature of the concert – “It’s the end of the show/It’s the end of the record,” he sings simply, setting up a slightly apocalyptic metaphor coupled with encouragement to his friends and Love to keep those close. And following the album’s first track, the band closes a cappella with their own version of the Dead’s early signature outro, “We Bid You Goodnight.” “Richard Petty,” another stoner punchline, albeit one that doubles as an inspirational verse, is sung in four-part harmony, with Strings explaining:

One day I will wake up and be tired of the life I lead

And feel inspired to get off my ass

And get on your way

The joke, of course, is that Strings is well on its way; Where he goes from here is the question.