As musical lives go, Chris Hillman and Herb Pedersen have lived some of the richest.

Their combined experiences are like a federal reserve full of gold. The Byrds, The Dillards, Gram Parsons, Emmylou Harris, Desert Rose Band and Manassas are just a few of the acts that one or both have been a part of.

On Friday night in front of a packed house at the intimate Kirk Avenue Music Hall, they gave a long and sometimes humorous tour of that reserve, with a few history lessons for accompaniment.

Hillman, 65, might have his Medicare card, as he told the audience after blowing the opening line to the Buck Owens/Dwight Yoakam hit, "Streets of Bakersfield," but that was one of the few mistakes he made. Pedersen, the all-star sideman whose history is just as deep if not as high-profile, was a rock.

The duo — Hillman on mandolin and vocals, Pedersen on guitar and vocals — were still at it well past 10:30 p.m., when this reporter had to leave to make deadline.

Of all the work they’ve done over nearly 50 years of professional gigging, Hillman’s role in The Byrds is most prominent. But they waited a while before launching into any of that band’s iconic hits. Instead, they opened with Ralph Stanley’s "Going Up Home to Live in Green Pastures," one of several gospels they would play. Later, they would play "Eight Miles High," "Turn! Turn! Turn!" and "Mr. Tambourine Man."

They did the latter, Hillman told the crowd, the way he and fellow Byrd Roger McGuinn first heard it — as a demo by Bob Dylan and Ramblin’ Jack Elliott. Its tone was folky bluegrass, as was the Hillman/Gram Parsons classic, "Sin City."

Another highlight: A version of Emmylou Harris’ hit, "If I Could Only Win Your Love." Pedersen had been part of the original recording. Pedersen’s friend Fayssoux McLean joined the duo for high harmonies.

McLean opened the show, bringing a deep Southern drawl and funny stories about Harris and Dolly Parton, as she played a combination of classic country and folk covers, along with a couple of her own tunes. Accompanied by Brandon Turner on often-sizzling, fingerpicked guitar, McLean seemed as comfortable on stage as she might be in her own Spartanburg, S.C., parlor.