I went to see Phil & Friends at the Warfield on Sunday night. For those not in the know, Phil is Phil Lesh, former bassist for the Grateful Dead. And the Friends are the musicians he plays with now and then. The band on stage at the Warfield was created only for this run of three SF shows. It was a fascinating lineup, and they sounded great!
Joining Phil, John Molo, and Jimmy Herring (P&F regulars) were Chris Robinson (Black Crowes) on vocals, Steve Molitz (Particle) on keys, Barry Sless on guitars, Tim Carbone (Railroad Earth) on violin, John Skehan (Railroad Earth) on mandolin and Gloria Jones & Jackie LeBranch (Jerry Garcia Band) on vocals.
That's a whole lotta talent. They played mostly Grateful Dead tunes, and while at times it felt to me like a nostalgia act, it was just as often truly fresh and inventive. (Though it did make me want to go home and put on a rippin' Dead show from '73 or '77.) It was also just nice to hear Dead tunes wafting through the fabled Warfield, and very cool that they let 'em play until 1:30am.
But the most delightful surprise of the night was to hear the band take on the Particle song "The Elevator" - and really tear it up! Most of the old Deadheads didn't know what it was, but it sure was a treat for me. :-)
Posted by Jason at December 22, 2004 10:12 PM | TrackBack