Dead & Company‘s game of musical chairs continued on Tuesday in Noblesville, IN as drummer Bill Kreutzmann split the show with his understudy Jay Lane. The concert at Ruoff Home Mortgage Music Center, formerly known as Deer Creek, marked the fourth-consecutive show where the longtime Bob Weir collaborator stepped in for the original Grateful Dead drummer for at least half the performance.
Tuesday’s show started with business as usual, as the ensemble of Weir, Kreutzmann, Mickey Hart, John Mayer, Jeff Chimenti, and Oteil Burbridge waded their way through the surrounding cornfields with a bluesy jam that emerged as “Viola Lee Blues”. Weir got a pep in his step for the “Loose Lucy” that followed before breaking out his paddle for “Row Jimmy”.
Dead & Company – “Viola Lee Blues” [Pro-Shot] – 6/28/22
Mayer and Weir passed the baton back and forth with a quick jaunt through “Friend of the Devil” before bringing up “They Love Each Other”. The recent Dead & Company debut “Foolish Heart” followed, but not before the band’s own foolish Hart took a minute to get the hang of the tune that—up until June 18th in Boulder, CO—he had not performed since July 4th, 2015 at Fare Thee Well.
Dead & Company – “Friend of the Devil” – 6/28/22
[Video: tasteforphree]
Once Dead & Company made its way through the Built To Last Jerry Garcia/Robert Hunter composition, the band locked into a cohesive groove, setting up a series of segues that would carry through the end of set one. A transition into “The Other One” came next, with the full power of the Rhythm Devils chugging along before Weir delivered the first verse. Coming out of the improvisational fog, Dead & Co hopped off the bus with a transition into “Don’t Ease Me In” to end the first set.
Back for more, Dead & Company returned to the Ruoff stage with Lane in place of Kreutzmann. Through the shaky waters, Weir steered the band safely into a pairing of “Lost Sailor” and “Saint of Circumstance”. A nod to the missing member came next with “He’s Gone”, which for the first time in Dead & Company’s history was linked up with the “Lady With A Fan” and “Terrapin Station” movement via a seamless transition.
Dead & Company – “Lost Sailor” > “Saint Of Circumstance”, “He’s Gone” > “Lady With A Fan” [Pro-Shot] – 6/28/22
Per Phantasy Tour, the absent Rhythm Devil reemerged onstage for the “Drums” segment before receding back into the shadows for “Space” and the remainder of the concert. Weir channeled his inner Bob Dylan for a cover of “All Along The Watchtower” before a segue into the remaining verse of “The Other One”, as the band squeezed out any remaining improvisational juices before discarding the rind.
“Standing On The Moon” came next for one final dip in energy before Bobby “Blue” Bland‘s raucous “Turn On Your Lovelight” put an emphatic exclamation point on set two. Taking the Noblesville stage one last time this summer, Dead & Company—still accompanied by Lane—delivered the around-the-horn singalong of The Band‘s “The Weight”, with Weir, Mayer, Burbridge, and the sultry-voiced but seldom-heard keyboardist Jeff Chimenti all getting a verse. The repeated refrain “You put your load right on me,” acted as a fitting summarization of the evolving saga between Lane and Kreutzmann to close Tuesday’s performance.
Dead & Company – “The Weight” (The Band) – 6/28/22
[Video: tasteforphree]
Dead & Company’s summer tour continues tonight, June 29th, at Pine Knob Music Theatre in Clarkston, MI.
Setlist: Dead & Company | Ruoff Home Mortgage Music Center | Noblesville, IN | 6/28/22
Set One: Viola Lee Blues, Loose Lucy, Row Jimmy, Friend of the Devil, They Love Each Other, Foolish Heart > The Other One > Don’t Ease Me In
Set Two: Lost Sailor [1] > Saint of Circumstance [1], He’s Gone [1] > Lady With A Fan [1] > Terrapin Station [1] > Drums > Space [1] > All Along the Watchtower [1] > The Other One [1] > Standing on the Moon [1] > Turn On Your Lovelight [1]
Encore: The Weight [1]
[1] with Jay Lane on drums in place of Bill Kreutzmann
The post You Put The Load Right On Me: Jay Lane Steps In For Bill Kreutzmann At Dead & Company In Noblesville [Videos] appeared first on L4LM.
