Umphrey’s McGee returned to Red Rocks Amphitheatre for a special edition of the band’s annual run featuring support from moe. The two-night affair at the iconic Morrison, CO venue witnessed plenty of cross-band pollination as the Summer Camp Music Festival co-hosts traded sit-ins throughout Friday and Saturday.
The games began on Friday evening as moe. took the stage during a drizzle that would persist all night long. Marking the band’s first trip to Red Rocks as a six-piece, the group made sure to give plenty of love to “the new guy,” keyboardist Nate Wilson, who took lead vocals on the band’s debut of a wicked relevant “Rocky Mountain Way”.
Related: moe.’s Nate Wilson Talks About Joining The Band, Road Gear, And moe.re [Interview]
moe. also offered the first sign of things to come, rekindling the bromance fans witnessed in full force at Summer Camp last month when the bands joined together for a collaborative set. During moe.’s Friday Red Rocks opener, Umphrey’s McGee guitarist Jake Cinninger came out for a rocking “Happy Hour Hero” that served as the first in a long line of weekend sit-ins (which also included moe. superfan Anthony “Zee” Donaldson shaking his stinger in a giant bee suit during a cover of Blind Melon‘s “No Rain”).
During the following UM set, the cats from moe. returned the sit-in favor as bassist Rob Derhak, drummer Vinnie Amico, percussionist Jim Loughlin, guitarist Al Schnier, and Wilson all came out for a set-closing cover of the Rolling Stones classic “Can’t You Hear Me Knockin’”. While the presence of five-sixths of moe. was exciting enough, the most titillating moment of the surprise visit was the reappearance of the massive cowbell the bands used at Summer Camp for an all-time version of Blue Oyster Cult‘s “Don’t Fear The Reaper”.
The clear joy on the mixed-up band’s faces was an obvious nod to their long-standing friendship, ranging from dozens of similar sit-ins to a fake fight backstage at Summer Camp that caught onlookers off guard. Moments like those, as Loughlin clanged away on the oversized cowbell, serve as a wholesome reminder that no matter where they go—from Illinois to Colorado and around the county—these two acts are inextricably linked by something far greater than their choice of niche genres.
The fun continued on Saturday as moe. opened the show, once again calling on Cinninger to stop by for “Opium”. More members of Umphrey’s would follow, as Brendan Bayliss and Joel Cummins helped close out the set by bridging moe.’s debut of Men At Work‘s “Down Under” with the original “Rebubula”. It was truly a full circle moment for, as Bayliss recounted on Friday night, the then-budding bar band out of South Bend, IN with the funny name Umphrey’s McGee started covering “Rebubula” back when they were just starting out their journey a quarter century ago.
The emotional high point of the weekend arrived in UM’s final set of the run when the band brought out moe. guitarist Chuck Garvey for “Glory”. Having returned to full-time touring just months earlier after sitting out for over a year due to a 2021 stroke, every time Garvey steps on stage is its own Rocky moment, and this rendition of the tear-jerking instrumental delivered the musical final punch over Ivan Drago.
Choosing to finish their collaboration with a smile rather than a tear, Umphrey’s brought the moe. men out one last time to lend some hands (and a voice) to UM’s debut of the Metallica staple “Enter Sandman”. With Vinnie stepping in on drums, it freed up Kris Myers to join in with Jim Loughlin and do their best James Hetfield while Jake and Chuck duked it out on the six-strings for the final sit-in of the weekend.
Check out some fan-shot videos of the myriad sit-ins from the Umphrey’s McGee Red Rocks run featuring moe. The two bands now go their separate ways, with moe. heading west for dates in Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, and more. Umphrey’s, conversely, is heading to moe.’s hometown of Buffalo, NY later this month to kick off a string of Midwest festival appearances. For tickets and a full list of tour dates visit UM or moe.‘s website.
moe., Jake Cinninger – “Happy Hour Hero” – 6/16/23
[Video: JamBase]
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