Bob Weir & Wolf Bros returned to The Capitol Theatre on Wednesday for night two of their five-show residency, once again inviting legendary jazz bassist Ron Carter to sit in. The instrumentalist with over 2,000 studio sessions to his name previously joined the band on night one, along with saxophonist Kenny Brooks.
In another stylistic repeat, Weir once again took the stage solo to start the show. Introducing the opening number, Weir said, “This one was written by an old friend of mine,” ahead of Little Feat‘s “Easy To Slip”. The song’s author, Little Feat singer/songwriter/guitarist Lowell George, was indeed a friend of the Grateful Dead during his lifetime and produced the band’s 1978 album Shakedown Street.
Just as he had done the night before, Weir slowly welcomed out the members of his continuously expanding touring ensemble as he worked through the setlist. Marty Robbins‘ “El Paso” saw the onstage personnel grow to include drummer Jay Lane and bassist Don Was, with pedal steel guitarist Barry Sless joining on the following “Queen Jane Approximately”. Finally, the party was complete when The Wolfpack string/horn section came out for “The Music Never Stopped”, which wound through Weir’s “Easy Answers” before an eventual reprisal.
Speaking of reprisals, Carter once again came out to join the band, this time taking on the improvisational behemoth “Dark Star” for a jazz-influenced deep space exploration. Landing back down to Earth, a transition into “Scarlet Begonias” finished off the set and waved goodbye to Carter. The bassist previously performed the Dead’s avant-garde springboard with Bobby at Radio City Music Hal during Weir’s Ace anniversary concerts last year.
Bob Weir & Wolf Bros – “Easy To Slip” (Little Feat), “El Paso” (Marty Robbins) [Pro-Shot] – 12/13/23
The second set saw a more conventional approach with Bob Weir & Wolf Bros starting at full strength with The Wolfpack for “Throwing Stones”. Much of the second set was a continuous stream of music, moving into the first two verses of “Viola Lee Blues” through the latter-era Dead shout-along “Corrina”, past The Beatles‘ “Come Together”, and all the way back to the third verse of “Viola”.
The musical connections continued with the beloved pairing of “China Cat Sunflower” and “I Know You Rider”, before the emotional juxtaposition of the somber “Wharf Rat” and the jubilant “Sugar Magnolia” closed the second set. Returning for the encore, Bob Weir & Wolf Bros celebrated their independence with “Liberty” to cap off night two at The Cap.
Bob Weir & Wolf Bros – “Throwing Stones” > “Viola Lee Blues” (Noah Lewis) > Corrina” [Pro-Shot] – 12/13/23
Bob Weir & Wolf Bros – “Come Together” (The Beatles)
[Video: Patrick Tyrrell]
Check out a gallery of images from Bob Weir & Wolf Bros at The Capitol Theatre on Wednesday courtesy of photographer Maggie Miles. The band returns to The Cap on Friday. For tickets and a full list of tour dates head here.
Setlist: Bob Weir & Wolf Bros | The Capitol Theatre | Port Chester, NY | 12/13/23
Set One: Easy To Slip (Little Feat) [1], El Paso (Marty Robbins) [2], Queen Jane Approximately (Bob Dylan) [3], Hell In A Bucket [4], The Music Never Stopped [5] > Easy Answers [5] > The Music Never Stopped [5], Dark Star [6] > Scarlet Begonias [6]
Set Two: Throwing Stones [5] > Viola Lee Blues [5] [7] > Corrina [5] > Come Together [5][8] (The Beatles) > Viola Lee Blues (Noah Lewis) [5] [9], China Cat Sunflower [5] > I Know You Rider [5], Wharf Rat [5] > Sugar Magnolia [5]
Encore: Liberty [5]
[1] Bob Weir solo
[2] Bob Weir, Jay Lane, Don Was
[3] Bob Weir, Jay Lane, Don Was, Jeff Chimenti
[4] Bob Weir, Jay Lane, Don Was, Jeff Chimenti, Barry Sless
[5] w/ The Wolfpack
[6] w/ The Wolfpack & Ron Carter
[7] Verse 1 & 2 only
[8] Elanor Rigby theme by horns
[9] Verse 3
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