Jimi’s Dead, the Grateful Dead/Jimi Hendrix tribute led by Eric Krasno and Ross James, rocked New Orleans’ Toulouse Theatre Friday night as part of Live For Live Music‘s Fest By Nite series.
In addition to Krasno and James, the special Jazz Fest edition of Jimi’s Dead featured a lineup including Nikki Glaspie (The Nth Power) on drums, guitarist Brandon “Taz” Niederauer, organist Peter Levin (Gregg Allman, Trouble No More), and vocalist Lamar Williams Jr. (The New Mastersounds, Trouble No More).
From the opening pairing of “Stone Free” > “Shakedown Street” to the set-closing “Love Light” singalong, the all-star ensemble breathed new life into classic songs from two of rock’s most iconic groups. Creative mashups like “Fire” > “Fire on the Mountain” gave Krasno and Taz ample opportunity to showcase their unique voices while paying tribute to guitar legends Jimi Hendrix and Jerry Garcia with inspired improvisation and harmonized leads. Glaspie, meanwhile, filled the shoes of four notable drummers—Mitch Mitchell, Buddy Miles, Bill Kreutzmann, and Mickey Hart—proving her mastery with an impressive mix of jazz improv, deep funk grooves, and technical gospel chops.
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It being Jazz Fest, there were plenty of heavy-hitting musicians making the hang on- and off-stage. Nicki Bloom joined in on a rowdy “Shakedown Street”, and Marcus King sat in on the “Red House” encore. The band also took time to recognize New Orleans funk legends The Meters with “He Bite Me (The Dragon)”, and with most of Trouble No More on hand, they also mixed in some Allman Brothers Band including a cover of “Blue Sky” and mashup of “In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed” and Hendrix’s “Power to Love”.
Check out a video of “Shakedown Street” featuring special guest Nicki Bloom from Jimi’s Dead at Toulouse Theatre below. For more on the project, click here.
Jimi’s Dead – “Shakedown Street” – 4/26/24
Jimi’s Dead was just the beginning of Eric Krasno’s busy schedule in New Orleans during the 2024 Jazz Fest season. He’ll also join members of Lettuce, Dumpstaphunk, The Meters, and more for Crescent City Classics at The Joy Theater on Saturday, May 4th and lead the sold-out 2024 edition of The Daze Between Band featuring Chuck Leavell, John Scofield, and many more at Tipitina’s on Wednesday, May 1st in addition to serving up a set with Krasno/Moore Project during the midweek Daze Between New Orleans festival at Faubourg Brewery (4/30, 5/1).
Live For Live Music and GMP Live’s 2024 Fest by Nite series continues with a packed schedule of late-night jams and special performances during Jazz Fest. Programming includes:
- Daze Between New Orleans Festival ft. Gov’t Mule, Lettuce, John Scofield, & more – Faubourg Brewery – Tuesday, 4/30; Wednesday, 5/1 [tickets]
- TAUK Presents Tower of Wonder: A Tribute to Tower of Power & Stevie Wonder – TAUK ft. Kanika Moore, The Horn Section, Lyle Divinsky – Toulouse Theatre – Saturday, 4/27 [tickets]
- LP Giobbi: Dead House – Civic Theatre – Saturday, 4/27 [tickets]
- The Funk Sessions ft. Stanton Moore, Nels Cline, Skerik, Wil Blades – Toulouse Theatre – Saturday, 4/27 (technically early-a.m. 4/28) [tickets]
- Kitchen Dwellers: A Bluegrass Tribute to Dr. John – Toulouse Theatre – Sunday, 4/28 [tickets]
- Frequinauts ft. Big Chief Donald Harrison Jr., Stanton Moore, & more – Toulouse Theatre – Monday, 4/29 [tickets]
- Andy Frasco & The U.N. w/ Special Guests – House of Blues New Orleans – Tuesday, 4/30 [tickets]
- The Daze Between Band ft. Chuck Leavell, John Scofield, George Porter Jr., & more – Tipitina’s – Wednesday, 5/1 [SOLD OUT]
- John “Papa” Gros’ Papa Plays The Nite Tripper – Toulouse Theatre – Wednesday, 5/1 [tickets]
- Tank and the Bangas – A Special Three-Day Event / Jam Cruise 21 Lineup Announcement Party – Toulouse Theatre – Thursday, 5/2 [tickets]
- Stanton Moore & Friends ft. Robert Walter, Big Sam, Skerik, & more / Jam Cruise 21 Lineup Announcement Party – Thursday, 5/2 (technically early-a.m. 5/3) [tickets]
- Lettuce: Rage Fest – The Joy Theater – Friday, 5/3 [tickets]
- Tank and the Bangas – A Special Three-Day Event – Toulouse Theatre – Friday, 5/3 [tickets]
- Joe Russo’s Selcouth Quartet – Toulouse Theatre – Friday, 5/3 (technically early-a.m. 5/4) [tickets]
- Tank and the Bangas – A Special Three-Day Event – Toulouse Theatre – Saturday, 5/4 [tickets]
- Crescent City Classics: A Celebration of New Orleans Funk ft. members of The Meters, Lettuce, Dumpstaphunk, & more – The Joy Theater – Saturday, 5/4 [tickets]
- Break Science – Toulouse Theatre – Saturday, 5/4 (technically early-a.m. 5/5) [tickets]
- Purple Party: A Tribute to the Music of Prince ft. members of Cool Cool Cool, The Nth Power, Doom Flamingo, Magic Beans, & more – Toulouse Theatre – Sunday, 5/5 [tickets]
The post Eric Krasno, Taz Niederauer, More Unite For ‘Jimi’s Dead’ Hendrix/Grateful Dead Tribute In New Orleans [Videos] appeared first on L4LM.
