Widespread Panic kept the fire burning at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, CO on Saturday night, breaking its own record for consecutive sell-outs in the process. The dedicated fanbase lined up hours before the doors opened at 5 p.m. and by that time, somehow, the venue seemed even more crowded than the night prior as people scrambled through the tiered benches to find seats for their crews.
Panic took the stage around half past seven as Dave Schools grabbed “Little Lilly” by the hand and led the crowd swinging onto the dance floor. Jimmy Herring swung his golden axe into the mix before JoJo Hermann manned the helm for a bawdy, piano-laden “Blackout Blues”.
Widespread Panic — “Little Lilly” > “Blackout Blues” [Pro-Shot] — 6/22/24
A string of originals followed as “Better Off” blazed into the instrumental “B of D” until cruising down the familiar streets of “Old Neighborhood”. Shaking off the lingering nostalgia, John Bell saddled up for a high-voltage Bloodkin’s “Makes Sense To Me”. Afterward, JoJo’s piano spilled over into the eleventh performance of “Tackle Box Hero”.
Widespread Panic, Jason Crosby — “Makes Sense To Me” (Bloodkin) — 6/22/24
[Video: MB1 Music]
Breaking the silence, JB welcomed Jason Crosby (Phil Lesh & Friends) to the stage for the first time since Wanee Music Festival in 2018 (RIP). Fiddle in hand, Jason Crosby matched John Bell’s slide for a jammed-out “Ribs and Whiskey” before sliding into the second instrumental of the set, “The Take Out”. The septet rounded out the set with The Dillards’ “There Is A Time” and finished off the four-song sit-in with a fan-favorite “Porch Song”.
Widespread Panic, Jason Crosby — “Ribs & Whiskey” — 6/22/24
[Video: Robbie Massengill]
Widespread Panic, Jason Crosby — “The Take Out”, “There Is A Time” (The Dillards), “Porch Song” — 6/22/24
[Video: Robbie Massengill]
Past the halfway point of the weekend’s run, John Bell returned from set break and thanked Jason Crosby before dialing into the frequency of “Radio Child”. Jimmy Herring pumped pure fuel into the opening tune until the tempo eased into the second Bloodkin cover of the night, “Trashy”. From here on out, Panic only stopped between songs one time for the rest of the set.
An uplifting “Pleas” showcased JoJo’s organ work but the vibes quickly turned raunchy as a “Fishwater” sandwich opened the floodgates for dirty New Orleans-inspired swamp funk. A monumental “Bust It Big” provided the meat of the sammy with sprawling jams as expansive as the amphitheater’s vantage points. Closing out where it started, Panic finished “Fishwater” with a zesty call-and-response reprise between JB and Schools.
After a brief pause, Panic kept it original and JB was on top of his game during a combination of a haunting “Mercy” and forlorn “Cosmic Confidante”. Last night marked the second-ever performance of the song, featured on the recently released Snake Oil King. The song epitomizes Widespread Panic’s style of writing as the humble and simple lyrics capture complex feelings of loss, separation, and long-distance companionship.
Widespread Panic — “Cosmic Confidante” — 6/22/24
[Video: Robbie Massengill]
Still without stopping, Widespread enlisted help from its trusted pilots to load up and take off on “Airplane”. Soaring among the clouds, Jimmy Herring landed safely into Jerry Joseph and Glenn Esparza’s “Climb to Safety” to close the second set.
Returning for the encore, Widespread Panic performed four cover songs to end the night. Murray McLauchlan’s “Honky Red” locked into sheer, badass Panic energy before mellowing it out for Warren Zevon’s “Keep Me In Your Heart”. Last night marked the fourth time Panic covered the tender final song on Zevon’s final album since debuting it at last year’s Red Rocks run. To cap off another incredible night of Panic on the Rocks, Widespread dug into The Guess Who’s “No Sugar Tonight / New Mother Nature” with Schools strutting, singing, and commanding control during this closing pairing.
There’s one more night of WSP on the horizon. Considering Sunday’s show is coinciding with the hottest day of the weekend and doors opening even earlier than the other two nights, this one is sure to be a scorcher in more ways than one. Drink tons of water today because tonight is bound to get reckless. See ya on Schools side. Cheers.
Check out a gallery of images from Widespread Panic courtesy of photographer Brad Niederman.
Setlist: Widespread Panic | Red Rocks Amphitheatre | Morrison, CO | 6/22/24
Set One: Little Lilly > Blackout Blues, Better Off, B of D, Old Neighborhood, Makes Sense To Me (Bloodkin), Tackle Box Hero, Ribs and Whiskey [1] > The Take Out [1] > There Is A Time (The Dillards) [1] > Porch Song [1] (72 mins)
Set One: Radio Child, Trashy (Bloodkin) > Pleas > Fishwater > Bust It Big > Fishwater, Mercy > Cosmic Confidante > Airplane > Climb To Safety (Jerry Joseph, Glenn Esparza) (80 mins)
Encore: Honky Red (Murray McLauchlan), Keep Me In Your Heart (Warren Zevon), No Sugar Tonight / New Mother Nature (The Guess Who) (19 mins)
[1] w/ Jason Crosby on fiddle
71st consecutive sold-out Red Rocks show
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