Warren Haynes 18th Christmas Jam: 12/16/2006

This Christmas Jam was a strange one, with some highs and some lows. Also, things on a personal level were very unsettled at the time, so that affected the overall experience.

The lineup was pretty solid:

• Dave Matthews
• Gov’t Mule
• The John Popper Project Featuring DJ Logic
• Marty Stuart and his Fabulous Superlatives
• New Orleans Social Club (featuring Henry Butler, Leo Nocentelli, Ivan Neville, George Porter & Raymond Weber)
• Taj Mahal Trio
• Special Guests: Mike Barnes, Brendan Bayliss, Randall Bramblett, Audley Freed, Col. Bruce Hampton, Taylor Hicks, Kevn Kinney, Branford Marsalis, Mickey Raphael, Dave Schools

I was really psyched to see Branford Marsalis. He is a virtuoso on the saxophone, and I had really high expectations of him jamming with various groups.

I guess I should address the low points first. John Popper’s group was pretty boring. He is a great harmonica player, but something about him as a frontman just doesn’t spark excitement for me. The other weakness in this show was Dave Matthews. Although I like Matthews, he was totally sick at this show, obviously fighting the flu. He was struggling to sing, and actually had to stop midsong once to get a drink and catch his breath. I give him a lot of credit for getting up there in such condition, but it did not make for a great performance.

As far as the high points, Branford and Taylor Hicks jamming with New Orleans Social Club was mind-blowing. Hicks, the American Idol winner, played harmonica alongside Marsalis, and the look of admiration and awe on Taylor’s face of getting to jam with Branford was priceless. Branford also performed a killer sax solo on “Low Spark of High Heeled Boys.”

The last thing I want to say is that Marty Stuart and his Fabulous Superlatives were awesome. I had seen Marty solo at the Christmas Jam, just sitting in on mandolin, but to see him with his full band was really great. They were really top notch musicians and their entire set was flawless.

I was only able to locate the setlists for Dave Matthews and Gov’t Mule, so here they are. If anyone has any other setlists from this show, feel free to post them in the comments section.

Dave Matthews:

• Bartender
• Grace Is Gone
• #40
• Save Me
• So Damn Lucky
• Smooth Rider (aborted)
• Gravedigger
• Crush
• Long Black Veil

 

Gov’t Mule:

Set I

• Cortez the Killer (w Dave Matthews)
• All Along the Watchtower (w Dave Matthews)
• Reggae Soulshine
• Brand New Angel
• Unring the Bell
• Leaving Trunk

Set II

• Sco-Mule
• Mule
• Sugaree
• I Shall Be Released
• Time to Confess
• 3 String George
• Child of the Earth
• Devil Likes It Slow
• The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys
• I Shall Be Released

Warren Haynes 25th Christmas Jam – Second Night: 12/14/2013

After a long night of music on the first night of the Jam, I rested up and felt ready for the second night’s festivities. The headliners for the second night were:

• Aquarium Rescue Unit
• O.A.R.
• Michael Franti & Friends
• Gregg Allman & Friends
• Grace Potter & The Nocturnals
• Gov’t Mule
• Xmas Jam Band

In addition, there was a nice array of special guests: Craig Sorrells, Bill Evans, Roosevelt Collier, Casey Driessen, Mike Seal, Dr. Dan Matrazzo, Billy Thornton, Ron Holloway, Mike Barnes, Ron Johnson, Jeff Sipe, Audley Freed, Count M’Butu, and John Scofield.

I had seen all the main acts before, with the exception of Aquarium Rescue Unit and O.A.R. I was totally unfamiliar with O.A.R., but had heard of them. I have to say, they were really good. Their version of Led Zeppelin’s “Fool in the Rain” with Warren Haynes sitting in on guitar was excellent.

Of all the bands performing that night, I was most excited about Aquarium Rescue Unit. I’d seen Col. Bruce Hampton several times, and was pretty psyched to see the classic ARU reunited for a live performance. They did not disappoint at all, even though my expectations were high. They totally jammed from beginning to end. Unfortunately, this would be my last time seeing Col. Bruce. Just a few years later, he would die in a way that every musician dreams about. He was on stage with a stellar list of musicians, celebrating his 70th birthday with a concert at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta. While jamming with his friends, in the middle of performing the Grateful Dead’s “Lovelight” as an encore, he collapsed on stage and died. Here is the Jambase article about his death. When I go, I hope it’s like that; guitar in hand and surrounded by my friends.

Anyway, back to the Christmas Jam.

The rest of the night was incredible. It had to be to keep me up until 3:00 am again. While ARU was the highlight for me as far as bands go, the definite high point of the entire night was when Gregg Allman kicked off his set with “Statesboro Blues.” I can’t think of a better Allman Brothers’ tune to open a set.

Speaking of sets, I could not find all the setlists, but here are the ones I was able to locate. Rock on!

Setlists:

Warren Haynes and Craig Sorrells

• Hope She’ll Be Happier

O.A.R.

• About Mr. Brown
• Dareh Meyod
• Black Rock
• Fool in the Rain (with Warren Haynes)
• Peace
• Heaven
• That Was a Crazy Game of Poker

Aquarium Rescue Unit

• Fixin’ to Die
• Elevator to the Moon
• Basically Frightened
• Compared to What
• Yield Not to Temptation (with Bill Evans and Roosevelt Collier)
• Space Is the Place (with Warren Haynes, Casey Driessen, Roosevelt Collier, Bill Evans, Mike Seal, Dan Matrazzo, Billy Thornton, Ron Hollaway)
• Right Now (with Ron Holloway, Mike Seal, Casey Driessen, Roosevelt Collier, Bill Evans, Ike Stubblefield, Billy Thornton, Craig Sorrell)

Michael Franti & Friends

• I Got Love for You
• I Don’t Wanna Go
• The Sound of Sunshine (with Mike Barnes)
• 11.59 (with Mike Barnes)
• Let It Go
• Life Is Better With You (with Warren Haynes, Artimus Pyle, and Chris Pyle)
• Say Hey (I Love You)
• Hey World

Grace Potter & The Nocturnals

• Medicine >
• The Divide >
• Big White Gate
• Stop the Bus >
• Paris (Ooh La La) >
• The Lion the Beast the Beat >
• Nothing but the Water
• Gimme Some Lovin’

Gregg Allman & Friends

(Gregg Allman, Warren Haynes, Audley Freed, Ron Johnson, Jeff Sipe, Count M’Butu)

• Statesboro Blues
• Just Another Rider (with Bill Evans, Ron Holloway, Craig Sorrells , Greg Hollowell)
• Soulshine (with Bill Evans, Ron Holloway, Craig Sorrells, Greg Hollowell)
• Stormy Monday
• Dreams (with Oteil Burbridge, Bill Evans)
• One Way Out  (with Oteil Burbridge)

Gov’t Mule

• Hottentot (with John Scofield and Dr. Dan Matrazzo)
• Doing It to Death (with John Scofield and Dr. Dan Matrazzo)
• Sco-Mule (with John Scofield, Dr. Dan Matrazzo, Ron Holloway)
• Kind of Bird (with John Scofield and Bill Evans)
• Whisper in Your Soul (with Grace Potter)
• Gold Dust Woman (with Grace Potter)

Grateful Dead: 4/3/1990

This was the third and final night of the run of shows at the Omni. Things get stranger and stranger the more time you spend in the Grateful Dead environment, and while the first two nights proved weird (first night / second night), this day was not without its weirdness.

As was par for the course, we managed to get to the show early and found a spot amid the colorful caravan of freaks in the parking lot. Armando, Tim, and I were hanging out, sitting on the hood of the car, watching the parade of oddities move past. Then this one particularly wild-eyed casualty came up to us. His face looked recently scabbed, like he’d taken a nasty fall and scraped his face on the asphalt. He walked up to us with eyes darting schizophrenically around, like a cartoon character.

“Have you seen the Easter Bunny?”

The three of us were puzzled. Armando pressed him for more information: “The Easter Bunny?”

“Yeaaaaaah. I keep hearing the Easter Bunny. Don’t you hear the Easter Bunny? I hear the Easter Bunny!”

I replied sarcastically, “Oh yeah man, I hear the Easter Bunny too.” I had no idea what this guy was talking about.

Then he excitedly pointed to a car a little ways down the aisle, where a crowd of freaks was standing around an entrepreneur with a tank of nitrous oxide gas, selling balloons full of nitrous. “There’s the Easter Bunny!!” And he stumbled off to join the line of people waiting to buy nitrous gas. We finally figured out that this dude must have thought the balloons looked like Easter Eggs. The guy clearly spent way too much time in Grateful Dead parking lots.

After a while, he came back, balloon in hand and smile on his face. “Easter Bunny.” He proceeded to inhale the gas, and we watched as his eyes rolled back in his head and he muttered incomprehensibly. After a while, he wandered off, and we concluded that the Easter Bunny dude must have blacked out from huffing gas, smashed his face on the ground, and sustained his injuries. I felt sad for him. Another lost soul.

The rest of the day was uneventful. We went in to the concert and ran into some friends of ours from South Florida, which was cool. We all hung out together, danced, and had a great time digging the music. The next day we would make the trek back to Miami.

Here’s the setlist from the show.

Set 1:

• Shakedown Street
• Hell in a Bucket
• Sugaree
• We Can Run But We Can’t Hide
• When I Paint My Masterpiece
• Row Jimmy Row
• Picasso Moon
• Tennessee Jed
• Promised Land

Set 2:

• Estimated Prophet
• Scarlet Begonias
• Crazy Fingers
• Playin’ in the Band
• Drums > Space
• I Will Take You Home
• Goin’ Down the Road Feelin’ Bad
• Throwin’ Stones
• Not Fade Away

Encore:

• We Bid You Goodnight

Grateful Dead: 4/2/1990

This was the second of a three-night set of shows at the Omni in Atlanta. My friends and I got to the show early (well, as early as possible considering the long night of music the night before), parked the car in the lot, and proceeded to hang out, enjoying the people watching.

At one point, another vehicle pulled into a space near us with obvious trepidation. We watched as the driver slowly and carefully maneuvered the car into the spot, then backed out, and pulled back in again. And backed out, and pulled back in again. And backed out… After several attempts, the dude pulled completely out, then moved on to a new spot a little further down the row. And pulled in, and backed out, repeating the same back and forth as in the first spot. We decided to make a game of it, trying to anticipate his next move. This resulted in a fit of laughter that lasted until the driver finally gave up and drove off and out of view. When it was time to go into the show, I couldn’t help wondering if the guy ever found a comfortable parking space.

This evening, our seats were in the upper left, also known as the Phil Zone because of the proximity to bassist Phil Lesh. IT was actually was one of my favorite areas to sit at a Dead show, since it provided a good view of the band as they were interacting. Anyway, during intermission, my friend Tim began to exhibit some strange behavior, which caused Armando and myself some slight degree of concern.

Tim: “Is this fun?”

Armando: “Well, yeah. We’re seeing the Dead and having a good time. It’s fun.”

Me: nodding in agreement.

Tim: “I just realized. I’m the creator!”

Me: “Oh yeah. I understand. That’s cool.”

Tim: “No! You don’t understand. It’s like… I’m the Creator!”

At this point, I figured it best to disengage. Thankfully, not long afterwards, the lights went off and the band came out for the second set. I snuck an occasional furtive glance at my friend, who was sweating and struggling, but eventually he seemed to shift into a better space. Before long, he was dancing and back to his old self. Tragedy narrowly averted.

As far as the show goes, it was a solid show, with a bit of a surprise. They played “Death Don’t Have No Mercy,” which they did not seem to play much, and was the only time I had seen the band perform that song. I distinctly recall Jerry delivering a powerful vocal performance, reaching deep and expressing some strong emotion. I wondered if someone close to the band had recently passed away, especially since they also played “He’s Gone.” I never found an answer to the question, but I definitely had the sense that the song selection conveyed someone’s death.

Here is the full setlist from the show. Rock on!

Set 1:

• Feel Like a Stranger
• Mississippi Half-Step
• The Weight
• Queen Jane Approximately
• Easy to Love You
• Brown Eyed Women
• Let it Grow

Set 2:

• Foolish Heart
• Looks Like Rain
• He’s Gone
• The Last Time
• Drums > Space
• The Other One
• Death Don’t Have No Mercy
• Around and Around
• Good Lovin’

Encore:

• Black Muddy River

Grateful Dead: 4/1/1990

Another Spring Tour with the Grateful Dead. By this point, it had become a tradition. I made the trek from South Florida to Atlanta with my two friends, Armando and Tim, who I met at a Dead show at Madison Square Garden.

This first night was an April Fool’s show, which was recorded and several songs later appeared on an album.

The Grateful Dead performed three consecutive shows during their Built to Last Tour on April 1–3, 1990. The shows were recorded and three songs from their April Fool’s Day show “China Cat Sunflower/I Know You Rider” and “Dear Mr. Fantasy” were included on their live album, entitled Without a Net.

(Source: Wikipedia)

We made it up there with no mishaps, secured our hotel accommodations, and went to the first night’s show. We got there early and spent some time checking out the parking lot scene, procuring tee shirts and other wares which were being hawked.

After shopping, we were hanging out by the car when a strange person approached us… strange even by the Grateful Dead parking lot standard. The young man clearly was suffering from chemically induced mental illness. As he began conversing with us, it became clear that he was a crack head struggling with his addiction to crack cocaine. He talked to us about Mr. Rocky, who was an anthropomorphic embodiment of crack rocks.

“Mr. Rocky. You know Mr. Rocky, right? Mr. Rocky. He destroys you mentally, and physical-al-al-lee.”

We talked with the poor soul for a while, before he meandered off on his lonely way. I felt sad for the guy. I had seen people go down that road, and it is a sad road from which few can redeem their lives.

When the time came, we went into the Omni and took our seats, which were lower section at the side of the stage. The show was very good, and hearing Jerry sing “To Lay Me Down” was particularly moving. It is a song that I still love to play on the acoustic guitar, which transitions between major and minor chords in such a way as to stir deep emotion.

Anyway, here is the full setlist from the April Fool’s show.

Set 1:

• Touch of Grey
• Walkin’ Blues
• Just a Little Light
• Candyman
• Me and My Uncle
• Big River
• Althea
• Victim or the Crime
• To Lay Me Down
• Music Never Stopped

Set 2:

• China Cat Sunflower
• I Know You Rider
• Ship of Fools
• Man Smart/Woman Smarter
• Drums > Space
• Dear Mr. Fantasy
• Hey Jude Reprise
• Truckin’
• Stella Blue
• Sugar Magnolia

Encore:

• It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue

Roger Waters: 11/18/2010

My older daughter is a huge Pink Floyd fan, so when I saw that Roger Waters was going on tour and performing The Wall in its entirety, I knew I had to make the effort to take her to see it. The closest performance was in Atlanta, about a three-and-a-half hour drive, so I ordered tickets for her and my brother (also a huge Floyd fan) and we made plans to go.

My brother picked us up and we started the trek down to Atlanta. We were very excited, listening to music, and talking. Then my brother got a call which changed the mood. His wife had gotten some test results back from the doctor and they were not good (thankfully, she is OK now!!). Anyway, I was ready to accept that we would miss the concert. I asked my brother if he wanted to turn around and go home. Ever the pragmatist, he said there is nothing he can do tonight, that we should just go to the concert, and he would drive home through the evening and be home by the morning.

We got to Atlanta and the area around the Philips Arena was swarming with music fans. We went to the Hard Rock Café for dinner, which seemed appropriate. I know the Hard Rock is dubbed TGI Fridays with guitars on the walls, but still, I like it. There’s something cool about being surrounded by rock memorabilia.

We went into the arena, purchased some shirts, and found our seats. Looking down at the floor, there was what looked like a homeless person pushing a shopping cart around and getting hugs and high-fives from people up front. We discovered that he had been a plant outside the venue, begging for money, and that concert goers who were generous with him got upgraded to the front. Nice! Never underestimate the power of being charitable to strangers in need.

The concert started and it was visually stunning. The band sounded fantastic, high-definition images were projected onto the huge wall constructed on the stage, huge inflatable characters came to life, it was everything I expected. Even though I was concerned about my sister-in-law, I managed to enjoy the show. My only criticism is that I wish they would have done an encore, something not on The Wall (Brain Damage/Eclipse would have been perfect). But no, the wall collapsed, debris over the stage, and the show was over.

The drive home was long, especially that late at night, but my brother fueled himself with Red Bull, got me and my daughter home safely, then continued on back to his house.

The other day, I found my shirt from this concert buried in the bottom of my tee shirt drawer. I shook out the wrinkles and wore it. I remembered the concert and how much it meant to me to be sharing the experience of taking my daughter to see one of her favorite musicians. I hope she treasures the memory as much as I do.

Alice Cooper and Cheap Trick: 8/26/2005

This is a concert that has a very special memory associated with it. This was the first concert that I took my oldest daughter to see. Even at a young age, my daughter had great taste in music (a sign that I have done my job as a parent well). She liked Alice Cooper and would listen to the “Welcome To My Nightmare” album a lot, so when I saw Alice was coming to Atlanta, with Cheap Trick no less, I figured it was worth taking a road trip to have a father/daughter bonding experience.

My wife was concerned about me taking our young daughter to an Alice Cooper concert, particularly if I needed to use the bathroom. She did not want me leaving her alone for even one second. Luckily, my brother Mike lived in Atlanta at the time and he was totally interested in going to the concert with us. It also meant we had a place to stay. All in all, it was shaping up to be a great time.

We got to the show, and despite my brother’s warning about how strange of a venue Chastain Park Amphitheatre was, I was still surprised. Chastain sells season passes to really rich folk who bring fancy picnic dinners, have tables set up, and dine by candlelight while enjoying an evening of music. Behind the bourgeois, where we were at, were all the rock and roll crazies. Anyway, it was a very surreal environment.

Cheap Trick came out and they were great, as always. I had seen them many times over the years and loved them each time I saw them. They romped through all their hits and even played “California Man,” possibly my favorite Cheap Trick song. During their set, in a moment of tomfoolery, Rick Nielsen took one of Alice’s band member’s guitars and gave it to someone in the audience. The roadies were quick to retrieve the guitar and bring it back on stage.

I mentioned that “Welcome To My Nightmare” was my daughter’s favorite Cooper album; I should add that “Department of Youth” was her favorite song from that album. So when Alice came on stage and opened the show with “Department of Youth,” it was one of those special moments that only happen at a live music performance. As I saw the rapt look of joy on my daughter’s face, I couldn’t help but feel that Alice chose that song just for us. I know that I’m being naïve, but still, I couldn’t help feeling that way.

The rest of the show was classic Alice: the snake, the guillotine, the straightjacket, and the giant balloons and confetti during “School’s Out.” We had a great time and I have a memory of time spent with my daughter that I will always cherish.

Thanks Alice!