Up On The Roof: Billy & The Kids Recruit Sierra Hull For Pier To Pier Finale In New York City

Grateful Dead drummer Bill Kreutzmann’s Billy & The Kids concluded their two-show Pier To Pier run at New York City’s Rooftop at Pier 17. Mandolinist Sierra Hull was on hand to perform with Billy & The Kids for the “Dead On The Water” — which kicked off in Baltimore on Wednesday — finale on Friday.

Billy & The Kids’ core four members of Kreutzmann, guitarist Tom Hamilton, bassist Reed Mathis and keyboardist Aron Magner as well as newer “Kids” guitarist Daniel Donato and drummer Jeff Franca launched the set with “China Cat Sunflower” featuring Hamilton on lead vocals. Hull then emerged to lead the ensemble through the Marvin Gaye-recorded “How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You).”

Next, it was Mathis’ turn to keep the band “Truckin,” which stretched to nearly 10 minutes. Hull then helmed “The Race Is On” by George Jones before Donato stepped to the mic for a cosmic “Candyman.” Reed then delivered Bob Dylan’s “When I Paint My Masterpiece” before Sierra sang lead on “Black Muddy River.” “Cumberland Blues” counted as the penultimate song of the set ahead of Hamilton handling “Built To Last” to conclude the first frame.

As they did in Baltimore, Billy and Franca opened the second set with “Drums” followed by “Space,” which led into “Could You Be Loved” with Sierra singing lead. The Bob Marley classic then flowed into an 11-minute “Uncle John’s Band.” Hamilton then took lead on “Bird Song” and latter-day Dead tune “Liberty.”

Next, Hull handled the Al Green-recorded, Talking Heads-covered “Take Me To The River” and stayed at the mic for a locale-appropriate “Wharf Rat.” The second set came to a close with a 15-minute “Franklin’s Tower.” The encore got underway with the Felice and Boudleaux Bryant-penned, Everly Brothers-popularized “Wake Up Little Susie” followed by a fitting “And We Bid You Goodnight” to wrap the run.

Listen to the complete show below via taper Dan Loevy:

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