Billy & The Kids Tease Reunion

Social feeds for Grateful Dead/Dead & Company drummer Bill Kreutzmann‘s Billy & The Kids project sprouted to life on Tuesday for the first time in over two years. Kreutzmann’s Billy & The Kids band mate keyboardist Aron Magner also teased the return of the group. Billy and Aron are joined in the quartet by bassist Reed Mathis and guitarist Tom Hamilton

“Tap tap, is this thing on?,” noted the post on Billy & The Kids’ Facebook and Twitter. Kreutzmann added, “Check 1-2, 1-2” on his own Facebook and Twitter pages while referencing Billy & The Kids’ feeds. Magner shared the Billy & The Kids’ post and commented, “Checking One. Check. Sibilance.”

The roots of Billy & The Kids date back to a band Kreutzmann put together for the 2014 Lockn’ festival to fill a slot left open by Bob Weir’s cancelation. Hamilton and Magner were members of the all-star Bill Kreutzmann’s Locknstep Allstars ensemble Billy assembled. Kreutzmann announced the formation of Billy & The Kids, with Mathis filling the bass role, a few months later and the band made their debut in December 2014 at Warren Haynes’ Christmas Jam.

Billy & The Kids were known for their unconventional takes on Grateful Dead classics and for the bevy of guests they welcomed to share the stage. The quartet played a handful of shows across the country in 2015 some of which had themes such as “Europe Seventy 2.0” and “Spring ’90 Revisited.” Weir performed with Billy & The Kids three times including the band’s return to Lockn’ in 2015. The group has been on hiatus since an appearance at the 2016 Wanee Music Festival.