Daniel Donato Honors Phil Lesh With Grateful Dead Encore At Capitol Theatre

Guitarist Daniel Donato dedicated his encore Saturday at The Capitol Theatre to Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh. The concert at the storied venue in Port Chester, New York, fell on the first anniversary of Lesh’s death last year at age 84.

Lesh, who played The Cap with the Grateful Dead in the early-1970s, frequently performed at the theater during the post-Dead era of his career, earning a banner inside the building. Donato shared the Capitol Theatre stage with Lesh as part of his Phil & Friends ensemble in March 2024. Those shows marked Lesh’s final birthday run and performances at The Cap.

After delivering two sets with his Cosmic Country bandmates, Donato was alone when he returned for the encore. Carrying along his acoustic guitar, he spoke to the audience about Lesh’s lasting impact.

“Phil lives in my heart every day, and the blood of his music is in the veins of my guitar,” Donato explained. “Something Phil always said was, ‘Each note, each verse, each chorus is new, it’s the first time that you’ve ever played this song, even if you’ve played it dozens, hundreds, thousands of times.’ This day today is the one-year anniversary of Phil’s departure from this material realm. And it’s also further solidification of everything that he gave us and how he’s still very much alive.”

Donato then explained he was taking a cue from Grateful Dead guitarist Jerry Garcia in selecting “Reuben & Cerise,” which Garcia co-wrote with Robert Hunter. The solo acoustic arrangement was Donato’s first public performance of the song.

Donato swapped out his acoustic for an electric Redwood DGN guitar and was rejoined by keyboardist/guitarist Nathan “Sugar Leg” Aronowitz, bassist Will “Bronco” Clark and drummer Will “Mustang” McGee. The full band rolled through three more Grateful Dead songs, covering “Cumberland Blues,” “Loser” and “Samson And Delilah” as part of the special finale.

Watch Donato’s special performance honoring Phil Lesh on the anniversary of his passing below:

Setlist (via DanielBase)

Set One: Lady Justice > Sunshine In The Rain (Strange Presence), Better Deal Blues, Lose Your Mind > Waymore’s Blues > Mystery Train, Ten Feet Of Rope > [1], Double Exposure [2], Boogie Man

Set Two: Half Moon Night, Broadside Ballad > Hangman’s Reel, Fortunate Sparrow, Blame The Train, Dance In The Desert [2], Sugar Shack [3]

Encore [4]: Reuben & Cerise (FTP) [5], Cumberland Blues [6] [7], Loser > [6], Samson And Delilah [6]

Note:

• [1] Will McGee On Lead Vocals (Song)
• [2] Nathan Aronowitz On Guitar And Keys (Song)
• [3] Nathan Aronowitz On Lead Vocals, Guitar, And Keys (Song)
• [4] In Honor Of Phil’s Last Show And Grateful Dead’s History At The Cap (Set)
• [5] Daniel Solo On Acoustic Guitar (Song)
• [6] Daniel Playing Redwood DGN Guitar (Song)
• [7] Daniel, Will McGee, And Nathan Aronowitz Share Lead Vocals (Song)