Dark Star Orchestra Jams With Daniel Donato & Warren Haynes At Dark Star Jubilee

Dark Star Orchestra closed out their Dark Star Jubilee festival with help from guitarists Daniel Donato and Warren Haynes. Donato and Haynes each made two-song guest appearances during the Grateful Dead tribute act’s first of two sets on Sunday at Legend Valley in Thornville, Ohio.

DSO went the “elective” route on Sunday after recreating Grateful Dead setlists from April 9, 1982 on Friday and October 7, 1977 on Saturday. Donato and Haynes were on hand for sets at the final day of Dark Star Jubilee with Cosmic Country and the Warren Haynes Band, respectively.

Warren Haynes and his eponymous band delivered a guest-filled performance at Jubilee. Haynes’ longtime Phil Lesh Quintet bandmate and DSO keyboardist Rob Barraco came out mid-set for “Patchwork Quilt.” Barraco stuck around as Dark Star guitarist Jeff Mattson joined the fray for “Black Peter” and “That’s What Love Will Make You Do.” Then, a few songs later, Haynes brought out Donato for his “Soulshine” finale.

The headliners bookended their final two sets of the weekend with “Not Fade Away.” Daniel Donato emerged after the “NFA” opener to guest on “Cumberland Blues” and “Easy Wind.” The guitarist unleashed blistering runs on the former and showcased a more bluesy tone as he exchanged licks with Mattson on the latter.

Following Donato’s departure, bassist Skip Vangelas channeled the late Phil Lesh in leading his bandmates through “Box Of Rain.” Rob Eaton then fronted “Hell In A Bucket” before Mattson helmed “Althea.” Next came a “Beat It On Down The Line” sung by Eaton and Lisa Mackey. DSO then looked to the Jerry Garcia Band repertoire for a cover of the Allen Toussaint-penned “I’ll Take A Melody.”

Dark Star Orchestra brought out Warren Haynes for a set-closing medley of “Shakedown Street” and “The Low Spark Of High Heeled Boys.” Haynes not only shredded throughout but also handled lead vocal duties.

The final set of the weekend was all DSO. “Scarlet Begonias” opened and gave way to “Eyes Of The World,” which slid into “Corrina.” Rob Koritz and Dino English then engaged “Drums” ahead of the instrumentalists returning for a free-form trip to “Space.” Eaton stepped up for “I Need A Miracle” post-“Space” to begin a run that also included “Dear Mr. Fantasy,” “Morning Dew” and a “Not Fade Away” reprise. Dark Star Orchestra said farewell by covering the CSNY-recorded, Joni Mitchell-written “Woodstock” for their lone encore.

All three days of Dark Star Jubilee were livestreamed via nugs.net. Head to nugs to watch a replay of Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country, Warren Haynes Band and Dark Star Orchestra’s performances.

Setlist (via DSO Forums)

Set One: Not Fade Away > Cumberland Blues*, Easy Wind*, Box Of Rain, Hell In A Bucket, Althea, Beat It On Down The Line, I’ll Take A Melody, Shakedown Street** > The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys** > Shakedown Street**

Set Two: Scarlet Begonias > Eyes Of The World > Corrina > drums > space > I Need A Miracle > Dear Mr. Fantasy > Morning Dew > Not Fade Away (reprise)

Encore: Woodstock

• * W/ Daniel Donato on guitar
• ** W/ Warren Haynes on lead vocals and guitar