Dave & Co: Watch Dave Matthews Join Dead & Company In Boulder

Dead & Company played the third show of a three-night run at Folsom Field in Boulder, Colorado on Monday night. After inclement weather forced a shortened first set, the second set ended with Dave Matthews joining the band for an extensive sit-in.

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“We’d like to bring someone to the stage now who’s a friend to everyone in the band, a friend to all, and very specially, a hero of mine,” guitarist John Mayer said, adding “Would you please welcome to the stage Dave Matthews!”

Matthews emerged near the end of the second set and launched his guest spot by leading Dead & Co. on “All Along The Watchtower.” Matthews has covered the Bob Dylan song frequently with Dave Matthews Band, including on May 21, 1995, when DMB opened for the Grateful Dead in Las Vegas.

Beginning dramatically, “Watchtower” grew in intensity as Matthews and guitarist Bob Weir howled the lyrics. The beloved “Not Fade Away” came next as Matthews augmented the singalong favorite. Weir handed off one of the “NFA” verses to Matthews. As “Not Fade Away” drew down, Weir pointed from one side of the stadium to the other, encouraging the audience to participate in the song’s signature refrain.

The crowd continued the “NFA” chant after the musicians trickled off the stage. Matthews returned for the encore, again adding acoustic guitar and vocals to a Bob Dylan song, “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door.” There was one additional classic cover on the setlist with Matthews accompanying D&C on The Band’s “The Weight.” Matthews sang the verse typically handled by keyboardist Jeff Chimenti and Weir showcased his upper register when singing his part.

Monday’s concert began with “Bertha” filling the first set opener slot for the third time so far this tour. Weir has been jumping in to assist Mayer with vocal duties on the Jerry Garcia/Robert Hunter composition. Drummers Mickey Hart and Jay Lane emphatically rolled through the lively opener that was punched up by Mayer’s vigorous soloing.

“New Speedway Boogie” was placed in the second slot and chugged along with the thunderous thump of bassist Oteil Burbridge and Chimenti’s nifty piano fills. Mayer then piloted “Cold Rain And Snow,” which featured some spirited back-and-forth interplay between the two guitarists.

Dead & Company moved on to “Jack Straw,” a fitting choice given its “Leaving Texas, fourth day of July” lyrics sung on the eve of Independence Day. Next up was “Althea” maintaining its role as a platform for Mayer to go all in both vocally and with his guitar, the latter via a typically scorching display.

The first set progressed with Weir counting off “Playing In The Band.” Shortly after it started, members of the crew came onstage to alert the musicians of impending severe weather.

“Hells bells, we’ve had a lightning alert,” Weir said before he and his bandmates exited the stage for an earlier-than-expected set break.

Once the storms passed, Dead & Company resumed the concert, picking up “Playing In The Band” to start the second set. “Playing In The Band” soon shifted into “Uncle John’s Band” and after a heightened, aggressive improvisation propelled by Burbridge’s deft bass lines the band segued back to reprise “Playing In The Band” completing what had been planned for the first set.

The standby trifecta of “Help On The Way” into “Slipknot!” into “Franklin’s Tower,” which was intended to be the start of the second set, followed the “PITB/UJB” pairing. The groove that grew around “Slipknot!” was funky and focused, enhanced by Chimenti’s melodic Fender Rhodes and Mayer’s angular injections. The joyous arrival of “Franklin’s Tower” had Mayer hopping around the stage.

After the four winds blew them safely home, “He’s Gone” surfaced and led to a swampy blues motif within its moderately constrained jam. Rising out of the jam was the return of “The Other One” and Weir leading the completion of the version begun the night before by delivering the song’s second verse.

Hart, Lane and Burbridge were then given the stage to present the “Drums” section of the second set. The visuals displayed incorporated a dayglo skeleton marionette Hart picked up in Dallas. An array of drones were also lit up above the stage to form a steal your face. Hart started and ended “Drums” on his drone-inducing stringed instrument The Beam. In between, Hart, Lane and Burbridge pounded out layers of dynamic rhythms.

The drone with drones bled into “Space” as Weir, Mayer, Chimenti and Burbridge came back for the extemporaneous jam. Jagged and otherworldly, Monday’s “Space” lived up to its billing.

From “Space” the band remained in the outer realm through Weir’s steering “Standing On The Moon.” The nostalgic ballad’s lyrics referencing “Old Glory” and “crimson, white and indigo” again fit the pre-Independence Day holiday. The aforementioned Dave Matthews sit-in followed “Standing On The Moon,” putting a memorable cap on the three-night run in Colorado.

Dead & Company’s The Final Tour resumes on Friday, July 7 with the first of two shows at The Gorge. Watch livestreams of Dead & Company’s five remaining shows of The Final Tour via nugs.net

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Audio (Taped by Eric Lugassy)