Six Proud Walkers Dipped In Moonlight: Dead & Company Concludes Final Run At The Gorge

Dead & Company took the stage for their second of two nights at the idyllic Washington state venue The Gorge on Saturday. The sextet ended their The Final Tour stop at The Gorge with a show heavy on classics from the Grateful Dead heyday of the mid-’60s through the late-’70s.

Guitarist Bob Weir led the group through “Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo” to get the hot night in George, Washington underway. John Mayer shined with soaring guitar work as Dead & Company headed “across the Rio Grand-eo.” Next, Mayer had his first chance fronting the band on a euphoric “Here Comes Sunshine” and filled his nightly blues slot with potent work on Junior Walker’s “Next Time You See Me.” Weir was back in the spotlight for “Loose Lucy” propelled by the rhythm section of drummers Mickey Hart and Jay Lane and bassist Oteil Burbridge. The second “Loose Lucy” of the tour featured a vamp on Al Green’s “Take Me To The River.”

The ensuing “Friend Of The Devil” was a languid affair showcasing the wondrous keyboards provided by Jeff Chimenti. Mayer and Weir shared lead vocal duties on the Hunter/Garcia gem the pair wrote with John Dawson. Chimenti took an impressive piano solo followed by Weir shredding on slide and Mayer trilling up and down the fretboard.

The six-piece stuck to material from the ’70s in closing the first set with “They Love Each Other” and the frequently-paired “Lost Sailor” and “Saint Of Circumstance.” John Mayer sang “TLEO” which was played at a slower pace than the 1973 tempo version trotted out earlier this tour. “Sailor”/”Saint” provided Deadheads at The Gorge with nearly 20 minutes of impressive musicianship. Dead & Company took their time expertly working through every nook and cranny of the song suite. Chimenti utilized every instrument in his set up as the band made their way from one Weir/Barlow masterpiece into another. Dead & Company truly went for it in packing power and emotion into the “Saint Of Circumstance” first set finale.

Dead & Company returned to the stage and kicked into “Playing In The Band.” With just three shows remaining, it’s hard not to think each song played might be the last for the ensemble. If Saturday’s “Playin'” was indeed the final Dead & Company version, the band made it count. Not only was an effusive jam worked between the song and its reprise, there was also a memorable take on “The Wheel.” Arguably the highlight of the night, “Playing In The Band” into “The Wheel” into “Playin’ Reprise” contained plenty of inspired improvisation.

Speaking of inspired improvisation, “St. Stephen” featured an adventurous jam in which the band explored both jazz-fusion and psychedelic soundscapes. Jay Lane crushed it behind the kit and kept the groove going as Dead & Company made their way through the “William Tell Bridge” and into a fiery “The Eleven.” Bobby Weir’s voice is sounding fantastic with his work on last night’s “The Eleven” a prime example. As the Live Dead era chestnut concluded, the instrumentalists left the stage and “Drums” began.

An early section of “Drums” was devoted to a duel between Oteil Burbridge on banjo bass and Mickey Hart on Balafon. Hart slammed up and down the xylophone-like instrument as Burbridge plucked melodies and Jay Lane provided a sturdy beat. All three musicians then moved over to The Beast and pounded out intense rhythms. Then, Mickey Hart headed to The Beam where he seemed to spend more time scrolling through samples than actually triggering them.

“Space” was a particularly short affair at The Gorge. Weir, Mayer, Burbridge and Chimenti toyed around with cosmic sounds yet never connected on any one melody. John Mayer did land on a beautiful progression he used to lead the band into the “Dark Star” they started at the first night of The Gorge run. Chimenti was on electric piano as the drummers returned and the band fully engaged “Dark Star” mode. Weir sang the second verse to close out the two-night spanning rendition of the classic song. Bobby urged “nightfall” as it appeared Dead & Co. would take another stab at “Dark Star” jamming. Instead, the music faded to near silence and John Mayer kicked into “Althea.”

Again, if the “Althea” at The Gorge was the last for Dead & Company, it was a worthy version of the song that introduced John Mayer to the music of the Grateful Dead. Mayer tore it up on his PRS Silver Sky guitar to the delight of the capacity crowd at the majestic venue, while Weir accented both jams and verses with torrid slide work. Bobby then stepped to the mic to front a gorgeous take on the Hunter/Garcia ballad “Stella Blue.” Time was running short, so the band stuck around and wrapped the night with “One More Saturday Night” sans encore break.

Dead & Company brings The Final Tour to a close with a three-night stand in San Francisco next Friday, July 14 through Sunday, July 16. Watch livestreams of all three sold-out The Final Tour shows in San Francisco via nugs.net.

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