Dead & Company Makes Lockn’ Debut

Dead & Company made their Lockn’ debut on Saturday, playing the first of two consecutive nights headlining the festival in Arrington, Virginia. The band offered plenty of Grateful Dead staples while managing to break out from their usual form at several points in the two-set performance.

Dead & Company’s first set started about 35 minutes after Tedeschi Trucks Band’s proceeding set on the opposite side of the Lockn’ rotating stage. Guitarist Bob Weir and his fellow Grateful Dead band mates, drummers Bill Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart, as well as guitarist John Mayer had performed at Lockn’ earlier in the day during the Foundation Of Funk tribute to The Meters featuring members of the legendary New Orleans band. The foursome, along with bassist Oteil Burbridge and keyboardist Jeff Chimenti, opened their first of four sets at Lockn’ with Weir fronting “Hell In A Bucket.”

Weir then led a version of “Scarlet Begonias” that did not segue into its frequent partner “Fire On The Mountain” — that would come in the second set — and instead the band offered up a Mayer-sung “Brown-Eyed Women.” Weir and Mayer then ping-ponged singing lead as the set rounded out with Bobby on “Ramble On Rose” and “Cassidy” and Mayer taking charge of “Alabama Getaway” and the closer “Deal.”

The frequently partnered “Help On The Way” and “Slipknot!” kicked off the second set, but rather than completing the usual trifecta with “Franklin’s Tower” — that would come at the end of the set –Burbridge instead led the group through the previously mentioned “Fire.” Dead & Co. stuck to the expected script by following “China Cat Sunflower” with “I Know You Rider” and opening up the improvisational portion of the set with The Rhythm Devils exploring a variety of textures and tempos during “Drums” and the other members diving into a free-form “Space” excursion. Billy and Mickey then came back and along with Oteil initiated Bobby’s thunderous “The Other One” as the set moved toward a conclusion.

The penultimate selection was the Weir-led ballad “Wharf Rat,” while Mayer was tapped to bring the set to a close with the aforementioned “Franklin’s.” The evening’s encore started with The Band’s classic “The Weight,” featuring Weir, Mayer, Burbridge and Chimenti taking turns with the song’s verses. Bobby’s weekend rocker “One More Saturday Night” closed out the first half of Dead & Company’s 2018 Lockn’ experience. The band headlines Lockn’ again tonight — their final performance of 2018 — with saxophonist Branford Marsalis in line to accompany the group.

Watch last night’s Dead & Company pro-shot performance beginning at the 11:09:26 mark below:

https://livestream.com/TheRelixChannel/events/8341768/videos/179381423