Dead & Company Blow ‘Black-Throated Wind’ Through Las Vegas Sphere

Weekend five of Dead & Company’s Dead Forever residency at the Las Vegas Sphere continued on Friday night aligning the run’s 14th show with the 14th day of June. Friday’s setlist was notable for the first-time Sphere arrivals of two choice songs from the Grateful Dead’s storied catalog.

Dead & Company — Grateful Dead guitarist Bob Weir and drummer Mickey Hart, alongside guitarist John Mayer, bassist Oteil Burbridge, keyboardist Jeff Chimenti and drummer Jay Lane – played “Black-Throated Wind” for the first time in the visually enhanced venue. Weir last led the band through the song he co-wrote with John Perry Barlow nearly one year ago to the day during last summer’s Final Tour.

“Black-Throated Wind” came in the middle of the six-song first set that was bookended with a “Good Lovin’” opener and “Deal” closer. The rest of the set was filled in with “The Music Never Stopped” and “Row Jimmy” ahead of “Black-Throated Wind,” and “New Speedway Boogie” following.

The second set saw the emergence of the tender Grateful Dead song “China Doll,” which had also not been played by Dead & Co. in nearly a year. Burbridge gorgeously sings lead for D&C on the tune written by Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter.

Prior to “China Doll,” set two got shaking with a funky “Shakedown Street.” One of the common trends of the Dead Forever Sphere run has been the tendency to shake up frequently paired song sequences, such as last night when regular companions “Help On The Way” and “Slipknot!” uncharacteristically segued into “Cold Rain And Snow” rather than more usual “Franklin’s Tower” (which was played on Thursday) completing the three-song suite.

The first half of the second set saw “China Doll” give way to “Terrapin Station,” which the band rode into the “Drums” portion of the night. Hart’s droning use of The Beam signaled the transition into the fluid realms of “Space.”

Chimenti led the flow from “Space” into The Beatles’ “Dear Prudence.” Mayer could be seen pumping his bandmates up ahead of the start “Bertha.” The upbeat rocker was followed by another energetic number as “Hell In A Bucket” once again made a Sphere setlist.

The band came back down with “Morning Dew” leading into the 1960s news report about the Grateful Dead being played over the PA. Friday’s final song was “Ripple.”

Dead & Company’s Dead Forever Sphere residency hits the halfway mark with show 15 of 30 taking place tonight, Saturday, June 15. Check out the setlist, The Skinny and video from Friday’s concert below:

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Audience Recording (Taped by Sir Chu Sonoran Dawg)