Joe Russo’s Almost Dead Unveils Official Audio Of March 2018 Brooklyn Bowl Run Opener

On March 8, 2018 Joe Russo’s Almost Dead returned to Brooklyn Bowl in New York City to begin a three-night stand at the venue where it all started for the band. The latest installment of JRAD’s Taper Tuesdays series features official audio of the group’s bust out and jam-filled show from that memorable evening in Williamsburg.

Drummer Joe Russo, guitarists Scott Metzger and Tom Hamilton, bassist Dave Dreiwitz and keyboardist Marco Benevento opened with an expansive “Alligator” that stretched to nearly 20 minutes. The band then embarked on an inventive version of “St. Stephen” featuring spacey interludes within the choruses. Hamilton went on to lead JRAD through their first “Dupree’s Diamond Blues” since December 27, 2013.

Almost Dead’s performance continued with a spot-on rendition of the complex instrumental “King Solomon’s Marbles.” Then, Metzger fronted the group’s first cover of Jimmy Bryant’s “Only Daddy That’ll Walk The Line” in 129 shows. JRAD concluded the frame with a romp through “Touch Of Grey.”

Joe Russo’s Almost Dead pulled from the Grateful Dead’s early days to kick off the second set with “The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion).” Next came an intense “Jack Straw” that eventually faded into “Hell In A Bucket.” The five-piece then revved into a “Scarlet Begonias” that yielded an unusual jam segment before Marco helped lead a smooth and patient transition into “I Know You Rider.” The set came to a close with a gorgeous and powerful “Stella Blue.”

For the encore, JRAD began with Hamilton belting out Bob Dylan’s “Tonight, I’ll Be Staying Here With You.” The encore rolled on with “Man Smart, Woman Smarter” followed by “Not Fade Away.” A crowd-pleasing moment came when the group worked a jam on Living Colour’s “Cult Of Personality” into “Not Fade Away.” Listen to JRAD’s March 8, 2018 show below thanks to Peter Costello and Eric McRoberts:

Setlist (Compiled by Peter Costello)

Set One: Alligator@ -> St. Stephen -> Jam -> St. Stephen -> Jam -> St. Stephen Reprise -> Dupree’s Diamond Blues#, King Solomon’s Marbles > Only Daddy That’ll Walk The Line$ -> Touch Of Grey

Set Two: Golden Road To Unlimited Devotion -> Jack Straw% > Hell In A Bucket > Scarlet Begonias^ -> Jam -> I Know You Rider&, Stella Blue*

Encore: Tonight, I’ll Be Staying Here With You$$ -> Not Fade Away Jam -> Man Smart, Woman Smarter+ -> Not Fade Away@@ -> Cult of Personality Jam## -> Not Fade Away Reprise

• @ – With a Tennessee Jed Tease (SM)
• # – Not Played by Almost Dead since 2013-12-27 Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, NY, a gap of 141 shows
• $ – Not Played by Almost Dead since 2015-01-24 Brooklyn Bowl, Brooklyn, NY, a gap of 129 shows
• % – With Preceded by a Viola Lee Tease (Band)
• ^ – With a One More Saturday Night Tease (TH)
• & – With a Golden Road Tease (TH) & a “Cult of Personality” (Living Colour) Tease (TH/JR)
• * – With a “Winter War Games” (American Babies) Tease (Band)
• $$ – Not Played by Almost Dead since 2017-05-05Joy Theater, New Orleans, LA, a gap of 34 shows
• + – With a “Revelry” (Traditional) Tease (SM)
• @@ – With a Marco Solo & a Hell in a Bucket Tease (MB)
• ## – An incomplete, instrumental version of a Living Colour song, first time played by Almost Dead