Warren Haynes Drops In As JRAD Opens Capitol Theatre Run Packed With Bob Weir Tributes
Haynes sat in on Friday and Stuart Bogie joined the fray on Saturday, while Sunday was pure JRAD.
By Scott Bernstein Jan 19, 2026 • 9:31 am PST
Bob Weir was heavy on the minds of Joe Russo’s Almost Dead and those who filled The Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, New York for a three-night stand this past weekend. JRAD sprinkled salutes to the late Grateful Dead guitarist throughout the run, which featured special guests Warren Haynes joining the backhalf of Friday’s show and Stuart Bogie sitting in throughout the concert on Saturday.
The shows took place just a week after Bobby Weir died at age 78 due to lung issues following a battle with cancer. Impresario and Capitol Theatre owner Pete Shapiro addressed the crowd before Joe Russo’s Almost Dead opened the weekend on Friday. He pointed out an image displayed on the walls of a page Weir signed in the guest book at his 42nd and final time performing at the historic rock palace. “Tonight, we’re going to try hard to bring him here for the 43rd time,” Shapiro proclaimed and led a moment of silence in which he urged concertgoers to think about their specific memory of Weir.
JRAD guitarist Scott Metzger, who handles most Weir vocals with the quintet, was on acoustic for a “Weather Report Suite Prelude” he started solo. Bandmates drummer Joe Russo, bassist Dave Dreiwitz, guitarist Tom Hamilton and keyboardist Marco Benevento entered the mix behind Metzger as the group built up to “Let It Grow.”
Friday Livestream Preview
The next 33 minutes were devoted to an exploratory run through “Here Comes Sunshine,” “Scarlet Begonias” and “Cassidy.” A mammoth “I Know You Rider” punctuated the opening stanza. Joe Russo, Weir’s bandmate in Furthur, eulogized Bobby at the end of the set.
Warren Haynes emerged with JRAD at the start of the second set and remained on stage for the rest of the concert. The Gov’t Mule frontman, longtime The Allman Brothers Band member and frequent Weir collaborator made intense contributions to an opening jam that included a brief “The Other One” foray. “Bird Song” came out of the madness with Warren and Tom Hamilton trading lead vocal duties. The six musicians threw in a partial “Mountain Jam” for good measure before ending the “Bird Song.” Haynes honored Weir by changing one of the final lyrics of the song to “something like a bird within him sang.”
“Truckin'” developed out of “Bird Song” and gave way to a Hamilton-sung “Shakedown Street” after 15 minutes. JRAD and Haynes lit into the beloved ABB instrumental “In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed” next and returned to Bobby material with “Deep Elem Blues” ahead of a set-closing “When I Paint My Masterpiece.” Haynes sang JRAD’s second ever cover of the Allmans tune “No One To Run With” to kick off an encore that also included an electrifying “Not Fade Away.”
On Saturday, woodwind specialist and frequent JRAD guest Stuart Bogie showcased his diverse tones on a Bobby-heavy selection of tunes, including “Good Lovin’,” “My Brother Esau,” “The Race Is On,” “Sage & Spirit,” “Playing In The Band” and “Throwing Stones.” Almost Dead surprised fans by opening the second set with just their second-ever performance of “Sage & Spirit” and first since its JRAD debut on June 3, 2022.
Saturday Livestream Preview
Another highlight of night two was an inventive “Help On The Way”/”Slipknot!”/”Lawyers Guns & Money” sequence. The latter, a Warren Zevon cover, was rolled out by JRAD in Feburary 2025 and then played once more before Saturday on August 23, 2025. To start the encore, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead dusted off their take on Bruce Springsteen’s “Thunder Road” for the first time since debuting the cover on August 11, 2023 in Atlantic City. Fittingly, the band wrapped the middle show with “One More Saturday Night.”
Joe Russo’s Almost Dead feted Weir with the pairing of “Lost Sailor” and “Saint Of Circumstance” that got the Sunday finale going. “Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo” followed to lead into a wild set-closing trifecta of “Estimated Prophet,” “Eyes Of The World” and “New Minglewood Blues.” It was back to Bobby-sung material to start the second set with Promised Land,” “Black Throated Wind” and “Jack Straw.” A typically long and adventurous “Terrapin Station” was up next along with “The Other One” hinted at earlier in the weekend.
Sunday Livestream Preview
An emotion-laden “Morning Dew” brought the final set of the weekend to its conclusion. Scott Metzger, who started the run on acoustic, ended the three-night stand the same way by delivering a solo cover of Richard Thompson’s “1952 Vincent Black Lightning” as Sunday’s lone encore.
View livestream replays of all three shows at nugs with an All Access subscription. Watch a collection of videos from JRAD’s latest Capitol Theatre run shot by Monica Hampton below:
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Setlists & Audience Recordings (via Cam Keough)
Friday, January 16
Set One: Weather Report Suite Prelude@ > Let It Grow > Here Comes Sunshine -> The Music Never Stopped -> Scarlet Begonias, Cassidy, I Know You Rider
Set Two: Jam* > Bird Song > Mountain Jam > Bird Song > Truckin’ > Shakedown Street > In Memory of Elizabeth Reed > Deep Elem Blues > When I Paint My Masterpiece
Encore: No One To Run With, Not Fade Away
Note: Entire second set and encore with Warren Haynes
- @ – Scott Metzger on acoustic guitar
- * – with “The Other One” segment
Saturday, January 17
Set One: Good Lovin’ -> Bertha, My Brother Esau, Fire On The Mountain -> The Race Is On, Dancing In The Street
Set Two: Sage & Spirit -> Playing In The Band, Help On The Way -> Slipknot, Lawyers Guns & Money -> Throwing Stones, Brokedown Palace
Encore: Thunder Road, One More Saturday Night
Note: Entire show with Stuart Bogie
Sunday, January 18
Set One: Lost Sailor -> Saint Of Circumstance, Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo, Estimated Prophet -> Eyes Of The World -> New Minglewood Blues
Set Two: Promised Land, Black Throated Wind -> Jack Straw -> Terrapin Station, The Other One, Morning Dew
Encore: 1952 Vincent Black Lightning@
@ – Scott Metzger solo on acoustic guitar
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