Joe Russo’s Almost Dead Welcomes Chris Harford At Lockn’ Festival

Thursday’s action at opening day of this year’s Lockn’ Festival in Arrington, Virginia came to a close with a Relix Stage set from Joe Russo’s Almost Dead. Chris Harford, an old friend of the band, emerged towards the end of the performance to front JRAD on a cover of Neil Young’s “Hippie Dream.”

Drummer Joe Russo, guitarists Tom Hamilton and Scott Metzger, bassist Dave Dreiwitz and keyboardist Marco Benevento held down the late night slot in what has become a Lockn’ tradition. JRAD’s set followed interlocking performances from Umphrey’s McGee and Lettuce that included a collaborative cover of “Hang Up Your Hang Ups” by Herbie Hancock. Russo & Co. opened with a sprawling improvisation they used as a launching point for an energetic take on the Grateful Dead’s “The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion).”

Hamilton handled vocal duties on “The Golden Road” before Metzger stepped up to channel Ron “Pigpen” McKernan on the bluesy “Easy Wind.” JRAD jammed “Easy Wind” into a Hamilton-sung “Row Jimmy.” The meat of last night’s set was an expansive “Let It Grow”/”Dancing In The Streets” segment. Joe Russo’s Almost Dead worked plenty of teases of the former into the latter. Benevento shined during “Let It Grow” with a frenetic solo in which he toyed with tempos. Both Metzger and Dreiwitz took impressive solos as part of a “Dancing In The Streets” that spanned over 20 minutes.

Last night’s Almost Dead set featured a spot-on transition between “Dancing In The Streets” and “Estimated Prophet.” Chris Harford came out following “Estimated” to lead JRAD on “Hippie Dream.” Russo, Metzger and Dreiwitz will back Harford later today during a Chris Harford & Band Of Changes set on the main stage. JRAD performed the Neil Young cover with Harford once prior on October 8, 2016 at Brooklyn Bowl in New York City. The quintet went on to conclude Thursday’s performance with a gorgeous “Morning Dew.”

Joe Russo’s Almost Dead plays a late night set again this evening at Lockn’. Widespread Panic (with special guest Margo Price), George Clinton & P-Funk, Toots & The Maytals (with special guest Taj Mahal) and Chris Harford & Band Of Changes are among those slated to perform at Lockn’ on Friday. Relix and SiriusXM are streaming live from the festival.

Take a look at photos from Thursday at Lockn’ by Ian Rawn:

[Best_Wordpress_Gallery id=”1623″]

Watch pro-shot video of “Jam” > “The Golden Road” > “Easy Wind” thanks to Relix:

Check out a pair of videos shared by Monica Hampton:

[Hippie Dream]

[Dancing In The Streets]

Setlist (via JRAD Is Rad)

Set: Jam > The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion) > Easy Wind > Row Jimmy > Let It Grow > Dancing In The Street > Estimated Prophet > Hippie Dream (w/ Chris Harford), Morning Dew