Umphrey’s McGee keyboardist Joel Cummins celebrates his 46th birthday today. The La Grange, Illinois native co-founded UM in 1998 while attending Notre Dame. Cummins has made plenty of guest appearances over the years, including a number of collaborations with Greensky Bluegrass.
Both bands are representatives of the Midwest, so it’s no surprise they’ve joined forces multiple times. A handful of guest appearances took place aboard Jam Cruise, where Joel has performed with GSBG and members of Greensky sat-in with Cummins.
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In 2017, Umphrey’s McGee and Greensky Bluegrass teamed up for a two-night stand at Exploreasheville.com Arena in Asheville, North Carolina for the 2nd annual Blue Ridge Rockway series. The groups exchanged sit-ins during the run. UM and GSBG also appeared on the same bill at countless festivals dating back to the late 2000s.
Old Barns, Little Maggie, She Came In Through The Bathroom Window | January 6, 2011
Greensky Bluegrass made their Jam Cruise debut in 2011, while Cummins was among the special guests for Jam Cruise 9. On January 6, 2011, Greensky played a set in the Teatro Carlo Felice that saw Joel join in on three songs. Cummins added to the GSBG original “Old Barns” and covers of The Stanley Brothers’ “Little Maggie” and the Beatles’ “She Came In Through The Bathroom Window.” Joel handled lead vocals on the latter. The video above is queued to the beginning of Cummins’ appearance.
Joel Cummins was just one of Greensky Bluegrass’ guests on November 21, 2015 at Denver’s Ogden Theatre. Both Cummins and Roosevelt Collier added to the opening pairing of Bill Monroe’s “I’m Working On A Building” and GSBG favorite “Lose My Way.” Video of the latter is featured above.
Joel was a special guest on Jam Cruise 14 in 2016 as were Greensky Bluegrass’ Paul Hoffman and Anders Beck. Cummins recruited Hoffman and Beck to contribute to his atrium set on January 9, 2016. The keyboardist teamed with the mandolinist and dobroist for “Living Over,” an original GSBG debuted just a few months earlier.
Greensky Bluegrass was among the acts performing at the Summer Camp Music Festival’s pre-party on May 26, 2016. Cummins emerged towards the end of Greensky’s set at Three Sisters Park in Chillicothe, Illinois for the quintet’s classic “All Four.”
Jaywalking into Could You Be Loved | September 22, 2018
On September 22 and 23, 2018, Greensky Bluegrass headlined the iconic Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado. Joel Cummins was one of Greensky’s guests during the first night of the run. The Umphrey’s McGee keyboardist helped GSBG end the opening frame with a version of original “Jaywalking” they jammed into a cover of Bob Marley’s “Could You Be Loved.”
