Marcus King Makes Phil Lesh & Friends Debut: Check Out Setlists, Audio & Video

Guitarist Marcus King took his first turn as a member of Phil Lesh & Friends at The Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, New York on Friday and Saturday nights. The concerts began Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh‘s third and final weekend of Phil Lesh & Friends shows at The Cap for a Phil-O-Ween residency that concludes tonight.

Phil and Marcus were joined in the lineup on Friday and Saturday by guitarists Eric Krasno and Grahame Lesh, vocalist Nicki Bluhm, keyboardist Jason Crosby and drummer Tony Leone. King handled vocals on a mix of covers and originals from the Grateful Dead’s live repertoire as well as a tribute to Jerry Lee Lewis.

The ensemble unleashed an adventurous 13-minute “Cumberland Blues” to kick off Friday’s show. Nicki Bluhm then fronted the group on “Dire Wolf” before Marcus King channeled Merle Haggard on “Mama Tried” and Eric Krasno stepped into the vocal spotlight for “Ramble On Rose.” A dynamic “Peggy-O” played at a fairly fast pace saw Phil, Grahame and Nicki share vocal duties. A gorgeous “Candyman” helmed by Bluhm led into King belting out “West L.A. Fadeaway” to close Friday’s first set.

Marcus King starred vocally and instrumentally on the “Dear Mr. Fantasy” that started the second set on Friday. The Traffic cover bled into a joyous “Turn On Your Love Light” sung by Bluhm. Nicki and Eric Krasno then traded verses on a “Sugaree” filled with fretboard fireworks a plenty from both Kraz and Marcus King. A highlight on a night filled with them came next as Phil & Friends jammed on “St. Stephen” for nearly 15 minutes and followed with a 30-minute pairing of “Mountains Of The Moon” and “Viola Lee Blues” to seal the set. Friday’s encore saw the ensemble work “Deal” into Jerry Lee Lewis’ “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On” and back again. Marcus King sang the tribute which came on the day Jerry Lee Lewis died.

The eighth and penultimate night of this October’s Phil Lesh & Friends residency at The Cap started on Saturday with a rollicking “Friend Of The Devil” starring King. Nicki Bluhm and Eric Krasno then led the troupe through Smokey Robinson’s “I Second That Emotion” ahead of a “Tennessee Jed” helmed by Grahame Lesh and Marcus King fronting George Jones’ “The Race Is On.” The band took it down a notch with blues standard “It Hurts Me Too” and then delivered a rousing “Jack Straw” featuring Phil and Grahame trading lyrics to end Saturday’s first set.

Grahame Lesh stood in as the group’s Bob Weir for the “Sugar Magnolia” that led off Saturday’s second set. Phil & Friends dropped from “Sugar Mags” into “Scarlet Begonias,” which eventually flowed into “Fire On The Mountain” to complete the regular pairing. Marcus King both sang and tore it up on guitar during “Fire.” An exploratory “Let It Grow” came next before a fairly short excursion through “The Other One” featuring Phil Lesh on vocals. Bluhm then sang lead on an emotion-laden “Morning Dew” ahead of Phil fronting one of his signature songs, “Box Of Rain,” to end the frame. Phil Lesh & Friends returned for a “Not Fade Away” encore.

The same Phil Lesh & Friends lineup, with Duane Betts replacing Marcus King, takes the stage at The Capitol Theatre tonight to end the nine-show residency. Watch pro-shot video from the start of each set thanks to Relix along with fan-shot video of the “Deal” featuring the Jerry Lee Lewis tribute below:

Setlists & Full Show Audio (Recordings by Cam Keough)

Friday, October 28

Set One: Cumberland Blues, Dire Wolf, Mama Tried, Ramble On Rose, Peggy-O, Candyman > West L.A. Fadeaway

Set Two: Dear Mr. Fantasy > Turn On Your Love Light, Sugaree > St. Stephen, Mountains Of The Moon > Viola Lee Blues

Encore: Deal > Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On > Deal

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Saturday, October 29

Set One: Friend Of The Devil, I Second That Emotion, Tennessee Jed, The Race Is On, It Hurts Me Too, Jack Straw

Set Two: Sugar Magnolia > Scarlet Begonias > Fire On The Mountain, Let It Grow > The Other One > Morning Dew, Box Of Rain

Encore: Not Fade Away