Back TAB It: Trey Anastasio Band Returns With 1st 8-Piece Concert Of 2025

Phish guitarist Trey Anastasio got his solo band back together for a concert last night at The Bellwether in Los Angeles. The show was the first Trey Anastasio Band full-band concert since September 2024.

The past 11 months have seen Anastasio either opt to perform solo acoustic concerts or play with the smaller Classic TAB formation of the group. On Friday night in L.A., Trey shared The Bellwether stage with drummer Russ Lawton, keyboardist Ray Paczkowski, bassist Dezron Douglas, percussionist Cyro Baptista, trumpeter/vocalist Jennifer Hartswick, trombonist/vocalist Natalie Cressman and saxophonist Kenneth Whalum.

The two set show blended songs from Anastasio’s solo repertoire, Phish crossovers and a couple of covers. Set one began with the versatile “Set Your Soul Free,” followed by the instrumental “Mozambique.” Fellow TAB favorites “Cayman Review,” “Alive Again,” “Dark And Down” and the first “Shine” since 2022 were also part of Friday’s first set.

Those landed among Phish/TAB hybrids like the jazzy instrumental “Magilla,” the rarity “Love Is What We Are” and jammers “Everything’s Right” and “Wolfman’s Brother.”

TAB’s arrangement of Phish staple “The Moma Dance” set the second set sailing. During “Moma,” Trey teased “Tweezer Reprise,” which was played repeatedly by Phish at their most recent tour-ending show at SPAC. At 13-minutes, “Moma” logged the longest jam of the night.

TAB’s funky approach to Phish’s “Camel Walk” strutted in next. “Sand,” which was among the original set of TAB originals, filled the room after several impressive performances of the song by Phish earlier this summer.

Trey proceeded to dial up “Valentine” for the first time since 2022, and then took “What’s Going Through Your Mind” for a flavorful ride. The eight-piece then spun up “Simple Twist Up Dave” and trailed the longtime TAB groover with the optimistic call of “Rise/Come Together.”

The set continued with the unsettling “Monsters” arriving ahead of the first cover of the night, Charlie Daniels Band’s “The Devil Went Down To Georgia,” which TAB last performed in 2019. Phish’s ever-funky “Ghost” and the TAB workhorse “Push On ‘Til The Day” brought the second set to a close. Friday’s encore consisted of “A Life Beyond The Dream” and “First Tube” surrounding a cover of “O-o-h Child.”

Trey Anastasio Band heads north to open for Dead & Company tomorrow, Sunday, August 3 at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco as part of the weekend-long Grateful Dead 60th anniversary celebration. TAB and Dead & Company’s performances will be livestreamed by nugs.

Photos by Steve Rose

Setlist (via Phish.net)

Set One: Set Your Soul Free, Mozambique, Cayman Review, A Wave of Hope, Dark And Down, Magilla, Alive Again, Love Is What We Are, Shine, Everything’s Right, Wolfman’s Brother

Set Two: The Moma Dance > Camel Walk, Sand, Valentine, What’s Going Through Your Mind, Simple Twist Up Dave, Rise/Come Together, Monsters, The Devil Went Down to Georgia, Ghost > Push On ‘Til the Day

Encore: A Life Beyond The Dream, O-o-h Child > First Tube