reCAP :: Phil Lesh & Friends w/ Keller Williams, Al Schnier, John Kadlecik, Ross James, Jason Crosby, and Joe Russo :: 2014.11.21
Friday night’s Phil and Friends show was a compelling odyssey. The Capitol Theatre faithful witnessed a Masters class in egoless group improvisation. The night was bound for glory as the band opened with a pair from Workingman’s Dead. “Dire Wolf” was imbued with the sweet twangs of acoustic and pedal steel guitars, a subtle and sophisticated opening statement. A schizoid “Cumberland Blues” bounced along in the second spot. At times it was delightfully understated, and then the band would accelerate into a bluesy/psychedelic rampage.
The Phil and Friends lineup consisted of John Kadlecik, Keller Williams, Al Schnier, Joe Russo, Jason Crosby, and Ross James on a few numbers. With the exception of the distinguished gentleman on bass, I won’t mention the names of these musicians again, for the purposes of this review. Everybody was fantastic. And keeping with the collective vibe of the gig, reporting who played what solo during what song isn’t more important than the song itself. The first set rolled on with a sprawling “Cassidy” that peaked, drifted, and eventually resolved itself in its own sweet time. With Thanksgiving on the horizon, the band basted and cooked a tasty “Birdsong.” It was awesome to see Phil leading the charge—some of these cats on stage are young enough to be his grandsons. Mr. Lesh guided the jam way out there—lot’s of playful teasing evolved into a spinning wheel of classic rock which sounded Pink Floydish until the ball dropped on “Down By the River.” The Cap was filled with searing guitars, brother trading lead with brother. Everybody loves a Neil Young anthem, especially when it’s followed by a China Cat > Rider to close the set. This grouping of songs was a great representation from our shared musical past, but the performances removed the constraints of time and place, as if these anthems were busy being born again.
“Mississippi Half Step” kicked off the second set and roared into a mighty “Samson and Delilah.” With a solid rock and roll motif in place, a familiar riff was teased, and then Phil and his men thrilled the faithful by paying homage to Lou Reed with “Sweet Jane.” The joint was jumping, and reeling and rocking. A seamless transition back to a Grateful Dead set list ensued with “Eyes of the World,” which was one of only two songs repeated from last Friday night’s Phil and Friends show. That was a solid show, but this performance was a completely different beast. “Eyes” slammed into the beginning of “Shakedown Street,” more of a collision than a transition. Phil’s bass shook the building as if elephants were stampeding nearby.
Shifting from funk to hardcore psychedelic blues, “Viola Lee Blues” appeared for a little while until Phil’s posse drifted into “Jack Straw.” The first solo materialized into a spacey probe that was nearly ten minutes long. Let’s call this the “Time Out of Straw Jam,” because when everybody’s mind was a million miles from “Jack Straw” and Wichita, the band elegantly slipped back into the “Leaving Texas fourth day of July” verse. It was a delicate and oddly thrilling moment. The “Straw” jam weaved its way back into “Viola Lee Blues.” It seemed like any tune could pop up at any time, yet there was logic to it all, as if the band had knowledge of a secret code of communication, a mysterious mechanism that allowed the music to play the band.
“Viola” shifted from bluesy to jazzy before the pulsating beat of “Fire on the Mountain” burst upon the scene. All the guitar players stepped up and piled on the licks. There’s nothing as naturally exquisite as a Grateful Dead “Fire,” Jerry Garcia could turn two chords into a sumptuous feast, but Phil and Friends made it real by doing their own thing and rolling with their own flow. Like a magnificently orchestrated score, the set landed in a “Viola Lee” reprise. Everything was sweet just like a rhapsody!
As Phil started the donor rap, he thanked the crowd for “Bringing the goods.” Well hey man, it was the least we could do. A “Going Down The Road Feeling Bad” encore closed out another evening of mind left body entertainment. Some of us floated onto the streets of Port Chester, others floated into Garcia’s for some “Dixie Chicken,” courtesy of Sailin’ Shoes. That was a special night in The Cap, perhaps, the best reinterpretation of the Grateful Dead songbook that I’ve ever seen. Speaking on behalf of the audience, we look forward to bringing the goods again.