Around the time of UMBowl IV, once again held at Park West on April 26, 2013, the music world was fixated on one thing: Daft Punk’s return with “Get Lucky” featuring Pharrell and Nile Rodgers. It shattered Spotify streaming records, with the uber-hooky guitar riff living rent-free in the mind of anyone who listened. A mere hours after initially dropping the song, Umphrey’s McGee hit the stage at Stubb’s in Austin and promptly launched into a brief version of the tune (as it stands today, UM has played the song more times than Daft Punk has, which is sad) out of the second set opener of “JaJunk.”

The “Get Lucky” incident is a microcosm of early 2013 Umphrey’s McGee. Nearly every show played in the first half of the year had some type of cover debut or tease-heavy jam. It was, for lack of a better word, fun. UMBowl IV continued that theme, and pushed it to another level as one of the big highlights from this edition was the All Request Quarter where the band certainly let the fans dictate every piece of the action, ultimately yielding three debuts and the first “Cantina Band” in about 100 years. Raw Stewage was also back and better than ever, as “Final Word,” “Amble On,” an early, down-tempo “Cut the Cable” and the popular vocal Stewart “Gravity’s Real” all saw action in the opening quarter.

Also woven throughout the fabric of the show was a Forrest Gump theme, featuring hilarious setbreak videos with Joel Cummins, Ryan Stasik, Brendan Bayliss and others playing roles from the iconic film. The show culminated with a “Running on Empty” encore (the tune was in the film as well) with Cummins as Gump running into the venue. Watch those videos and more highlights below.

Forrest gUMph

“Final Word”

“Gravity’s Real”

“Orion”

“Cantina Band”

“Porch,” “Bullhead City,” “Hey Hey What Can I Do,” “2×2”

Stew Art Quarter

“Get Lucky”

04.26.2013 “UMBOWL IV” PARK WEST, CHICAGO, IL, USA

Quarter 1: FDR > Final Word[1], Amble On[2] > Rise To the Top[1] > Cut the Cable > Constellations[2] > Gravity’s Real[1] > Fool’s Gold[2]

Quarter 2: Orion[3], Cantina Band[4], No Diablo[2], Porch[5], Bullhead City[6], Hey, Hey What Can I Do[7], 2×2[6], Mean Mr. Mustard > Polythene Pam > She Came In Through The Bathroom Window > Golden Slumbers > Carry That Weight

Quarter 3: Stew Art Event

Quarter 4: Wappy Sprayberry[8] > Higgins[8] > Miss Tinkle’s Overture[9] > Regulate[10] > Smell the Mitten[8] > Get Lucky > Puppet String[11]

Overtime: Running on Empty[12]

[1] debut, original; with vocals

[2] debut, original

[3] debut, Metallica

[4] with Imperial March (John Williams) teases

[5] debut, Pearl Jam

[6] Brendan and Jake on acoustics

[7] Brendan on mandolin and Jake on acoustic

[8] unfinished

[9] with Xxplosive (Dr. Dre) tease; unfinished

[10] with In the Kitchen teases

[11] ending

[12] debut, Jackson Browne

Notes:

first quarter was Raw Stewage, comprised of attendees’ votes for past “Jimmy Stewarts”: FDR (04.23.2003 FDR), Final Word (10.19.2005 Der Bluten Kat), Amble On (06.09.2006 Utopian Fir), Rise to the Top (10.12.2005 Making Flippy Floppy), Cut the Cable (11.05.2011 Ringo), Constellations (09.14.2012 Puppet String), Gravity’s Reel (09.14.2012 All In Time), and Fool’s Gold (11.18.2008 Water)

second quarter was comprised of attendees’ votes, “All Request”

third quarter was a Stew Art event: Baby Making Music [with Jake lyrics, a la Michael McDonald] > Jazz/Metal Fusion > Sinister Evil Untz > Simply Ambient Bliss > Moogatize Us [with Jake on keys] > Gin and Juice [Snoop Dogg] > Beach Boogie > Bass n Drum + Joel > Warrior Marching Into Battle > Hillbilly Hoedown > Tribal Drum Jam [with Brendan, Jake, and Joel on percussion] > 70s Disco [with lyrics]

fourth quarter was in “choose your own adventure” style, with attendees voting for the next “adventure” live: Puppet String, 1348, or Wappy Sprayberry; Higgins, Eat, or Lenny; 40’s Theme, Miss Tinkle’s Overture, or Hangover; Regulate, Miss Gradenko, or Rastaman Chant; Kimble, Dear Lord, or Smell the Mitten; Roulette, Bad Poker, or Get Lucky; end of 1348, end of Puppet String, or end of Miss Tinkle’s Overture

the between-quarters videos had a Forrest Gump – gUMph – theme, with the closing scene featuring Joel running across the country and into the venue

last FDR 04.23.2003 (1,256 shows)

last Cantina Band 12.31.2000 (1,604 shows)

last Mean Mr. Mustard 09.29.2010 (299 shows)

last Polythene Pam 09.29.2010 (299 shows)

last She Came In Through The Bathroom Window 09.29.2010 (299 shows)

last Golden Slumbers 09.29.2010 (299 shows)

last Carry That Weight 09.29.2010 (299 shows)