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Danny Barnes Joins Mike Gordon

Photo by Tammy Wetzel

Mike Gordon opened a brief tour with his solo group Friday night at Troy, NY’s Revolution Hall. In addition to the Phish bassist, the group features Scott Murawski (guitar), Todd Isler (drums), Tom Cleary (keyboards) and Craig Myers (percussion). The five musicians’ opening night featured a mix of Gordon solo cuts (“Andelmans’ Yard,” “Dig Further Down”), Phish songs (“Only a Dream,” “Sugar Shack,” “Meat”), Leo Kottke songs (“Middle of the Road,” from his work with Gordon) and covers (Peter Rowan/Bill Monroe’s “Walls of Time”). The group also debuted a new Gordon original, “Fire From a Stick,” at the start of its first set.

Gordon’s tour continued onto New Haven, CT’s Toad’s Place the following night. During the band’s set banjo player Danny Barnes, who opened the night, sat in on “What Things Seem” and “When The Cactus Is In Bloom.” Barnes returned the following night at Stroudsburg, PA’s Sherman Theatre for “Midnight” and a show-closing “Country Boy.”

The Mike Gordon Band has also included material from other band members’ repertories, such as Murawski’s “Willow Tree” and several cuts from Gordon’s short lived G.R.A.B. project with Trey Anastasio and the Duo like “Hap Nappy” and “Suskind Hotel.”