Reviews > Shows

Watching The River Flow: On Tour With Phil Lesh And Bob Dylan (Relix Revisited)

The next evening’s show at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum in New Haven brought out several “friends” who checked out the show—Phish’s Mike Gordon, Zen Tricksters’ Jeff Mattson and Max Creek’s Scott Murowski. The revamping of Phil and Friends’ show to include a freewheeling opening jam continued to yield much in the way of musical fireworks. Once again, the band performed as an ensemble, not just a collection of soloists, with the group locking into some solid grooves before coalescing into a joyous rendition of “Uncle John’s Band.” During the 90-minute medley, Lesh delivered the first ever East Coast performance of the Grateful Dead classic “Pride Of Cucamonga,” while Warren Haynes was sensational during the Phil and Friends original, “Patchwork Quilt.”

Dylan’s set also produced some powerful musical moments. Opening with the gospel-tinged, Ralph Stanley-penned bluegrass tune, “I Am The Man, Thomas,” Dylan displayed some awesome acoustic power during “My Back Pages,” “John Brown” and “One Too Many Mornings.” The song selection was sensational, as was Dylan’s rock solid rhythm section of bassist Tony Garnier and drummer David Kemper, who was a mainstay of the Jerry Garcia Band. Dylan continued to mine gold, performing stellar versions of “Positively 4th Street,” “Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I’ll Go Mine)” and “Leopard Skin Pillbox Hat.” During the encore, Lesh came out to join Dylan’s band for a rollicking arrangement of “West LA Fadeway” and “Not Fade Away” to close the evening. Apparently, Dylan’s band had rehearsed several Dead songs in anticipation of performing with the former Dead bassist, and the preparation was rewarded with a razor-sharp rendition.

One of the most anticipated shows of the tour was the November 13 performance at the Continental Airlines Arena, located in the Meadowlands Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey. This show was long sold-out, attesting to the enormous drawing power of these two world-class artists. The parking lots surrounding the venue were packed with fans early, and it was nice to be back on “Shakedown Street.” The carnival atmosphere was reminiscent of the glory days when the Grateful Dead made this venue a popular stop during its East Coast tours.

Inside the arena, anticipation reached a fever pitch as Lesh and Friends began its show typically with a nearly half-hour jam. Derek Trucks was incredible, and his incendiary slide guitar playing was one of the early highlights of the show. Lesh and Friends’ totally revamped version of Dino Valente’s anthem, “Get Together,” was also a stroke of genius as the song was given a very upbeat, calypso arrangement featuring some relentless poly-rhythms by drummer John Molo.

Warren Haynes delivered a sensational version of the Traffic tune “Dear Mr. Fantasy,” which also displayed the awesome strengths of this band. The die-hard New Jersey crowd exploded in approval from the opening strains of “Cryptical Envelopment” that was only surpassed when Lesh lobbed one of his patented “bombs” during a ferocious “Other One.” The jam that followed included “Days Between” and John Coltrane’s “Blue Train,” before coming back full circle with “Cryptical.” The set-ending “Help On The Way,” “Slipknot” and “Franklin’s Tower” were absolutely thrilling.

As if energized by the exciting set by Lesh, Dylan performed an emotional show that included many of the touchstones of his folk-rock origins. Even though this fiery folksinger was performing before a sold-out throng of 18,000 people, a hush enveloped the arena, making it feel more like an intimate folk club. The crowd reacted to some of the singer/songwriter’s tunes in quiet reverence, and they were rewarded mightily as Dylan delivered a sermon that included “Song To Woody,” “It’s All Right Ma (I’m Only Bleeding)” and “Visions Of Johanna” with stunning power and clarity.

The electric set was no less impressive as Dylan broke out Muddy Waters’ “Hootchie Cootchie Man,” “Tombstone Blues,” “Joey” and a haunting “Not Dark Yet.” During the set-closing “Leopard Skin Pill-Box Hat,” someone from the audience tossed up a leopard print hat, which landed perfectly on Dylan’s microphone. Dylan, who had his back turned when it happened, broke into uncharacteristic laughter when he turned back to sing the song’s final verse. The good vibes continued well into the encore when Dylan was again joined by Lesh for a rousing version of “Alabama Getaway” and “Rainy Day Women No. 12 & 35.” Dylan, Lesh and Dylan’s bassist, Tony Garnier, stood close together, all grinning ear-to-ear during the tasty jam.

After the show, a party was held at the nearby Sheraton Hotel where guitarist Jeff Mattson and bassist Klyph Black from the Zen Tricksters entertained.

If there was one Phil and Friends show to pick as the best, it would be difficult to exclude the show held November 14 at The Centrum in Worcester, Massachusetts. From the opening notes of the show’s jam, to the ending strains of “Not Fade Away,” this show hit the high water mark with many. After a long, sinewy jam that explored every nook and cranny of space, the band exploded into the classic “Dark Star,” with Lesh, Haynes and Rob Barraco sharing each of the song’s verses. Trucks and Haynes proved that they are consummate jammers, each taking a new pathway into the uncharted waters of outer space. The jam led into a wonderful arrangement of “Sugaree” that featured some great vocals by Haynes. The jam that followed led into “Cosmic Charlie” and was welcomed enthusiastically by the sold-out arena audience. The group continued in the spacey mode, again reprising “Dark Star,” including the song’s second verse, before again dropping a bomb on the audience with an explosive “St. Stephen” that would not be complete without an equally pyrotechnic “The Eleven Jam.”

Lesh’s joyous celebration was beautifully capped by “Not Fade Away.” Despite the rousing opening set by Phil and Friends, Bob Dylan and his band continued the relentless pace of the show. Beginning with the seldom performed gospel hymn “Somebody Touched Me,” Dylan’s acoustic set included “To Ramona,” “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright” and “A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall,” which may be as powerful a song as has ever been written. Also featured was “Everything Is Broken,” “Like A Rolling Stone” and a very rare, 15-minute rendition of “Highlands,” that showed a jazzy, poetic side of the rock superstar. Dylan proved again to be a man of many surprises.