At the tail end of April, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead was scheduled to make their first headlining Red Rocks Amphitheatre appearance with support from Medeski, Martin, & Wood. Unfortunately, their performance was moved to an indoor venue—1st Bank Center in Broomfield, Colorado—due to a snow storm, with their show on April 29th instead marking the Grateful Dead-inspired group’s first-ever headlining arena performance. Happily, a few weeks ago ahead of Labor Day Weekend, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead finally made their triumphant (sold-out) headlining Red Rocks debut, though Dead & Company bassist Oteil Burbridge tagged in for Dave Dreiwitz who was on tour with Ween.
Today, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead has released a new pro-shot video from the group’s 1st Bank Center performance back in April for the 102nd edition of Rad Tracks Monday. The sixteen-minute video shows the band’s show opener on that stormy April night—an appropriate cover of Bob Dylan’s “Shelter From The Storm.” While at the time of the show, there was much speculation about how Almost Dead would change things up given the sudden rescheduling of their performance, many fans guessed that they would go with a more obvious song choice like “Cold Rain and Snow.” Instead, the band dove deep into the Grateful Dead’s catalog history, instead choosing a song that the Dead and Dylan played together on July 24th, 1987 during their shared summer tour that year, which then was segued into the upbeat crowdpleaser “Bertha.”
Bob Weir Joins Joe Russo’s Almost Dead For Five Songs At LOCKN’ [Videos]
Watch the pro-shot video of Joe Russo’s Almost Dead’s 1st Bank Center show opener from April 29th below, featuring a cover of Bob Dylan’s “Shelter From The Storm” and the Grateful Dead’s well-loved “Bertha.” You can also listen to the audio of the full 1st Bank show below, courtesy of Peter Costello and Eric McRoberts.
“Shelter From The Storm” > “Bertha”
Joe Russo’s Almost Dead, 1st Bank Center, Broomfield, CO, 4/29/2017
[Photo: Andrew Rios]
Setlist: Joe Russo’s Almost Dead | 1st Bank Center | Broomfield, CO | 4/29/2017
Set One (8:39PM – 10:17PM): Shelter From The Storm @ (TH) -> Bertha > Let It Grow -> No Quarter Jam # -> Help On The Way > Slipknot! $ > Throwing Stones, Must Have Been Roses, Gonesville % (SM) -> Shakedown Street ^
Set Two (10:45PM – 12:53AM) &&: Morfbeats & -> Space *-> Dark Star + -> Half Step -> Estimated Prophet -> Terrapin Suite > The Other One > Eyes Of The World @@
Encore One: One More Saturday Night -> Cold Rain & Snow Jam ## -> One More Saturday Night Reprise ##, Not Fade Away $$ -> Tequila Jam -> Not Fade Away Reprise
Encore Two: Ripple, Born To Run %%
Notes:
@ – Bob Dylan Cover, First Time Played by Almost Dead
# – Not played by Almost Dead since The Belly Up, Aspen, CO, 2016-07-02, a gap of 32 shows
$ – With a “Duo Jam”
% – Bob Weir cover, from “Blue Mountain”, First Time Played by Almost Dead
^ – With short China Cat & Cold Rain & Snow Jams (Band)
& – Kind of a Drums -> Space Hybrid, with Joe, Adam Morford, Billy Martin & John Medeski, playing crazy percussion instruments created & built by Adam Morford on a riser behind Joe’s kit. Eventually Marco, Tommy, Dave & Scott joined in & the segment evolved into Space. First Time Played by Almost Dead.
&& – Entire second set from Space on & encore with Stuart Bogie on Sax, flute & clarinet.
* – With John Medeski on percussion & then Hammond Organ and Billy Martin & Adam Morford on Percussion
+ – With John Medeski on Hammond Organ and Billy Martin & Adam Morford on Percussion
@@ – With a tease of what I think was a Tears for Fears tune (TH)
## – First Time Played by Almost Dead
$$ – With Black Throated Wind teases (SM), Chuckles (WOLF) Teases (SM) and a “Duo Jam”
%% – Played with the house lights on