Yesterday, Breckenridge Brewery Hootenanny celebrated its 28th year, with a one-day music festival hosted by the Littleton, Colorado brewery. The day-long celebration of music and beer tapped a noteworthy lineup this year, highlighted by a headlining set by Phish bassist Mike Gordon to close out the night. The festival also saw a rockin’ performance by Hard Working Americans–the supergroup featuring members of Widespread Panic, Chris Robinson Brotherhood, and Great American Taxi–and young bluegrass guitar prodigy Billy Strings.

Drew Emmitt and Andy Thorn of Leftover Salmon invited friends Eddie Roberts of The New Mastersounds, Daniel Rodriguez and Dango Rose of Elephant Revival, and Joe Lessard of Head for the Hills for a special collaborative set. Leftover Salmon’s Vince Herman, Billy Strings, and Drew Emmitt’s son, Eli Emmitt, also joined in on the fun, offering a slew of traditional bluegrass tunes, Leftover Salmon covers, Elephant Revival covers, and more.

Drew Emmitt/Andy Thorn & Friends with Billy Strings – “Sitting On Top Of The World” 

[Video: Kyle Isaac]

The highlight of the blistering-hot day was Mike Gordon’s headlining set. Joined by his regular touring band comprised of guitarist Scott Murawski, keyboardist Robert Walter, drummer John Kimock, and percussionist Craig Myers, the Phish bassist dove head-first into his 90-minute set, following a brief rain and lightning delay. With an extended, jammed-out intro, Gordon opened the show with “Say Something” off of 2014’s Overstep, clad from head to toe in a bedazzled green outfit. “Stealing Jamaica” off of Gordon’s most recent studio release OGOGO came next, before laying down solid renditions of Max Creek’s “Jones”, “Steps”, and Tame Impala’s “Mind Mischief”, a tune that has become a regular cover in the Mike Gordon rotation.

Up next was “Yarmouth Road”, followed by “Crazy Sometimes”, a tune that slowly found its way into the Phish catalog last summer. Gordon and his band delivered a smoking-hot cover of “Cities” in the 97-degree heat, with Scott Murawski nailing the lyrics, adding his own spice to the Talking Heads 1979 classic. The heat was not holding anyone back from getting down and dancing, as Mike brought the one-set show to an end with “Go Away”, another OGOGO tune. After a very brief break to catch his breath, Gordon and his four musical brothers returned for an encore of Aerosmith’s “Sweet Emotion”, with an attentive Colorado crowd singing along.

You can check out a gallery from the 2018 Breckenridge Brewery Hootenany below, courtesy of Bill McAlaine.

Setlist: Mike Gordon | Breckenridge Brewery | Littleton, CO | 7/7/18

Set One: Say Something, Stealing Jamaica, Jones, Steps, Mind Mischief, Yarmouth Road, Crazy Sometimes, Cities, Go Away

Encore: Sweet Emotion