David Grisman turned 80 this week, and on Tuesday some of bluegrass’ best and brightest came out to celebrate the legendary mandolinist in Seattle. Billed as Dawg At 80, the show was helmed by David and his son Sam Grisman, featuring special guests Billy Strings, Sam Bush, Ronnie McCoury, Danny Barnes, Dominic Leslie, Alex Hargreaves, and many more.
Ahead of Tuesday’s show, Dawg marked his actual birthday on Sunday with a show at the Field Arts & Events Hall. The concert took on a living room atmosphere as Grisman and banjo virtuoso Danny Barnes sat across from each other in easy chairs, surrounded by friends, family, and admirers Sam Grisman, Monroe Grisman, Alex Hargreaves, Ronnie McCoury, Dominic Leslie, Nat Smith, and more. Many of those collaborators stuck around the PNW for a few days to join Tuesday’s show at the Moore Theatre.
While Sunday’s show had an air of living room comfortability with songs and stories from Dawg, Tuesday’s show dove straight into some captivating string music. Forgoing his armchair, David Grisman stood and swayed with the music, looking rather spry for a man of his age. From the center of the stage, Grisman wordlessly commanded the ever-expanding backing lineup of musicians who followed him on his instrumental foxhunts. Dawg explored his expansive discography, including collaborations with Sam Bush, Del McCoury, Tommy Emmanuel, the late Jerry Garcia, and more.
Related: Billy Strings Confirms 2025 Summer Tour
By the time everyone came back out for the encore, there were 30 musicians onstage—spanning generations and genres in an incredible tribute to Dawg’s legacy. One Redditor even likened the closing scene to the iconic “A Great Day in Harlem” photo from 1958 depicting 57 of the most influential jazz musicians of the 20th century gathered together on a front stoop in New York. Sunday’s final lineup included David Grisman, Sam Grisman, Tracy Grisman, Monroe Grisman, Sam Bush, Joe Craven, Danny Barnes, Billy Strings, Ronnie McCoury, Heaven McCoury, Dom Leslie, Alex Hargreaves, Nat Smith, Mike Marshall, Sharon Gilchrist, Darol Anger, Todd Phillips, Grant Gordy, Don Stiernberg, Jack Lawrence, Eric Thompson, Suzy Thompson, Jim Nunally, Keith Little, and Radim Zenkl.
Watch David Grisman, Billy Strings, Sam Bush, and many more bluegrass musicians jam together at Dawg At 80 in fan-shot videos from Max Berde. nugs will air a professional recording of the full concert on Sunday, March 30th. Not a nugs subscriber yet? Sign up for a seven-day free trial here. [Editor’s Note: Live For Live Music is a nugs affiliate. Ordering your nugs subscription or purchasing a download via the links on this page helps support our coverage of the world of live music. Thank you for reading!]
Dawg At 80 — “Grateful Dawg” — 3/25/25
Dawg At 80 — “E.M.D.” — 3/25/25
Dawg At 80 — “Janice” — 3/25/25
Dawg At 80 — “Tipsy Gypsy” — 3/25/25
Dawg At 80 — “Del & Dawg” — 3/25/25
Dawg At 80 — “Hartford’s Real” — 3/25/25
Dawg At 80 — “Dawg’s Waltz (Medley)” — 3/25/25
[Setlist photos via JamBase]