Bob Weir & Wolf Bros treated audiences at Westville Music Bowl on Saturday to a pair of song debuts. The weekend show in New Haven, CT witnessed the Wolf Bros debut of the Weir/John Perry Barlow original “Salt Lake City” and a cover of Bill Browning‘s “Dark Hollow”.
All hands were on deck to start the concert with “Shakedown Street” as the Grateful Dead guitarist/vocalist, bassist Don Was, drummer Jay Lane, and pianist Jeff Chimenti were joined by The Wolf Pack featuring Alex Kelly (cello), Brian Switzer (trumpet), Adam Theis (trombone), Mads Tolling (violin), and Sheldon Brown (woodwinds), along with pedal steel guitarist Barry Sless.
Without stopping, the extended ensemble transitioned into “New Speedway Boogie” before the Wolf Pack departed for the Wolf Bros debut of “Salt Lake City”. Bobby had not performed the track off his second solo album, 1978’s Heaven Help The Fool, since July 10th, 2014 with Ratdog. The bandleader prefaced the song by saying, “Company policy here, we’re gonna try a couple of tunes we’re gonna see if we can remember.” A favorite of his side projects including Bobby & The Midnites and Ratdog, “Salt Lake City” was played just once by the Grateful Dead on February 21st, 1995 in Salt Lake City.
Moving on with the Bob McDill and Allen Reynolds-penned Jerry Garcia favorite “Catfish John”, Bobby and his boys headed down south for a double shot of border tunes with “El Paso” into “Mexicali Blues”. With The Wolf Pack back onstage, the band finished off the first frame with “He’s Gone” into “Cassidy”.
Related: Dead & Company 2022 Tour Recap: Highlights, Stats, & Top Shows
Returning for the second set, Bobby dusted off another old favorite with “Dark Hollow”. The song was a regular in the Grateful Dead’s early acoustic sets and is heard on the 1973 live album, History of the Grateful Dead, Volume One (Bear’s Choice). Weir had not performed the song live since April 19th, 2017 with The Campfire Band, his pre-Wolf Bros outfit that included Steve Kimock, Jon Shaw, and Bryan Devendorf along with Scott Devendorf and Josh Kaufman of The National.
Weir dipped into his solo catalog one last time with “Two Djinn” before the second set fully kicked into gear with “Truckin'”, igniting a seamless transition to “Weather Report Suite” and “Let It Grow”. The time-honored grouping of “China Cat Sunflower” and the traditional “I Know You Rider” came next, before The Beatles‘ “Dear Prudence” and finally the obligatory “One More Saturday Night” capped off the frame.
Taking the Westville stage once more, Bob Weir & Wolf Bros aired the singalong “Ripple” to start the encore. The Wolf Pack then came back out to help reprise the “Playing In The Band” from the night before at the Palace Theatre in Waterbury, CT.
Setlist: Bob Weir & Wolf Bros | Westville Music Bowl | New Haven, CT |10/1/22
Set One: Shakedown Street [1] > New Speedway Boogie [1], Salt Lake City [2], Catfish John (Bob McDill, Allen Reynolds), El Paso > Mexicali Blues [1], He’s Gone [1] > Cassidy [1]
Set Two: Dark Hollow (Bill Browning) [3], Two Djinn [1] > Truckin’ [1] > Weather Report Suite [1] > Let It Grow [1], China Cat Sunflower [1] > I Know You Rider [1], Dear Prudence (The Beatles), One More Saturday Night [1]
Encore: Ripple, Playing (Reprise) [1]
[1] w/ The Wolf Pack
[2] Wolf Bros debut, last played with Ratdog: July 10, 2014
[3] Wolf Bros debut, last played with The Campfire Band: April 19, 2017